It was a close match between the two teams who both showed great skill, but it was Oxford United’s attentive nature in the game that put themselves ahead and secured a 1 nil win.
With both clubs putting forth a few shots on target, it was Leah Burridge who put the ball in the back of the net for Oxford United on the stroke of half time.
Cheltenham Town Ladies struggled to equalise despite their consistent efforts with plenty of shots towards the goal particularly from Phoebie Poole.
With strong on attacks from the get-go, Cheltenham didn’t make things easy for Oxford, but this wasn’t enough for them to prevent the lead.
Noticing the patterns, Oxford United benefitted from the gaps Cheltenham ladies would leave in their spacing up the pitch between them claiming back the ball at ease.
In the second half we saw a few tough tackles as the rain picked up; ten minutes into the second half Lily Billingham had to be treated after a dangerous tackle from the opposition.
Following the tackle, Billingham was unable to continue with the match which led to a substitution bringing on debutant Tasha Harding.
The match last night marked coach Tom Davies 75th match in his role with the team with a result he may not have hoped for.
In a post-match interview with Davies, he praised the defence of the team but wished for the team to have created some better opportunities to score.
“We need to make sure that were creating better quality chances for our forwards and our attacking players.”
“A little bit disappointed but a defeat will always be disappointing.”
“We’ll look to build on the positive performance, what we’ve done well, and look to put those little things right.”
Davies may be disappointed but outlined the great possession of the team and will look to build on this as they approach their next match up against Billericay Town FC women on Sunday.
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Cheltenham town ladies season so far in the FA Women’s national league has seen a strength in their home matches up until last night.
With a clear strength in their attack, Cheltenham Town ladies show good potential as a team, missing out on crucial goals where they overshot, either hitting the cross bar or going too wide.
