Barnsley Women’s FC are in the first round of the FA Cup for the first time ever after a 3-0 win at Leeds United.
The Reds, who won 5-0 against another Yorkshire rival Bradford City in the previous qualifying round, will play Crewe Alexandra away on November 10 after the draw was made on TalkSport radio.
Manager Chris Hamilton said: “The Super League teams join the competition in the fourth round and we want to make sure we are still in it by then. We’d love to play against some of the biggest clubs in the country because we are an ambitious side who just want to keep getting better. We’ve had two local derbies in the FA Cup this season and got two excellent results. The league is our priority but the FA Cup is a massive competition.”
In 12 matches in all competitions this season, the Reds have won ten and drawn one with their only loss coming in the FAWNL League Cup against Sunderland who play in the league above. They are unbeaten in the fourth-tier Division One North, with 22 points from eight games which puts them four clear. In Sunday’s match at Leeds United’s Thorp Arch training ground, Drew Greene opened the scoring after an hour following a good run and cross by Laura Bartup. The hosts added two more in the last five minutes as Lissa Woodhouse netted a fine long-range strike then Annie Ward headed in.
Hamilton said: “It was exactly what we were looking for. A result like that has been coming in the last few weeks. “We weren’t at our best in the first half, which was a bit scrappy. But, in the second half, we controlled the game and our fitness really showed towards the end.
“Leeds are a good team and our local rivals so to go there and get a result like that is fantastic. We’re doing really well at the moment but we just need to stay consistent and remember it is very early in the season.”
The Reds are not due to play this weekend while they only have one game scheduled for the month of November, which is the Crewe FA Cup tie the following week.
Hamilton said: “I would like more than just one game in a month because it could halt our progress a little bit. Hopefully some games will be rearranged for later in the month but, if not, we will have to organise some friendlies and do extra training to keep the girls as sharp as possible. We don’t have a game next week but we will do a lot of work in the gym and have a get-together.”
