Town Women back to winning ways in the FA WNL Cup

Glen Preston's side came back from behind to beat York City 3-1 and advance into the next round of the cup.

It is the second week in a row where Town Women have gone behind in the early stages. After last week's disappointment away at Chorley, this time Town had the answers and earned themselves a well deserved win away at York City.

Town showed real resilience in tough conditions, with a goal from Scarlett McMahon…maybe (we will address that). Rebecca Beresford put Town ahead in the second half after going round the goalkeeper and slotting the ball into the net. Finally, substitute Ashley Tiripke got her first goal of the season in added time to seal the victory for the Terriers.

Midfielder Caz Simone said: “It feels good to have a positive reaction from last week.

“We have things that we need to tweak, there are a few parts from our performance that we can build on, but it is just good to get the result and get back to winning ways.

“As a team we have worked on a lot of things and now it is just about getting them to click, building on that team morale and team dynamic throughout the 90 minutes.

“We know we start slow some games, so it is just about making sure we are fast out of the gate and carrying through the rest of the game.”

York City began the game on the front foot. It took them only six minutes to take the lead through captain Ocean Rolandsen, who reacted first when the ball fell to her feet from a corner. Her strike found the roof of the net and Town had an uphill battle once more.

Eight minutes later, Town replied and got the game back on level terms. Kate Mallin looped a corner towards the back post where a game of pinball commenced. The ball eventually found its way to the goal line and amongst a crowd full of bodies, the ball was poked into the goal.

Now, no-one is quite sure who the goalscorer was. As far as we are aware it was last tapped towards goal by McMahon so we are crediting her, but in honesty nobody knows — not even McMahon herself.

Mallin had a great chance to put Town ahead when the ball fortuitously was spilled to her feet by York’s keeper, but her subsequent strike hit the post and was eventually cleared.

Town grew in confidence in the second half. They controlled most of the ball and played the majority of their football in the opposition’s half. They just couldn’t find a chance to put themselves ahead.

That was until the 68th minute, as Beresford took the ball around the on-rushing keeper and eased the ball into the back of the empty net. Exactly what Beresford had been looking for all afternoon, running in behind attempting to get on the end of Town’s long diagonal balls. She got her reward and continued to seek more chances until the final whistle.

In added time, Tiripke had a golden opportunity to put the game to bed after Beth Ibbotson’s shot rebounded to her a few yards from goal but her first touch wasn’t quite enough to set her up for an effort on goal.

Despite that, Town’s substitute Tiripke did take her chance a couple of minutes later in a similar position, as Mallin presented her the ball on the edge of the six-yard box and Tiripke smashed it beyond the keeper to secure Town’s place in the next round.

There is still work for Town to do, as to be expected in the early stages of the season, but there are really promising signs of a side full of talented individuals, committed team players, and a ball-dominant style of play.

Town will play Hull City in the next round of the FA WNL Cup in two weeks time.

Up next for Town Women: A trip up north, as the Terriers travel to Middlesbrough next Sunday for a 2pm kick off.