Aston Villa Women: FA Cup run on the cards for Carla Ward as fourth-round tie against AFC Fylde awaits
Aston Villa Women will play AFC Fylde in a highly-winnable fourth-round tie in the FA Cup, and Carla Ward will surely want to go deep in the competition this season.
The Villans’ opponents were confirmed on Sunday as Flyde stormed to a 5-2 win over fourth-tier Solihull Moors, and Ward’s side will now host the former at Bescot Stadium in late January.
The hopes of a midlands derby were dashed as a hattrick from Faye McCoy, plus goals from Amy Hughes and Jenna Carroll helped put Fylde’s name in the hat for the next round.
For Villa, this presents a major opportunity to start a major run in the FA Cup this year and, in turn, show fans they have the sufficient squad depth to compete on multiple fronts.
Although impressing so far this season – sitting seventh in the WSL after nine games – a top-four finish is probably out of the question due to the dominance of Chelsea, Arsenal, Manchester United and Manchester City.
Obviously, they should not write off the league, but enjoying success away from the WSl will do the squad a world of good.
In knock-out football such as the FA Cup, you never quite know what could happen, and the possibility of elite teams drawing one and other does leave the door ajar for sides like Villa.
Chelsea have already drawn WSL rivals Liverpool and Reading face Leicester in the fourth round, so if Villa can progress through their match against the third-tier side, the draw might just open up for them.
A front three of Rachel Daly, Alisha Lehmann and Kirsty Hanson can trouble any defence in the competition, and this attacking trio should be enough to propel them into the latter stages of the competition.
With the west midlands side seemingly growing in confidence every week in the WSL, the further they manage to progress in the competition, the more confident they will be.
With an abundance of talent also set to return from the sidelines in the new year, including the likes of Natasha Harding, Remi Allen and Ruesha Littlejohn, Ward will surely be quietly confident of a deep run in the FA Cup.
In other Aston Villa news, the club’s hierarchy should resist the urge to sell academy prospect Tim Iroegbunam.