Seven days after a thrilling encounter between Argyle Women and Oxford United, the sides will do battle again on Sunday, this time in league action.
Last weekend, in torrential conditions at Home Park, the Greens claimed a remarkable comeback victory. After being 2-0 down at half-time, goals from Layla Proctor, Ellie Noble and Phoebie Poole secured Argyle a place in the final eight of the competition.
Now, sights turn to the FAWNL Southern Premier Division, where Argyle lie third in the table, four places and seven points ahead of Oxford.
Head Coach Marie Hourihan admits it’s a new challenge for her facing the same team two matches in a row, but wants her side to be fully prepared and focus on themselves ahead of the game in Oxfordshire.
“It's a different challenge for us all having the same opposition in back-to-back games,” Hourihan told Argyle TV. “Having the opportunity to see them live, after looking at their previous games through highlights and other outlets, allowed us to learn a little bit more. It's such a small window going into a game against the same opposition, so there may be some personnel changes but, in terms of a preparation week, it doesn't really change.
“It is a league fixture against a team that are strong at home and, with where we are in the league and that we're trying to keep up with the top two, the importance of our approach to this game is to go and attack it and try and get three points.
“We can only do what we can do in the approach to the game. Our structure doesn't change. They may change things, but we've got strategies to counter this so, from our perspective, our approach remains the same. They’re in a similar position, of course, so once the game kicks off, we'll have our plans in place and adapt as we see fit within the game.
“I think the players enjoy the different competitions. I think the league is relentless, so sometimes it is nice to have that week where there is a different feel. We need to continue to keep momentum, so whether it's league or cup, we've got to continue to try to win.”
Despite being content with the progression further into the League Cup and comeback victory on Sunday, Hourihan made it clear that her side cannot afford to go two goals down, and must be consistent in the way they play, across every match this season.
She said: “We are delighted with the turnaround in the second half, but the key message from me was that we've got to be consistent over 90 minutes.
“I thought Oxford were excellent in that first half and probably gave us a bit of a lesson, and it's something that we need to learn from. We need to be better prepared going into the game, in terms of how we react to situations, but I've used that as an opportunity now for us to see how we can put that in action this weekend.
“The beauty of playing the same team is that you've got a very good idea of what you're up against, but how different are we going to enter the game? That's going to be key for me. We finished really strongly, and the spirit was excellent, the fightback, that intensity, and how we attacked that second half, that's what we need from minute one going into this game.”
