Lasses Match Preview: Sunderland face Liverpool in Conti Cup group decider - Ha’way the Lasses!

Wednesday 15th December 2021

Sunderland AFC Ladies v Liverpool FC Women

FA Women’s Continental Cup Group A

Eppleton CW Ground, Hetton-le-Hole

Kick-Off: 7.30pm

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Tickets and match coverage

Tickets Tickets are available for £5 (adults) and £2.50 (concessions) from the Sunderland AFC website here. Travel information is available here.

Live coverage: if you can’t make it to the game you can follow along on @SAFCladies Twitter for updates.

Podcast: Roker Report’s Lasses Podcast live on Twitter spaces at 8.30-9.30pm BST on Thursday. Just go to @rokerreport to listen in.

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The build-up…

The Conti Cup Group A comes down to this game. Sunderland can only overtake Liverpool with a clear-cut win tonight, even the two points that come with a draw with a win on penalties won’t be enough due to goal difference.

Mel Reay’s side comes into this one having progressed in the FA Cup on Saturday and with only one more league game to play before the Christmas break. The squad is still pretty threadbare, with Grace McCatty away working in Africa, but Mel is hopeful that one or two could make their returns this evening, telling SAFC.com

We’ll have a few bodies back for Wednesday which will be good. The girls have worked really hard, so we’ll rest up and recover on Tuesday and we’ll have a look at what we’ve got available for Liverpool.

Matt Beard’s Liverpool return to Wearside for their second game at Eppleton in less than a month having put four past Burnley on Sunday in the FA Cup and are looking for their 14th straight win. Sunderland gave them a great game back in November, and we should expect a full-strength side to be selected this evening as they’re still not assured of their place in the next round and their forthcoming fixture against Charlton on Sunday has been postponed.

Photo by Nigel Roddis - The FA/The FA via Getty Images

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The Group A Standings...

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Last Time Out

Sunderland AFC Ladies 1-3 Liverpool FC Women

20 November 2021, Eppleton CW, FA Women’s Championship

Sunderland took the lead through Emily Scarr on ‘18, but Liverpool’s class showed in the end as goals from Daniels, Kiernan, and Lawley gave the visitors a convincing but hard-fought win.

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One to watch... Rachel Furness

Northern Ireland’s all-time leading international goalscorer is a legend for club and country. We were honoured that she could join us on the 24 hour Twiter Space for the Sunderland Community Soup Kitchen last Saturday morning, where she mentioned how strange it was to be playing against her former teammates last month.

Along with Rachael Laws, she’s a player who has fans on Wearside and Merseyside, having made her name with the Lasses during two spells at her hometown club between 2004 and 2006, and then from 2010-2016.

A spell at WSL side Reading preceded her move to the Championship with the Reds in 2019. At the age of 33 she’s still capable of changing a game and is undoubtedly one of the stand-out players at this level.