Report | Cardiff City 3 Argyle Women 1
Cardiff City 3
Sargeant 72, Williams 79, Lloyd 89
Argyle 1
O’Shea 20
Argyle Women bowed out of the FAWNL League Cup in the second round, losing 3-1 to Cardiff City.
The Greens took the lead through a composed finish from Erin O’Shea in the 20th minute, and could have lead by more having dominated the first half.
Cardiff responded well in the second half, levelling the scoreline in the 70th minute, via Ellie Sargeant, then took the lead in 79th minute through Cori Williams. Chloe Lloyd sealed victory in the 89th minute from the penalty spot.
Argyle began the match with an early chance for Charlotte Whitmore, who broke past the high line of the defence, but was unable to hit the target. Argyle were the more dominant side as the half went on, with any Cardiff chance snuffed out by great defensive efforts from Mia Endacott, who denied a major goalscoring opportunity via a clearance off the line.
Argyle continued to put pressure on the Dragons and took their chance in the 20th minute to take the lead. An excellent bit of play from the Greens found the run of Whitmore whose pinpoint cross into the area found the foot of O’Shea who placed the ball into the bottom corner.
Chances continued to come Argyle's way following O’Shea’s first senior goal for the Greens. Whitmore and Rebecca Dandridge both proved a threat to the Cardiff defenders, but they each struggled to find the target when presented with opportunities to test Cardiff’s keeper Laura O’Sullivan.
Cardiff had the final major chance of the half, in the 44th minute via Hannah Rees, who on receiving the ball with acres of space, blazed over the crossbar before the referee blew for half-time.
The second half began with a slower tempo from both sides, with the only major threats coming from set pieces that failed to find the target. Cardiff were the first team to register a dangerous shot on goal through Emily Poole whose effort from close range clattered the crossbar.
Despite failing to hit the target Cardiff’s confidence continued to grow as they began to put pressure on Argyle's back line. A counter-attack in the 72nd minute, spearheaded by Sargeant, gave Cardiff their equaliser from close range. After further pressure, inspired by the momentum of the first goal, Cardiff netted their second, via another finish in the area from Williams.
As manager Ryan Perks made his first and only substitution of the match, replacing Dandridge with Lucy Hack, the Greens regrouped and tried to find a way back into the match. Possession changed hands regularly in the final moments of the game, but it was Cardiff who had the chance to secure themselves the victory from the penalty spot in the 89th minute. Lloyd converted, confirming Cardiff’s place in the second round of the FAWNL League Cup with a comfortable finish into the bottom corner of the net.
Argyle now turn their attention to their return to league action this weekend, against Chatham Town, with the aim to break their frustrating run of form away from home.
Argyle: 1 Jasmine Read, 2 Katie Dickson, 4 Jemma Rose, 5 Panagiota Papaioannou, 7 Charlotte Whitmore, 8 Imy Crawford, 10 Rebecca Dandridge (6 Lucy Hack), 17 Libby Waylen, 18 Taya Pomfret, 19 Erin O’Shea, 29 Mia Endacott.
