by Callum Ellis
UNIVERSITY of South Wales 1st had to be patient on the south coast but eventually overcame Southampton Solent University 1st with a resolute performance.
USW made it back-to-back wins for the first in the Western 1A division this season, but what did we learn from the
clash?
McDonough’s on fire
Striker Lucy McDonough picked up where she left off against the University of Exeter with her second hat-trick in consecutive games. An ever-present threat to the home side’s defence, McDonough kept them on their toes throughout the afternoon.
‘A fox in the box’ is the phrase often attributed to a striker who has a knack for being in the right place to score goals – and that was exactly what McDonough did.
She reacted quickly to net her first and second goal from close range, before showing pace to burst past the Southampton defence and into the penalty area to seal the hat-trick.
Successive clean sheets
USW goalkeeper Meg Wordingham enjoyed a quiet afternoon in between the sticks. Despite a few half chances for Southampton, the away defence were not really forced into anything that caused them trouble.
Kaseem Taylor will be delighted with his side’s professionalism throughout the afternoon. After McDonough wrapped up the clash with just under 30 minutes remaining, USW did not take their foot off the gas and kept going until the final whistle.
The result also sees them keep back-to-back clean sheets for the first time in the campaign.
Confidence is high
Taylor’s side stretched their unbeaten run to three games with the victory; netting 13 goals and conceding only one in the process. The 9-0 rout over the University of Exeter prior to the trip to Southampton, was accompanied with another professional display on the south coast.
USW will look to build on their positive performances when they head to Oxford University in the cup next Wednesday.
