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We talk to…..
Helen Ward (Watford)

Watford made an impressive move into the Fourth Round of
the Women’s FA Cup on Sunday with a 5-0 victory over
Plymouth Argyle, who are one of their rivals in the Southern
Premier Division title race.
We talked to Watford striker Helen Ward, who was full
of praise for the whole team for their performance against
Plymouth and is looking forward to the trip to either Fylde or
Sunderland in the next round, as well as what she feels will
stay a close title race for the remainder of the season:

HW: It was obviously a very pleasing result last weekend,
keeping a clean sheet is especially important as we know
how well Plymouth have done in front of goal this season so
to keep them out was testament not only to the way we
played and defended, but also to our coaches and manager
who set us up in a way that would help us and dominate
both in and out of possession. I don’t know if it is the best
we have played, but it’s certainly up there.

HW: Yeah, I think 2-0 is always a nice score but the other team know that one goal can swing
momentum and change the game in their favour. A team who have been disappointing in the
first half will often come out fighting in the second so for Leggy to score so early was great for
us and almost put the result beyond doubt.

HW: I think when you play teams relatively close together, the way they play is always a bit
fresher in your mind. We were aware of their danger areas and we analysed the footage as a
group to pinpoint what we needed to do this time around to perhaps limit their efforts on goal.
At the same time, we also made sure we looked at what worked for us and how to maximise
the players and the style we have to ensure we caused problems for them.

HW: Obviously, in terms of logistics, a Northern team is often a bit trickier to negotiate but in
terms of the possible teams we could face, it is great for the FAWNL to know they will have a
representative in the next round. It is also good to pitch ourselves against a side who are at the
same tier as us, but who we don’t often get the opportunities to play. We went up to
Middlesbrough last season and did well there so let’s hope we can do similar this time around.

Issue no. 19 - 9 January 2020 news@womenssoccerscene.co.uk