Coventry City Ladies head into their top of the table clash with Derby County on a real high after their stunning comeback at the weekend. The penalty shootout victory at TNS & Shrewsbury Town capped a marvellous fightback from a 2 goal halftime deficit.
Goals from Centre of Excellence graduates Nicole Tinto & Jade Ogle hauled Coventry level before fellow graduate Adele Rodgers stole the show in dramatic fashion saving two spotkicks.
In reward for their Cup heroics the Sky Blues have been handed a tough draw away to Northern Premier League side Leicester City Women. The 2 clubs know each other well as the Foxes pipped City to promotion last season. Coventry failed to win in any of the 3 meetings last term including a 1-0 defeat on the last day of the season in a winner takes all battle for the league title. Manager, Paul Cudby said he was "delighted" by the draw, "I see it as an opportunity to test ourselves against a team from a higher level & one we have aspirations to match".
First Team Coach Scott Riddell reflected on the second round win & was "absolutely delighted" with the teams spirit. "The older players led by example with the fightback & you don't need to look any further than the younger players who also made a massive contribution today. Nicole worked tirelessly & gave us the shot we needed with her goal. Adele played well throughout and topped it off in the shootout with 2 great saves. Jade Ogle & Emily Hanson helped change the game, they were terrific in midfield, Jade's goal was a wonderful strike & Emily's debut was terrific, there's no doubt she earned the chance to take the winning penalty".
Cudby was also over the moon with his sides' performance, "today's result was a real feather in the players' caps in terms of their character. As if the conditions weren't tough enough, it was a long journey & the opposition was of very high quality, so to come back from being two down at the half is something quite special. The players all know though that there's a lot of hard work to be done in order to keep improving. If we can all keep putting in that effort we have a marvellous chance to keep this run going".
If the Sky Blues are to continue a run that has seen them win 6 straight they'll need to overturn a Derby County side that have made an unbeaten start to their league campaign. The Rams have won 5 out of 7 & sit 2 points ahead of Coventry in the Midland Women's Combination League. Last season the Sky Blues won all three meetings including a 2-1 victory in the second round of the FA Cup.
The game kicks off at 14:00 at the Coventry University Sports Ground on Westwood Heath Road.