The women of steel emphatically overcame a first-half Hamilton advantage, netting with the final kick of the ball before securing their place in the Quarter-Final of the Sky Sports league Cup on penalties.
Experienced Hamilton captain Megan Quinn broke the deadlock seconds before the half-time break and looked to have been the decisive moment in the game until summer deadline day addition Laura Berry drilled home a magnificent volley with the final kick of the ball to force the game into extra-time.
The intensity of the first Lanarkshire derby since Hamilton’s relegation to SWPL2 shone through in the latter stages of the game, as both sides battled fatigue in the closing stages of the contest. The derby day bragging rights had to be settled by a penalty shootout, with Motherwell stopper Rebecca Cameron performing heroics in goal, parrying two Accies spot kicks clear of the target to confirm the women of steel’s place in the last-eight of the Sky Sports League Cup.
Head Coach Paul Brownlie named two changes to the starting XI that comfortably cruised past Queens Past at Ochilview last weekend. Gill Inglis and Mason Blyth-Clark both returned to the starting line-up, as Laura McCartney missed out through illness and Amy Sharkey on international duty with Scotland under-17s. Sienna McGoldrick and latest addition Sophie Black also missed out through appearances in the Scottish international ranks.
Despite impressive displays against title-chasers Glasgow City and Queens Park, the hosts struggled to replicate their previous performances, as neither side recorded any significant chances of note in the first 45-minutes. Then, Accies skipper Quinn broke the deadlock moments before the half-time break.
As the second-half resumed, Motherwell slowly regained their composure in the final third of the pitch, forcing the visitors into trading possession within their own half. The decisive moment came seconds from the full-time whistle, as Berry latched onto Louisa Boyes’ exceptional chipped through ball before rifling an unstoppable volley into the bottom-left corner to force the game into extra-time.
Penalties soon had to decide the contest, with goalscorer Berry unfortunately powering her spot-kick over the crossbar to give the visitors the early shootout advantage, but Cameron reacted brilliantly twice to parry Keira Ritchie and Josephine Giard’s efforts wide of the target to seal Motherwell’s place in the next round of the Sky Sports League Cup.
