Wolves Women are set for a testing but exciting start to the new year after finishing their 2023 fixtures with a 4-1 FA Cup victory over Hull City.
In the first few weeks of 2024 Dan McNamara’s team will face Championship club Reading in the fourth round of the cup while also taking on the National League Northern Division’s top two clubs, Newcastle United and Burnley, as they look for points to close the gap on the pacesetters.
Demanding as each of those games will undoubtedly be, however, manager McNamara is looking ahead with confidence following his side’s recent goal-filled run of seven wins from eight matches in all competitions.
In the FA Cup alone Wolves have hit the net 19 times, with just one goal conceded, in the three rounds to date. “The girls have been on fire,” says McNamara. “We’ve scored some brilliant goals in the cup run we’ve been on, and just as impressively we’ve been so resolute in defence.”
Two of the three cup ties that have been sailed through have been against sides from a tier below Wolves in the league pyramid, but Reading are in a tier above and will provide much sterner opposition as the fifth round beckons.
The tie will be played at Aldershot Town’s EBB Stadium on Sunday 14th January. “It’s going to be a great experience for the girls,” says McNamara, “and they’ll definitely go there feeling they can win the game.
“In the last few seasons we’ve beaten teams in a league above us in cup competitions and we can do it again. It will probably be our toughest game of the season so far, but we’ll look forward to it and I truly believe we can go through.”
The cup tie comes along a week after 2024’s opening league fixture, at home to Burnley, with the visit to Newcastle set for the first weekend in February.
Wolves head into the new year sitting fourth in the table, seven points behind second placed Burnley and a further five points below leaders Newcastle.
McNamara says: “We’ve got to play Newcastle twice so there’s the chance to narrow the points gap on them, and after drawing with Burnley away it would be great to start the new year by beating them at home.
“Newcastle’s squad is now fully pro and Burnley also have some full-time professionals, so we can’t compete with either club financially.
“But the facilities our players have here at Wolves are up there with the best and we can certainly compete with them on the pitch.”
Newcastle and Burnley are the only clubs in the division who have not yet lost a league game, while Wolves have suffered two defeats – each of them after having a player sent off inside the first 20 minutes of the match.
“We have to control our emotions better at times,” notes McNamara, “but generally speaking our discipline has been good and we’ve produced some great performances and results in the season so far - now we have to kick on and make 2024 another good year for the football club.”
By Tony Leighton
