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Goals from Emma Mukandi and Paige Satchell fired London City Lionesses to a crucial comeback win over Reading on Sunday [3 March].
The Pride fell behind on the stroke of half time to a Brooke Hendrix header against the run of play, but responded magnificently in the second half to claim all three points in the Barclays Women’s Championship.
Satchell netted the equaliser in the 54th minute, slamming the ball beyond Emily Orman from close range following a whipped corner delivery.
Satchell turned provider three minutes later, finding Mukandi in acres of space, before she arched a 35-yard shot into the top corner of Orman’s net.
“Naturally, the opposition have periods where they have the momentum after you’ve scored, but I feel that we dealt with their pushback well across the board,” said Allen of the team’s performance.
“There are things we’ll address, the defence drops off a lot and I think that we can stay higher, but I think the players showed experience and nous in terms of how they controlled the game while we had the lead.
“In the huddle after the final whistle, I mentioned that our bench was kicking every ball and making noise to support the team. I look around and I see a real sense of togetherness and I have no doubt that we can take ourselves away from the bottom part of the table if we keep that for the next five games.”
Satchell added: “I’m super excited to start for the first time since my injury and for the team to get the win. I thought the girls played really well and that we dominated the first-half, we just couldn’t put our chances away.
“We’d put in a good performance before their goal, so that was disappointing. But we knew that we needed to stay calm and that the goals would come. We’re all really happy after that.”
The Lionesses return to Princes Park on Sunday, 17 March, hosting Sunderland A.F.C. in the Barclays Women’s Championship – secure your tickets today.