• Sat. Dec 21st, 2024

U’s miss chance to set up glamour tie in the FA Cup

Byoxfordnewspaper

Dec 17, 2024

OXFORD United Women missed the opportunity to set up a glamour tie in the fourth round of the FA Cup.

The U’s were beaten 3-2 at home to Bristol Rovers in the third round, thus denying a trip to Women’s Super League side Aston Villa.

Meg Jarvis gave Rovers the lead just before the half-hour mark with an effort from range looping over Paris Sercombe.

Zoe Creaney headed straight at George Hunt and Zoe Barratt shot just wide from the edge of the penalty box before United did indeed find an equaliser.

It came on the stroke of half-time after Hunt got down well to Phoebie Poole’s 15-yard strike, with a clearance hitting Barratt and falling nicely for Poole to poke home from close range.

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Poole then handed the U’s the lead three minutes into the second period, heading in Lucy Trinder’s deep cross from the right.

Rovers levelled matters just after an hour had been played, as former United forward Daisy Ackerman’s cross from the left hit the crossbar and bounced off Sercombe into the net.

Ackerman grabbed her brace just a few minutes later with an almost identical strike from a similar area, but this one flew in without the aid of the crossbar.

The U’s had Rovers penned in for the final 20 minutes, but couldn’t find an equaliser, despite Cecily Wellesley-Smith shooting past the post and Poole curling an effort into Hunt from the edge of the box.