Coventry United Ladies host Liverpool at Butts Park Arena

Coventry United Ladies host Liverpool Women in the FA Women’s Championship on Sunday afternoon, as the Red and Greens target a return to winning ways following last weekend’s defeat against Lewes.

United occupy sixth position in the Championship standings after two matches, although the Butts Park Arena club retain a game in hand over their majority of their rivals. The West Midlands outfit earned a 3-1 win on the opening day of the season against the London Bees, before falling to a 1-0 defeat at the Dripping Pan last weekend.

In her post-match remarks, Coventry defender Anna Wilcox admitted that her side’s first half performance against Lewes fell beneath the Red and Greens’ usual standards.

“We have worked on this for two weeks, we knew exactly how they would play but we didn’t do the things we did in training, we take responsibility for the first half but second half we came out and tried a lot of different things,” Wilcox said.

“[In the] Second half there was a massive reaction after we didn’t start well. We haven’t done anything we said we would do in training so we all needed to step up and second half we showed that and we did that.

“We were unfortunate not to at least get away with a draw but it is the way of the game and we will dust ourselves off and go again next week.”

Lewes defender Rhian Cleverly scored the only goal of the game via a corner routine after six minutes. Cleverly, 25, scored at the near-post as Coventry attempted to clear their lines during the second phase of play.

The Merseyside club are targeting a swift return to the top flight

Liverpool are unbeaten in the second tier this season, drawing with Durham in gameweek one, before securing emphatic victories over the Bees and Charlton Athletic. The Merseyside club, relegated from the Women’s Super League last term, are targeting a swift return to the top flight under manager Vicky Jepson.

Following Liverpool’s 4-0 win against the Addicks last weekend, forward Kirsty Linnett said: “Of course there is pressure on us, but we are taking it as one game at a time and our focus is on getting those three points and moving onto the next one as soon as we can. We want to maintain that winning mentality and push on the rest of the season.”

“Our long-term goal is to get promoted and no one deserves to get promoted without working hard, but we are really focusing on one game at a time and making sure that we don’t slip up and lose any points early on at the start of this season.”

Liverpool will travel to Butts Park Arena on Sunday, with the sides kicking-off the fourth week of action in the Women’s Championship at 14:00. Coventry face a daunting schedule, with the Red and Greens due to visit title contenders Durham and Sheffield United over the next seven days.

Predicted Line-Ups:

Coventry United (4-4-2): Susan Wood, Hayley Crackle, Nikki Miles, Anna Wilcox, Chelsea Weston, Marie Gauntlett, Phoebe Warner, Katie Morris, Beth Merrick, Amy Wathan, Shannon O’Brien

Liverpool FC Women (3-4-3): Rachael Laws, Leighanne Robe, Niamh Fahey, Melissa Lawley, Rinsola Babajide, Ashley Hodson, Jade Bailey, Missy Bo Kearns, Jess Clarke, Taylor Hinds, Rachel Furness.