Spence Has Mixed Feelings Following WinEverton Ladies manager Andy Spence admitted he had mixed feelings despite watching his side progress to the semi-finals of the SSE Women’s FA Cup with a 6-1 win over Durham Women on Sunday.
The Blue Girls found themselves two goals to the good at the break after Courtney Sweetman-Kirk and Olivia Chance struck, however Spence admitted his side were far from their best in a first half that he insisted failed to match the standards his players have set in their first season back in WSL 1.
However, the result was an important one for the Toffees, who saw Sweetman-Kirk net her first ever professional hat-trick and Jodie Brett register her maiden Everton goal. The victory means Everton now face Arsenal in the semi-finals, with a place at Wembley up for grabs, and Spence was pleased to have secured safe passage.
“We went in at half-time leading, but I felt we were fortunate to be two-nil ahead,” he told evertonfc.com. “I said at half-time that if we scored a third goal then it would be enough for us to go on and win the game, but if it went to Durham then it would be a totally different game. It was close at times, they hit the post and the bar and Kirstie has made some good saves.
“We have had two weeks leading into the game and had a lot of good work on the training ground, but we couldn’t transfer it onto the pitch and that was a disappointing aspect because we knew what we had to do and we knew what threats they carried but we didn’t deal with them.
“Fair play to Durham, it is easy to look at ourselves but you look at the opposition and in terms of performance they were the better team.
“That aside, it is brilliant to be in the FA Women’s Cup semi-finals. It is massive for the Club and has been since we’ve been in the later stages of this competition. It is an opportunity to come up against a really good side in Arsenal and test ourselves against one of the best in the country.”
However, with the semi-final to be played on Sunday 15 April, Spence is adamant that the focus now switches back to league matters.
The Toffees head up to Sunderland on Wednesday night looking to leapfrog the seventh-placed Black Cats. But having an in-form striker in Sweetman-Kirk – who took her tally to nine for the season with her treble against Durham - only improves the chances of success.
“You can only concentrate on the game ahead which is Sunderland so we have to come in on Monday and recover well,” added Spence. “We’ll have a light session Tuesday and play Wednesday. That is all I can focus on, and I say to the team all the time that it is what you do daily which gets you to be a good player and team.
“We have to work hard and make sure the next two days are brilliant and carry that on to Wednesday and get back to the level we know we can be.
“I am really pleased for Courtney. She is someone we brought into the Club to score goals and she has done that on a consistent basis. She has had a good run in the Cup and the season as a whole, and has set high standards.
“Courtney is the best player I have ever seen in the gym because she does her work right, recovers well, mentally prepares right for games and she gets her rewards, in this case with a hat-trick. She probably cost us £50 for the match ball, but we are happy to do that if it gets us to the semi-finals!”