Great saves, disallowed goals, goalline clearances and defeat on the lottery that is penalties all made for a frustrating Sunday for Bradford City Women.
Local rivals Huddersfield Town instead progress into the quarter-finals of the FA Women’s Premier League Plate competition, having emerged 4-3 winners on spot-kicks after a well-contested 120 minutes ended 2-2.
Kate Mallin scored twice as Town overturned a 1-0 deficit to beat City last month, and she was a thorn in the Bantams’ side again at the weekend.
Her early strike gave Huddersfield the perfect start, while her penalty just before the interval put Town back in the lead after Lucy Sowerby had equalised from the spot herself.
It was at this point where City maybe started to realise it wasn’t going to be their day.
Sowerby had a goal disallowed for pushing on the ‘keeper, and had the referee seen it a different way then the hosts would’ve led at the break as Laura Elford smashed in an equaliser on the stroke of half time.
City still took plenty of momentum into the second period though, with them ready to take the game to their opponents, spurred on by that equaliser.
Ellie Olds looked to have put the hosts ahead for the first time, but a goalline clearance denied the midfielder her second goal in as many games.
Paige Crosby came just as close as full time neared, but her effort struck the woodwork as the game looked destined for extra time.
Even as legs tired in that added 30 minutes, City continued to churn out the chances but just couldn’t get that goal.
Elford brought a particularly great save out of goalkeeper Laura Carter, whose highlights reel was beefed up significantly by her contributions for Town in this clash.
Penalties it was then, and the shootout almost mirrored the game itself.
Town started better, with Mallin tucking away the opening spot-kick as Crosby missed the follow-up.
The two then matched each other for their next three efforts, with Olds, Charlotte Stuart and Elford all on target for the Bantams as we went to the decisive fifth penalties.
Huddersfield crucially missed theirs, the pressure getting to them and giving City the chance to take it to sudden death.
However, the huge weight of pressure then shifted onto Hannah Campbell’s shoulders, and she couldn’t level the scores as the Bantams cruelly exited the competition.
Frustration has been the name of the game in the past two weeks, with this defeat preceded by an unfortunate 4-2 loss away at leaders Blackburn.
But City are doing all the right things and there are positives aplenty as a result.
Photos: George Wood
