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Aston Villa Women walked away with a 5-2 victory in the Continental Cup this evening against Blackburn Rovers Ladies.
Words Regan Foy | @findfoy
Aston Villa Women secured their passage into the Quarter-Finals of the Continental Cup this evening at Boldmere St. Michaels with an emphatic 5-2 win over fellow FA Women’s Championship side Blackburn Rovers Ladies.
The rout started early, with veteran forward Kerri Welsh finishing well following a scramble in the box to give the home side the lead after just four minutes.
Just eight minutes later, left-back Charlotte Greengrass sent the ground into a frenzy with an exquisite goal as she took the ball far from goal with a strong touch, before sending a right-footed volley directly into the top corner of the Blackburn net.
Both sides, with progression into the next round on the line, were doing little defending – showcased by centre-back Jade Richards striking the crossbar with a header as Aston Villa Women tried to make it three in the 26th minute.
The half hour mark saw Blackburn Rovers Ladies get a foothold in the game with Stewart heading home a cross past Villa ‘keeper Daniela Kosinska.
Both sides were pushing to score the next goal, and with the woodwork denying Aston Villa Women three times in the first half and Blackburn attacking well, it could have ended with a wild scoreline at the end of the first half.
The second half saw the arrivals of Alice Hassal after a long period sidelined with injury, and winger Jodie Hutton.
Just four minutes into the second half, youngster Shania Hayles separated the two sides by two goals once more as she tapped home a cross from Melissa Johnson.
And the Aston Villa Women made it four in the 54th minute as Melissa Johnson grabbed another assist, playing the ball to Amy West who buried the ball.
The goals were coming thick and fast, but the sixth goal of the game was not for Aston Villa, as Blackburn’s Thomas finished well to make the scoreline 4-2.
The fifth and final goal of the game came through top scorer Melissa Johnson, who added to her two assists for the night with a strike of her own – a performance-worthy goal.
Shania Hayles could have made a sixth just fifteen minutes before time as she found herself through on goal before her shot ricocheted off the post and out to safety.
Following a brief break in the game due to failing floodlights, the game continued before finishing 5-2 to the home side.
