Bristol Rovers 6-1 Corsham Town
FA Women’s Cup, Oaklands Park Stadium, Sunday 4th October
Bristol Rovers Women breezed past Corsham Town in the third round of FA Cup qualifying as a first-half Libby Davies hat-trick and Ellie Preece brace saw them on their way to a 6-1 win.
Corsham took a surprise lead through Maddy Elliot, but the Gas were level by the quarter-hour mark, with Davies firing past sister Nia for her first of the afternoon. It didn’t take long for Rovers to go ahead either, as Davies stepped up to convert the penalty won by Emily Wilkinson within 20 minutes.
Preece then added goals three and four within moments of each other, before Davies made it three goals in five minutes to wrap up her hat-trick.
The Gas continued on the front foot after the break, and Lilia Dempsey rounded off the half-dozen goals for Rovers late in the second half, putting her side in the draw for the first round proper.
Goals have been flowing when Rovers turn to cup action, and it took less than 10 minutes to find the opener in this one too. Sadly for the hosts, it was the Quarrywomen who struck first, with Elliot doing well to expose a gap in the home defence, going on to finish into an empty net from a tight angle.
It didn’t take much time for Rovers to respond though. After Nia Davies’ clearance cannoned off sister Libby, the striker pounced on the loose ball to breach the Corsham backline with ease, emphatically striking into the roof of the net.
And a matter of minutes later, the Gas were presented with the opportunity to go ahead from 12 yards, as Wilkinson was bundled over inside the box. Stepping up, Davies coolly converted from the spot to put her side ahead for the first time in the tie.
From there on, Rovers were firmly in the driving seat and comfortably controlled proceedings. With the Corsham defence easily breached in behind already, Preece got herself onto the scoresheet when she found ample time to pick her spot and double the advantage.
No sooner had the ball made its way back to the centre circle, Preece completed a quickfire double. This time the attacker drove a shot hard and low across goal from the right, hitting the post on the way in to give the Gas two players on hat-tricks.
And as if two goals in two minutes wasn’t enough, Rovers made it three in five as Davies claimed a match ball on the half-hour mark. Preece was the provider this time, glancing Davies’ header into the striker’s path, with the number nine then deftly flicking the ball into the net from around 10 yards out as the defence failed to clear.
Four to the good could’ve been five too, but Davies’ ball through to Lashai Mcnama was slightly overhit as the keeper smothered the opportunity to prevent the Gas from grabbing another.
With confidence flowing, Rovers didn’t let up in the second half and kept up their momentum. Preece couldn’t quite finish an early chance for her hat-trick, while McNama saw more of the ball on the opposite flank and continued to pose a threat with her pace.
Approaching the hour mark, Preece was replaced by Lilia Dempsey, who wasted little time in getting stuck in, almost setting up Davies for a fourth before showcasing more of her ability by skipping past a couple of markers to earn a corner.
In the closing stages, it was again Dempsey with a great chance for the sixth. When the ball fell kindly for the winger, she set her sights on the top left corner, but the effort was well saved. Helena Costa was next to try her luck, shooting from the edge of the box after some nice interchange between Dempsey and Bella Tweddle.
Eventually, pressure paid off and Rovers got their deserved sixth goal of the day with Dempsey converting at the back post. Tweddle did brilliantly to recycle the ball following a set piece, and after a few deflections in the box, Dempsey was on hand to round off a wonderful cup outing for the Gas.
Bristol Rovers XI: Hunt, Douglas ©, Moises (Esmond 58), Turner, Wilkinson, Trinci, Exley, Preece (Dempsey 58), Scahill (Tweddle 75), Mcnama (Temple 68), L.Davies (Costa 84)
Goalscorers: L.Davies (14, 18, 31), Preece (27, 28), Dempsey (86)
Unused subs: I.Davies, Clark
HALLETT-YOUNG: WE RESPONDED REALLY WELL AND NEVER LOOKED BACK
Q: Nathan, six goals and a place in the First Round Proper. A successful afternoon?
