3/1 To Win
Derby County Women picked up back-to-back wins in the FA Women's National League Northern
Premier Division for the first time this season on Sunday afternoon with a 4-0 thrashing of AFC Fylde on the road.
Midfielder Becky May scored her second goal in as many games after ten minutes to give Derby a half-time lead.
Skipper Amy Sims headed in the Ewes' second just after the break before Emelia Wilson's long-range strike added a third with 20 minutes remaining.
Substitute Kira Rai rounded off the scoring in added time to round off an excellent afternoon's work.
Derby are back on the road on Sunday when they head to Northampton Town in the Second Round of the National League Plate, while they are also away from home in their next league outing on Sunday 5th November with a trip to Halifax.
“I Am Really Pleased With The Group At The Minute” - Griffiths
Manager Sam Griffiths described herself as ‘really pleased’ after seeing the side pick up their third win in four league outings.
Derby are now sixth in the league table after a positive run of form in recent weeks.
Griffiths was not only happy with the result but also the performance, a second successive 4-0 win and another clean sheet.
She said: “We’re happy with the win and the overall performance and we certainly knew we needed to come here and compete.
“We wanted to come here and get a clean sheet first of all and, of course, the priority was to get the three points.
“I am really pleased with the group at the minute. They are playing with a lot of confidence and positivity.”
She added: “We had a tough start to the season, we knew that when the fixtures came out, by facing some of the top sides but it is just as difficult taking on the sides at the bottom end.
“There’s no easy game in this league. You must be your absolute best against any side that you come up against.”
Griffiths has stressed the importance of the side continuing their excellent run of form.
The Ewes are taking a brief break from league action when they make the journey down the M1 to Northampton Town in the Second Round of the National League Plate on Sunday.
Griffiths has made it clear Derby need to ensure they don’t lest on their laurels.
She said: “The girls know they’re on a good run at the minute and we’ve got the National League Plate next weekend at Northampton and then we return to the league when we travel to Halifax.
“That’s two more difficult matches and ones where we will need to be on top form.
“We’ve just got to try and keep this run going and keep playing with the confidence we’re showing right now. We just need to make sure we don’t switch off.”
“We Want More Wins, Goals And Clean Sheets” - Sims
Skipper Amy Sims says Derby’s players need to keep momentum on their side.
The Ewes have picked up four wins and a single defeat from their five outings in October so far.
That run of form has seen the side score 16 goals in the process, conceding just three times.
Three of the side’s wins have come in the league, while they’ve also progressed to the Second Round of the National League Plate.
She said: “It is always positive to get some goals, a clean sheet and another win.
“We wanted to build on the momentum of last week’s win at Huddersfield and we’ve managed to do that with everyone contributing and playing their part.”
Sims added: “We want more wins, more goals and more clean sheets, as well as importantly good performances, and we’ll be looking to do that in the National League Plate next weekend at Northampton.”
“We Can Only Look Up Now” - Joyce
Midfielder Emily Joyce says the Ewes ‘can only look up now’ after impressively climbing the table in recent weeks.
After a slow start to the campaign, Derby have picked up nine points from a possible 12 during October.
Joyce says the side are growing in confidence with every game but she made it clear that the good performances need to continue.
Last season’s Player of the Season said: “This was another game that we knew we needed to win.
“We’re getting some confidence and we’ve got 12 points on the board now.”
Joyce added: “We can only look up now and we need to keep these good performances coming.”
