Coventry City Ladies secured top spot in the Midland Women's Combination League with a well earned 2-1 win at home to Derby County. First half goals from Crissy Torkildsen & Milly Durrant were enough to see the Sky Blues past the Rams & means that the two clubs switch position as they jostle for promotion. The victory, however, was tarnished by what appears to be a serious hip injury for Jade Formaston.
Torkildsen & Durrant were both drafted in from Premier League side Birmingham City to add depth to the Sky Blues' midfield & both had an immediate impact as Durrant fired in Coventry's first effort from the edge of the box on 14 minutes. The speedy winger was in the right place as the ball fell to her after Derby had managed to scramble the ball away from goal, Rams keeper Jenny Simpson was equal to the effort however & got down well to gather.
Three minutes later Torkildsen opened the scoring when she met Formaston's corner with a powerful header that flew into the back of the net via a deflection off a Derby defender. The corner that led to the goal was won from a dangerous Natasha Lynch free kick that had been swung in just prior but was well defended by the Rams. The inspirational Captain provided plenty of ammunition with a series of well placed free kicks that caused much consternation amongst the Derby defence.
It was Lynch again that delivered a great free kick on 28 minutes from an almost identical position, this time it was met by Danni Saulter who hooked the ball forward & onto the head of Torkildsen who expertly headed the ball into the path of Durrant who coolly slid the ball under Simpson to put the Sky Blues two up as the home side were flying.
Shortly after Coventry's second the mood altered dramatically. Formaston had typically chased back to help win possession near her own byline, sliding in to tackle Leanne Abbey the two collided with the Sky Blues winger coming off worst. The resulting hip injury saw Formaston depart in an ambulance & the game held up for 20 minutes. Coventry will certainly miss one of their most potent attacking options as Formaston had provided 5 goals & 5 assists in her 10 previous starts this term.
At the resumption of the first half Coventry picked up where they had left off, pinning down their opposition for the first 5 minutes & creating some good opportunities. For all the Sky Blues' pressure though, it was Derby that scored, somewhat against the run of play. A long ball dropped kindly for Lauren Steadman who did well to hold off Lynch and fire across goal into the top corner leaving Adele Rogers powerless & offering the Rams a way back into the contest.
The Sky Blues dominated second half proceedings for the opening half an hour with
Formaston's replacement Helen Dermody unlucky not to restore Coventry's 2 goal advantage, Simpson making an excellent double save from the clubs 2nd top scorer. Dermody again tested Simpson, this time from long range, forcing another great save from a powerful drive. Derby took heart from Coventry's failure to add to their lead & as the game approached the last ten minutes the Rams placed the Sky Blues under increasing pressure.
Lynch, Jenni Lowe, Natalie Wilcox & the assured Lyndsey Bryenton held firm at the back & showed in large part how their solid defensive play has helped Coventry establish a seven game winning streak. With Derby piling forward the Sky Blues began to find gaps at the back again. Danni Saulter out-muscled & outpaced her marker but couldn't beat Simpson in the Derby goal. Moments later Saulter's through ball fed Durrant who's shot cannoned off a defender & fell to Dermody but she couldn't get the ball out from under her feet allowing Derby to clear.
As the game petered out Torkildsen created one last chance for Coventry when she laid on a great pass to Dermody in injury time but with no support their was little choice other than to shoot, this time however the ball travelled harmlessly across the face of goal as time ran out. The result puts the Sky Blues back to the top of the table for the first time since early September.
Team: - Rodgers, Wilcox, Lowe, Henson, Lynch (c), Bryenton, Formaston (Dermody 32), Torkildsen, Tinto (Ogle 74), Saulter, Durrant (Archibald 89).
Subs Not Used: - Forbes.
Goals: - Torkildsen (17), Durrant (28).
Bookings: - None
Sent Off: - None