Town Women continue FAWNL campaign
- Town Women welcome Brighouse Town on Wednesday 25 August 2021
- Game kicks off at Stafflex Arena at 7.45pm
- Town Women hoping to build on Middlesbrough win
Town Women host local rivals Brighouse Town in their third game of the season at home in front of fans on Wednesday evening.
The fixture is a late 7.45pm kick off with many fans from both sides expected through the gates to witness the action.
Despite being in separate leagues last season, both teams met in a thrilling 1-1 draw that saw the Terriers victorious during the penalty shootout. If this Women's FA Cup match was anything to go by, then Wednesday is set to be another tight contest. Brighouse have also shown that they have an attacking threat with 7 goals scored in 2 games.
Previously Huddersfield made it their first win of the season as they beat Middlesbrough 3-1 at Billingham Town Football Club on Sunday. Ria Montgomery opened the scoring, a long range strike chopped over the keeper, her first official goal for Town in the 14th minute. Laura Elford made it two 4 minutes later with Katie Stanley finishing the game off in style 5 minutes before half time smashing the ball into the back of the net from close range.
Interim Manager Steve Appleton gave his take on the feeling around the club at this stage.
“I feel very fortunate to be able to work with such a talented group of players and be part of a club with great staff with the ambition to be successful.”
On his knowledge of the opposition having been involved in the Women’s Football pyramid for some time, Appleton said:
“I’ve been previously involved at Stoke Women and Liverpool Feds over a number of seasons and have continually followed the league wherever I’ve been coaching. I’ve come up against a lot of teams and players in our league, so I can prepare for games with some knowledge of our opponents as well as putting together a game plan for ourselves.”
The Town Manager admits the occasion is massive with a homecoming for his side. Appleton is committed in keeping momentum going from the successful season last year.
“You can’t get better than a home debut, under the lights against a local rival, I’m really looking forward to it and hopefully we’ll get a good crowd behind us, support good the team.”
“It’s about maintaining a degree of continuity, the club was in a great position when I took over, so the plan is to build on that, we’ve made some great additions to our squad, we’ll try to make some small adjustments to our playing style, but we’re trying to make the transition from pre pandemic to now, as seamless as possible.”
He is relieved to see fans back in the football world and understands what the nature of the game means to so many around the world.
“It’s been so long since anyone has been able to watch football, so just having our supporters there will be a massive boost to everyone and from a personal standpoint, I’m looking forward to meeting with as many as I can.”
“I’ve learnt very quickly how much this game means to the players and from my experience of being involved in local derby’s, I’m expecting nothing less than a full blooded affair, with both teams giving their all for the 3 points. Last seasons FA Cup game won’t count for anything on the day, it’s all about Wednesday night and I couldn’t be happier to be a part of it.”