Nathan:
"Yes, definitely. All week we've spoken about not getting dragged into a cup tie. On paper, it's a game we should be winning when we're playing a side a couple of leagues below us, and I'm pleased we managed to show that.
We were a little bit sluggish at the start and conceded because we were poor in those opening moments, but from then on we responded really well and never looked back. That's the ideal outcome for us.
One of the main things we wanted to focus on was how we play in possession and how we dominate and control the ball, and I think we did that for large parts of the game. Credit to their goalkeeper as well because she made a number of good saves and probably kept the scoreline down.
It was pleasing to see the ruthlessness we showed, particularly in the first half. Going in 5-1 up at the break was nice, and in the second half we were able to stay calm, stay controlled and just make sure we got through the tie before turning our attention to Abingdon next week."
Q: You went behind early on, but you must be pleased with the response?
Nathan:
"Absolutely. To be honest, we've done it all season. We've shown that resilience time and time again. Look at the Wycombe game, for example. We went behind and still found a way to get the result.
I don't think there's ever any panic if we go a goal down. We know we've got the character to turn games around when we need to.
That said, we do want to find a way to start games better and with a bit more control. Sometimes in matches like this, where you're expected to win, it can take a little longer to get up to speed. That's no disrespect to the opposition; it's just the nature of football.
The important thing for us is that once we conceded, the players responded brilliantly and got themselves into the next round."
Q: Libby returned to the side and scored a hat-trick. How impressed have you been with her?
Nathan:
"She's flying. Since she's come in, she's made a massive impact. Across her first few games, she's already contributed a number of goals and assists, and she's settled in really quickly.
That's great for us because we've now got someone leading the line who's consistently producing. It's a long season, and when chances come along, you need players who can take them.
Libby gives us that extra threat, and she's someone opposition teams will have to plan for. At the same time, we've got players around her contributing as well. Ellie scored twice today and put in a really strong performance, while LaShay has had some excellent displays over the last few weeks.
We're in a really good position in the attacking areas because everybody is pushing for places. The more competition we have, the better it is for the team. Hopefully we can keep building those connections and continue getting the results we need."
Q: It's been a couple of weeks of cup action. Are you looking forward to taking this form back into the league?
Nathan:
"One hundred per cent. The league is our bread and butter. The FA Cup is brilliant, especially from a financial perspective, and naturally these are the rounds you want to progress through.
For us, though, it's about getting back into league action, building momentum and putting together a strong run of results. The performances have been good recently, and if we can keep that going, it'll put us in a really strong position.
Abingdon will be a tough test next week, but it's one we're looking forward to. If we can find a way to get a result and keep climbing the table, that's all we can ask for."
DAVIES: IT'S A GOOD WIN FOR THE TEAM, AND WE'RE PLEASED TO BE THROUGH TO THE NEXT ROUND.
Q: Libby, a hat-trick, a cup win and facing your sister. That sounds like a pretty eventful afternoon.
Libby:
"It definitely was! I'd be lying if I said there weren't a few nerves before the game because I knew I'd be playing against my sister.
Overall, though, I'm really proud of the girls and really proud of my sister as well. I thought she had a great game and made some excellent saves, especially in one-on-one situations.
It's a special day personally, but most importantly it's a good win for the team, and we're pleased to be through to the next round."
Q: Your goal tally for Rovers keeps growing. Do you have a favourite from today?
Libby:
"It has to be the penalty. I was definitely a bit nervous taking it because I really wanted to score against my sister, but it was also an important goal because it put us in front.
Thankfully it went in, and I was really pleased with that one."
Q: A performance like that must give the team a lot of confidence going forward.
Libby:
"Definitely. Everyone's buzzing after that.
It was a good performance overall, although there are still things we can improve. We started a little slowly and conceded, so we'll look at those areas in training and make sure we keep improving.
The key thing is to build on the momentum we've got now and take that into the game against Abingdon."
