Accrington Stanley Women secured an emphatic 3-0 win against Fleetwood Town Wrens Ladies FC Reserves on Sunday afternoon, as they returned to the Wham Stadium for the second time in less than a month.
Over 500 supporters attended the North West Womens Regional League – Division One North game, and they witnessed another dominant performance by Stanley Women who now move level on points with Preston North End Women FC and Mancunian Unity Women at the top of the table.
Goals from Sanah Mehdi, Cara McCormick and Loulou Newton on her debut secured all three points for Kristian Perry’s side, who have now won three on the bounce, scoring 13 goals in the process.
Ahead of the game, Accrington Stanley Women offered free tickets to supporters, as they returned to the Wham Stadium for the second time in a month, following their 3-1 victory against Preston North End Women in mid-September. Hospitality was also on offer for the game, with people encouraged to come and enjoy a Sunday Roast before the match.
It was Stanley who started on the front foot and just two minutes into the game, Mehdi had a goal ruled out for a narrow offside, following great work in midfield by captain Millie Jardine.
Stanley Women did not have to wait long to take the lead however, with Newton driving through on goal before slotting calmly past Fleetwood goalkeeper Sarah Cook to put the home side ahead after five minutes.
The Stanley pressure kept on coming and after Mehdi had a header well saved, she made no mistake on 16 minutes, tapping home after fantastic work down the right-hand side by Georgia Payton.
On the half hour mark, the visitors came close to pulling one back but Stanley goalkeeper Tanya Nash denied them with an excellent acrobatic save.
Perry’s side pushed hard for a third before the break, but Jardine and Niamh Corrigan were both denied by a determined Fleetwood defence.
The second-half started in similar fashion, with Stanley Women on the front foot and just 10 minutes after the break it was 3-0.
Defender McCormick picked up the ball just over the halfway line, before unleashing an incredible 40-yard strike which lobbed Cook and into the back of the net, to the delight of the home fans.
McCormick’s fifth goal of the season, she nearly made it six moments later, but her corner crashed back off the crossbar.
As the second-half wore on, Newton, Jardine, Payton and Sadie Mitchell all went close to a fourth for Stanley Women, while Ruby Farrell saw her shot drift narrowly wide of the post for the visitors as they went in search of a late consolation.
It was not to be for the away side and Stanley Women secured their first clean sheet of the season.
Kristian Perry, First Team Head Coach at Accrington Stanley Women, said: “It was another great occasion at the Wham Stadium, a lot of spectators came down to watch the game and it was another superb performance by the team.
“We started brightly, as we wanted to, scoring after five minutes and then really we just maintained the game, we carried on pressing and got another two goals.
“It was also a superb performance from Loulou Newton on her debut and overall it was a fantastic team performance, the girls are in the changing room absolutely buzzing and we’ve given them the credit that they deserve.”
Sami Smithson, Chair of Accrington Stanley Women, said: “We are really pleased to have been back at the Wham Stadium, where we have secured another fantastic win. It has been brilliant to have all the community coming out and supporting us again.
“We couldn’t do this without the help and support of David Burgess and the team here at Accrington Stanley, so we would like to thank them very much.”
David Burgess, Managing Director of Accrington Stanley, commented: “It has been great to have the Accrington Stanley Women here at the Wham Stadium for one of their league games. It has been another good result for them and a really good crowd.
“We had just under 600 people here, enjoying a nice, sunny October afternoon and it’s another great result for Accrington Stanley Women and we look forward to doing more of these games into the new year.”
Accrington Stanley Women are next in action on Sunday 15th October when they take on GT7 Academy GT7 Ladies Football Club in the Lancashire FA Womens Challenge Cup. The game kicks off at 2pm and will be played at the Accrington Stanley Community Trust.
For further coverage on Accrington Stanley Women, visit: https://www.facebook.com/AccringtonStanleyGirlsandLadies/
