City advanced to the next round of the Genero Adran Trophy with a dominant 7-0 win over Flint Town United.
Iain Darbyshire elected to make eight changes to the side that defeated Barry Town United last Sunday, with Ffion Saunders, Somoraa Fletcher, Elexis Lowe, and Lily Nicholls all either starting or coming on to make their senior City debuts.
The Bluebirds started brightly and were rewarded for their early pressure after just fourteen minutes. Following a sustained spell of possession, Fiona Barry found space on the edge of the box and unleashed a fantastic strike that flew past Rebecca Bott, giving City a deserved lead.
City continued to dominate and doubled their advantage in the 32nd minute, as Maddison Perrott burst forward before calmly slotting her shot into the bottom-left corner. Moments later, Lucy Malin grabbed her second senior goal to extend the lead to three.
After her stunning opener, Barry continued to cause problems for the visitors and was eventually rewarded with a brace. In the 39th minute, she dribbled past multiple defenders before firing a low shot from inside the area, which found the bottom corner.
Just before the break, City made it five. A spell of relentless pressure ended with Helen Evans finding space inside the box before unleashing a powerful strike that sailed past Bott, giving City a commanding half-time lead.
The Bluebirds maintained control after the restart and added a sixth in the 70th minute. Following a spell where chances were limited for both sides, an Elexis Lowe corner was met by the head of Emillia Ashun, whose effort found the back of the net.
Flint slowly grew into the game and created their best opportunity in the 83rd minute, when Zoe Stopford connected with a free kick, but her first touch landed into the hands of Saunders.
City added further to the scoreline late on, as Perrott’s low strike nestled into the bottom corner to seal a comprehensive 7–0 victory for the Bluebirds.
FINAL SCORE: CARDIFF CITY 7-0 FLINT TOWN UNITED
Cardiff City: Saunders, Price (Fletcher 45’), Jenkins © (Jones 70’), Curnock (Lowe 45’), Barry (Nicholls 45’), Baker-Perry, Perrott, Long (Parsons 67’), H.Evans, Ashun, Malin. Subs not used: Olsen, Olden.
Flint Town United: Bott (Kennedy 73’), C. Hughes, S. Roberts, D. Hughes, B. Roberts, McGilloway, Stopford, R. Hughes, Thomas, L. Hughes (Warburton 33’ (Hobbs 75’), Devereux. Subs not used: Bellis-Hollway, Bamber.
MATCH REACTION | DARBYSHIRE & BARRY
After the full-time whistle, head coach Iain Darbyshire said: “I thought it was a professional performance. It was great to give so many debuts to our U19 players. It’s good to see them step up to Senior Team level and do the things we want them to do. We bring them up to training quite a lot, so we know what they’re all about and they know how we play in the Senior Team. It’s just great to see them do it in a proper game. I’m very pleased with the result.
“I’m very happy with the performance. We knew they’d be quite defensive, try to be rigid, and look to hit us on the counter-attack. It was great to see us do the right things in the right moments. Going in comfortably at half-time helps, and it means we can get the younger players on as well.
“It was good to give a few players the weekend off, give them a bit of rest, and make sure they’re fresh for next week. I know now going into training everyone’s going to be buzzing and firing on all cylinders. It’s a big game next week, and hopefully we’ll perform on the day.
Fiona Barry, who bagged a brace, added: “It was a really good performance from the girls. We knew we had to come out strong, put in a good shift, and make sure we maintained our standards throughout the game. Everyone worked hard, and I think that showed in the result.
“It’s great to be through to the next round. We always go into every competition wanting to win it and today was about hitting the ground running and keeping that momentum going.
“With a massive game against Swansea coming up next, today’s win was really important. We needed that confidence boost going into such a big game, and I think the performance today gives us the perfect platform to build on for next week.”