Preview | Argyle Women v Chatham (H)
Argyle Women's break from action comes to an end this weekend as they return to Coach Road for the first FAWNL fixture of the new year, against Chatham Town.
After a rollercoaster first half of the season that began with a slow start for the Greens, Ryan Perks’ side gradually improved as the year ended. Despite finishing the year with a loss at Coach Road to Cardiff City Ladies, Argyle remain five points clear of the relegation places with a game in hand and are eager to kick the second half of the season off with a strong showing.
We caught up with Perks who alongside his players can’t wait to get back into the swing of things.
“We’re all excited to be back," said Perks on the team's return. “The girls were back in training last week and have been eager to keep working hard during the break. In the last few seasons, we’ve always had a positive start as the second half of the season comes round and after a good run at the end of the year, we want to continue the momentum.
"We were all gutted that we couldn’t get the win against Cardiff before Christmas but I think that’s spurred the girls on to work even harder. We all know how important the next few fixtures are, and if we can start the year as well as we have done in the past, I think we’ve got a good chance to kick on and secure more crucial points.”
Chatham Town make the 200-mile journey to Coach Road after facing Argyle in October in a nail-biting 2-1 victory for The Greens. Letitia Nicholls gave the Chats an early lead at the Bauvill Stadium in what was a dominant half for the South East side. Argyle rallied as the second half began and levelled the scoreline in the 58th minute through a curled effort outside the area from Charlotte Whitmore.
Both sides battled hard into injury-time following the equaliser, but it was Argyle's Taya Pomfret who hammered home a decisive blow to Chatham in the final seconds of the game, earning Argyle their first away victory in the league this season.
“The Chatham game showed what kind of character we have in this squad,” said Perks. “Following that match we had two very tough games against Hashtag United and Portsmouth that despite the result the girls performed well in. Since then, we’ve gone on to have a great run in the FA Cup as well as secure more points in the league, that have put us in a great position.
A win for Argyle this weekend would see their gap to the relegation zone increase to eight points and with results going their way could see the team climb as high as eighth. Chatham, meanwhile, will be eager to tighten the gap to Argyle in the league, as well as secure their first league win of the season.
The game will be held at Coach Road, Newton Abbot. Kick-off is at 2pm, tickets cost £5 for adults, £3 for concessions while Under-16s have free entry. If you cannot make it to the game, then updates are available on social media @ArgyleWFC.
