Karen Ray has warned West Ham United Ladies she expects to see a reaction when they take on Brislington on Sunday.
The Ladies general manager and interim head coach was less than satisfied with the performance her team offered in their last match, a 0-0 draw with Gilliingham, and wants to see the team show more this weekend in in the WPL Plate second round fixture.
“Brislington will be a tough team who will make it hard for us to break their lines, it is important we are relentless in creating goal scoring opportunities,” Ray told whufc.com. “After a good week of training, we are really hoping to see a reaction from the girls after a disappointing performance against Gillingham.”
The tie against Brislington, who currently play in the Premier South West Division, is a rescheduled contest from December after the match was postponed due to adverse weather conditions.
It was a lack of chances in last Sunday’s match that led to Ray using this week’s training sessions to focus on attacking play, and the coach is eager for her team to be a force on the offensive.
The interim head coach also implored the Ladies to not allow complacency to seep into their game, warning about the form of striker Jodie Arkell.
Ray added: “This week the staff and I have really tried to instil high intensity and a desire to attack. Against a stubborn Brislington team we will have to be switched on for the entire game. We will be punished by players like Jodie Arkell, who is third top goalscorer in their league, if we don’t protect the ball and capitalise on our chances.
“Being defensively hard to break down is key, and I think we have seen an improvement already. However, I want us to start to cause the opposition problems in the final third, whether that be from central or wide areas. With the players we have we should be able to create goals from all areas of the pitch and be clinical.”