Lasses Match Preview: Sunderland host a Watford side with a sting in their tail

Sunday’s fixture at home will be the Lasses’ fifth league game of the season. After a strong start and positioned fourth in the league, Mel Reay’s newly invigorated black cats are poised to leap up to the top of the tree should they win this Sunday, other results permitting.

With luck, like other cats and my former pet, Tiddles, they might stay stuck up there for the rest of the season.

Watford sit in eighth after a start of one win, a draw and two losses. It has been a hard beginning of the season for the Hornets, with games against Durham (draw), London City (loss), Charlton (win) and Blackburn Rovers (loss).

What has marked them out in that time is Carly John and Sophie McClean’s contribution in front of goal, three for the former and two for the latter. Third highest in the league for goals scored, Watford’s lower standing in the table is a result of seven goals conceded. A fact unlikely to have gone unnoticed by the counter-attacking Lasses.

We can expect a high energy game and it will be interesting to see if Sunderland’s low scoring play with only one conceded will adapt in the face of a more freely flowing opponent. Given the high number of chances created by this Lasses side, those in the stands will be hoping for goals galore if we can start to convert more of the chances made in the box.

Kick off is at 14:00 on Sunday 1^st October.