Ladies Unable To Bounce Back Against Birmingham City

Things are tough for the Lady Reds, that’s for sure.

After facing defeat to Chelsea in the FA Cup quarterfinals, the Liverpool Ladies were hoping to use their Sunday match against Birmingham as a springboard towards the rest of the season. That unfortunately didn’t happen, as they traveled all the way there to get beat 4-0.

The day started off out of sorts, with manager Scott Rogers missing the day for personal reasons. His backroom team of Jordan Whelan, Phil Blackhouse, and Joe Potts came forward in his stead at Solihull Moors FC.

Hopes were high as Bethany England rejoined the squad after being ineligible in the FA Cup match, as well as the return of youngster Niamh Charles returning to the bench from injury. England is Liverpool’s leading goalscorer, so the potential was there for her to help make it a day to remember.

It wasn’t to be though, despite a strong start from the Ladies. The home side took the lead 12 minutes in, when Rachel Williams sent a fantastic strike into the top corner, just out of reach of Siobhan Chamberlain.

The Reds dug in from there, with every effort going towards finding an equalizer. They nearly had one with a shot from Amy Rodgers at 17 minutes, only to have it go disappointingly wide of the target.

The hosts took advantage, and about a minute later doubled their lead. Unfortunately the Reds left their left channel unprotected, giving Paige Williams all the space to send a cross looping over Chamberlain and into the net. To make matters worse, the Reds left their left channel unprotected, allowing Jess Carter to come in and send a strike off the post for a third. Compounding the frustration for the Reds early on, Liverpool were unable to find a first and were 3-0 behind by halftime.

Liverpool came out with a decent fight for the second half, and with more chances to show for it. Birmingham’s defense were more than capable of handling the game, even with the Reds becoming more bold throughout. Liverpool got close around 55 minutes, with Bethany England sending a cross from Jess Clarke barely wide and Alicia Johnson unable to send it home. England’s missed chances would set the tone for the Reds going forward, definitely an unlucky day for her.

If it weren’t pear shaped from there, it definitely got worse when Ellen White put a fourth home at 81 minutes.

Not a great showing by the Ladies and doubly disappointing following the loss to Chelsea last weekend. It’s hard to deny that times are tough for them right now but there’s gotta be hope that they’ll be able to turn it around by the end of the season. They have another chance, traveling to visit Yeovil Town next Saturday, and hopefully they’ll be able to make things right there.

Disappointing to say the least. Positives to take from the second half but we just weren’t good enough. Thank you to the fans as always for the support and travelling! #LLFC

— bethany england (@Bethany_Eng15) March 25, 2018

Source: liverpooloffside.sbnation.com