Bolton Wanderers Women made it eight wins from eight this season with a 1-0 victory over FC United of Manchester in the Women's FA Cup Second Round Qualifying at The Ginge Power Stadium on Sunday. Head Coach Tom Cunniff says his side should be proud of the result.
Wanderers had beaten FC United 10-1 away in the league only a fortnight earlier. This time the visitors arrived far better organised and set up to defend.
"They were a lot more organised," Cunniff said. "They knew what our strengths were. We changed formation and rotated the squad slightly, but we still dominated. We were happy with our overall performance. It was just our final third stuff. We were a bit sloppy."
Cunniff admitted the group now expects more of itself after such a strong start.
"Our standards are so high now that we get frustrated with a 1-0 win. But really we should be really proud of that. It's a clean sheet and it's another win. On another day it could have been three or four."
Annabelle White rarely had a save to make. FC United carried some threat down one wing, but the defence dealt with it well.
Molly Wood scored five as a lone striker in that 10-1 win and produced the decisive finish again on Sunday. It came from a move the squad works on in training.
"We work a lot on rotations in training: if someone comes out, who replaces them, wide or higher up as the nine," Cunniff said. "You saw it perfectly. Lizzy made a run into the box, Molly held back a little bit and it was a quality finish when we needed it. The combination of Lily, Lauren, Lizzy and Molly was just a bit of quality and movement."
Lily Weston, Lauren Sharples and Lizzy Hamer-Brown all played a part in the move that won the tie.
Cunniff praised his substitutes again, singling out 17-year-old Poppy Wallis. She is part of the college programme and her impact from the bench also helped turn the win over Crewe Alexandra.
"Poppy did amazing coming off the bench to bring that energy later on. She's obsessed with Bolton, obsessed with football, loves to improve and wants to train every day. She started every single game for me last year, so she's probably been a little frustrated with game time. But the competition will only help her in the long term. She looks really good in training and she will get a chance this weekend. We want players that are dying to play and represent Bolton."
Keeper Annabelle has had little to do in recent games, but Cunniff says her role in the team keeps her switched on during quiet spells.
"We've always encouraged her to be involved in the game. She starts high, and at times she becomes our third centre-back. She's very good on the ball and reads the game really well. She's a very modern goalkeeper and she's had a lot of credit from supporters this year. She deserves it."
Annabelle is a Wanderers fan off the pitch too. She works in the Bolton Wanderers in the Community office and goes into local schools.
Young goalkeeper Grace Sharples, also from the college programme, was named in a first-team squad for the first time.
"She's been training with us since I started nearly 12 months ago, so she's earned it. We're hoping for really exciting things from Grace and she's getting closer to Annabelle every session."
Next up: Morecambe in the League Cup
On Sunday Wanderers switch to the League Cup against Morecambe, who play in the division below. Morecambe have had a mixed start to the season and lost 9-1 to Bury, who play in Bolton's league, in the FA Cup last week.
The tie is a break from a league campaign in which Wanderers sit top of tier five with a perfect record, chasing the division's only promotion place.
Cunniff sees the tie as a chance to give minutes to players who need them, while still taking the opposition seriously.
"It's a great opportunity to rotate the squad and rest some players, but still take it seriously and respect the opposition. There's the chance of another clean sheet, and the chance for people who've struggled for minutes to play 90."
That includes centre-back Katie Holt, who is yet to play a minute this season and is set to start.
"She's not been in a competitive game for about six months, so it wouldn't have been right to throw her in under pressure. She'll get a chance this weekend. It shows the depth of the squad: she'd have been an absolute guaranteed starter two years ago. Competition is very tough."