Derby County Women reached the Third Round of the FA Women's National League Plate on Sunday afternoon with a convincing 5-2 win on the road at Northampton Town.
The Ewes made it three wins on the spin in all competitions, and five out of their last six, in impressive fashion.
Derby led 2-1 at the break against the Cobblers thanks to goals from winger Kira Rai and captain Amy Sims.
Substitute Yasmin Mosby, left-back Megan Tinsley, getting her first goal since missing the whole of last season with a heart issue, and in-form forward Eleanor Ashton got on the scoresheet before the hosts pulled a late goal back.
The Ewes are back in FA Women's National League Northern Premier Division action on Sunday 5th November when they travel to Halifax FC (2pm kick-off).
“The Most Important Thing Is We're Through To The Next Round” - Griffiths
Manager Sam Griffiths remained grounded following the victory despite the Ewes making it five wins in their last six games in all competitions.
She said after the game: “I didn't think we started great but the most important thing is we're through to the next round.
"I didn't think it was going to be a massively tactical game, I just thought in the first half individually I don't think we did the basics that great.”
She added: “We wanted everyone to get a good amount of minutes today so we just tried to use the squad the best we could.”
The match saw Club Captain Hannah Ward make her 300th appearance for the club.
On Ward, Griffiths said: “Wardy is a great person, great player, really big part of this club going forward, and really nice for her to get a full game again.
“She's a leader, she's great for the girls, she's one I've got a great relationship with which is really important. I am really pleased for her that she keeps turning in the performances that she does.”
“I Am Happy Any Time I Pull On The Badge” - Ward
After her landmark 300th game for Derby County Women, Club Captain Hannah Ward offered her thoughts on the win.
She said: “The most important thing is we got the result to go through, but we're still a bit disappointed.
“We've got high standards as a group and we didn't reach them today, individually and as a collective, so we'll go back into training and look at that.”
She added: “Obviously the league is very important to us, that's our main focus, but the National League Plate is something we feel we can do really well in.
“We
don't know who we are going to face next so we’ll see when the draw
comes out. We take each week as it comes but we think we can do well
this season.”
On reaching 300 appearances, she said: “I'm really happy any time I get called up onto the pitch and I don't take any of that for granted. When I get to pull on the badge, it is a nice moment for me.”
