Wolves Women produced an outstanding performance as they beat Burton Albion Ladies 11-2 on Sunday afternoon in the National League Division One Midlands.
Hat-tricks from Jade Cross and Lois Jefferies did the bulk of the numerical damage in what was a resounding team performance, with Wolves recording back-to-back league victories and setting the pace at the top of the table.
Despite Wolves taking an early lead when Cross capitalised on some hesitant Burton defending, the hosts equalised through Ellie Milson in what was set up to be an end-to-end contest in Staffordshire.
However, by the interval Wolves had emphatically put the game beyond their opponents as they displayed a clinical eye in front of goal. Lyndsey Glover restored the lead with a powerful near-post finish, before Anna Morphet curled in a superb free-kick to extend the advantage just after the half-hour mark.
Jefferies struck her first into the top corner after a sharp burst down the right, with cross doubling her tally when she rounded the goalkeeper for Wolves’ fifth on the stroke of half-time.
Flowing with confidence from the opening 45 minutes, Dan McNamara’s side picked up where they left off striking a further three times in just six minutes. Shannie Jennings and Andrea Barnett both found the same far corner either side of another thumping Jefferies effort.
The attacker completed her treble from the penalty spot after she was felled by Ella Doocey, before it was the turn of Cross to notch her own hat-trick when she again proved lethal from close range at Hillsfield.
Burton pulled a goal back through Laura McQuilkin’s penalty, but it was to be Wolves who finished off the scoring when substitute Jamilla Palmer raced away from the Albion defence before firing the ball into the bottom corner.
Moment of the match
When Morphet stood over a first-half free-kick her teammates in the box were set poised for an inviting delivery, but clearly with other ideas, Morphet aimed for goal and succeeded spectacularly as her left-foot effort found the corner to put Wolves into the ascendency.
Reaction
Manager Dan McNamara was brimming with pride following the thumping league victory.
He said: “I thought we were excellent today. We were clinical in front of goal. First 20 minutes I thought the game could have been dead, we could have been four or five up, but we found out feet in the end and were more clinical in the second-half.
“I don’t think it was our best performance, I think we adapted to the game and how that panned out, with Burton pushing so high up the pitch I felt to keep clipping it in behind with the quality we’ve got in the front three was the right way to go and it obviously paid off in the end.”
McNamara then explained what it was that pleased him most about the performance.
He added: “It’s the amount of goal scorers that we had. Last year we were very much struggling in front of goal, it was Jade Cross or no one. But today it is seven different goal scorers, we got goals all over the pitch which is pleasing heading into a busy time in the season.”
Lois Jefferies, one of Wolves’ two hat-trick scorers, was keen to deflect attention onto a strong team display.
She said: “It is of course always nice to score, but I think today the amount of goals and how we scored the goals, they were really good. So, we’re really happy as a team.
“We don’t want to be one dimensional, we want to be different and score all types of goals, we did that today. We can be really proud of ourselves.”
Coming up
Next up for Wolves Women is another league away trip on Wednesday 4th September, this time against The New Saints with a 19.45 kick-off. We then return to home soil for the visit of Leicester United WFC on Sunday afternoon.
New five
04/09 | The New Saints (A)
08/09 | Leicester United (H)
15/09 | Leafield Athletic (A)
29/09 | Doncaster Rovers (H)
09/10 | Sporting Khalsa (H)
Teams
Burton Albion: James, Rothery, Lane, McQuilkin, Davis, McCallion (Doocey 61), Da’Casto, Spears, Hornsby, Badach (Warrington 70), Milsom
Unused subs: Ablott, Maitland, Browne.
Wolves: Thomas, Buck, E.Cross, Morphet, S. Jennings, Jones (Keitley 60), Glover, Walker, Barnett (Palmer 60), Jefferies (Wilson 70), J.Cross
Unused subs: Price, Widdal
Report by Thomas Smith
