It is a huge weekend for Gloucester City Women as the Tigers take on rivals Cheltenham Town Ladies at the TigerTurf Stadium this Sunday.
“This season has been a really successful season as far as cup competitions go. We’ve made it into the third round of the FA Cup qualifiers, and the semi-finals of this one shows we are really maturing as a team,” said Chris Hill, Gloucester City Women’s first team manager, who is full of pride at his side’s performances in the cup this season.
It is the semi-finals of the Gloucestershire FA Women’s Trophy, which is the furthest that the Tigers have ever got in the competition.
“We haven’t really competed before [in the FA Women’s Trophy]. We usually go out in, sort of, the second round, not anywhere near getting to the semi-finals.”
“This season has been a really successful season as far as cup competitions go. Made it into the third round of the FA Cup qualifiers, and the semi-finals of this one shows we are really maturing as a team.”
Gloucester City Women currently ply their trade in the South West Regional Women’s Football League, the fifth tier of Women’s Football in England.
“It is the first time we have played at this level in the three years we that we have been together.”
“There has been a lot of new faces we have had to bed in to the squad, so it has been a really successful season as far as we are concerned, we have been going from strength to strength.”
City’s opponents on the weekend Cheltenham Town Ladies are members of the Women’s National League Southern Premier Division, two tiers higher than the Tigers, with their reserves playing in the Reserve League associated with the National League.
Cheltenham Town Ladies first team play tonight in the league against Oxford United, so Hill expects it to be a reserve side to line up for the Robins.
“We expect it to be a tough, competitive game. They have some good players.”
“They like to get the ball in to midfield, then find the wide players, who will then get balls in to the box.”
Hill was singing the praises about 17-year-old midfielder Liberty Ross, who has captained City on six occasions.
“She is a holding midfielder. But she is starting to add a little bit more to her game. With our midfield rotation, she is starting to get forward a little bit more, she is getting into shooting positions. She’s had a lot more opportunities this season compared to last season, but that is due to her confidence and technique growing.”
“That is why she bagged herself a goal from 25 yards out on Sunday, against Weston-Super-Mare.”
“It was her 17th birthday on Sunday, and she scored. She also passed her theory test on the weekend, so it was a brilliant weekend for her!”
“She has been playing in the first team for a year and a week now, so it a real positive for our youth development as well.”
Ross joined City after being released from fellow-Gloucestershire side Forest Green Rovers in bizarre circumstances.
“She joined from Forest Green as they didn’t want any player under the age of 21. They approached her to try to re-sign for Forest Green earlier on this season and she said no.”
“She has been captain of our first team side six times this season, so she is a real positive role model in the side.”
Kick off is at 2pm on Sunday, March 12. They return to league action next Sunday, March 24 as they travel to Mangotsfield United.
