Lads Club and Hay Proceed in HFA Womens Cup
The first round of the revitalised HFA Women’s County Cup got underway on Sunday with four of the eight competing teams in action. Hereford FC hosted Hereford Lads Club at Old School Lane whilst Tupsley Ladies took on Hay St Mary’s at Victoria Park.
Both Hereford and Lads Club went into the tie having started their Midwest Counties League campaigns in fine form occupying 3rd and 4th positions with just 1pt separating them in the table. With this being Hereford’s debut season in women’s football, this match provided them with the first opportunity to test themselves against last season’s league champions Lads Club. Lads Club started the game strongly and raced into a 3-0 lead after just 15 minutes with Mel Mayo, Emily Morgan and Sarah Bishop on the scoresheet. With the score remaining 3-0 at half time team manager Scott Russell acknowledged it was “always going to be tough” to respond. Hereford FC applied some sustained pressure on the Lads Club goal in the second half but were kept at bay by Jade Hodges in the away goal. Lads Club extended their lead in the second half again through Sarah Bishop before Roxana Dinescu pulled a deserved goal back for the Bulls. Marcus Jenkins, Lads Club manager, went on to say “the whole team gave a 100% committed performance and deserved the win as well as real credit for their professional and respectful display."
In the other first round tie, Tupsley were competing in just their third ever competitive match – against last season’s Development League runners up Hay St Mary’s. The two teams had already met in the league earlier this season with Hay prevailing 6-3 in a hugely entertaining match. This cup tie again proved to be an exciting affair with the score tied at 4-4 with around 15minutes still to be played. Hay’s experience proved decisive in the closing stages as they grabbed a couple of late goals to see out the tie 6-4. Pru Whitworth was pleased to come out on top in such a competitive game and praised Tupsley “They gave us a great game and a real run for our money in order to get the win”. Kirsty Lewis, Lauren Bradford, Rebecca Payne, Jade Perry (x2) and Sara Miles grabbed the goals for Hay St Mary’s whilst Jordan Ashford, Katie Morris, Kate Price and Kirsty Dodd-Cox contributed the goals for Tupsley.
Hereford Lads Club & Hay St Mary’s will be keeping an eye on the remaining ties with Ludlow Ladies against Belmont Wanderers and Bartestree taking on Ross Juniors for a place in the semi-finals. The draw for the semi-finals will be made on Monday 17th December. Herefordshire FA have previously run a Women’s County Cup in conjunction with Worcestershire FA, however have now relaunched the competition due to the growth of ladies football in the county.
For more photos courtesy of Helen Warwick click the link below
Women’s football is continuing to grow in Herefordshire and this is the perfect time for new players to get involved! If you or someone you know is interested in playing football, whether it is to get fit, meet new people or for some competition you can get started by contacting Joe.Mathias@HerefordshireFA.com / 01432 342179