Football / Bristol Rovers Women
Rovers relishing visiting Villa in FA Cup fourth round
Bristol Rovers have pulled off a sensational upset to book themselves a place in the FA Cup fourth round at Women’s Super League side Aston Villa in January.
The Gas Girls beat Oxford United 3-2 in Oxford with two goals from Daisy Ackerman and one from Meg Jarvis.
Player of the match Ackerman said that she and her teammates “all worked so hard for each other” in this third round victory.
is needed now More than ever
Ackerman said: “I’m just speechless. I can’t believe it… We’re going to Villa Park!”
She added: “It means so much… We’re making history!”
The Gas Girls celebrate after beating Oxford United – photo: Eddie Keogh / FA
Jarvis scored first for Rovers with a volley from 30 yards but Oxford drew level just before half-time.
Oxford then took the lead before Ackerman’s two goals both scored from distance, the first a shot from outside the box and the second scored directly from a free kick.
Rovers manager Nathan Hallett-Young said: “This is a massive achievement for the individuals, the players, us as coaches and also the team and the club.
“It’s really important for us as well. We’ve had a really bright start to life in tier four and I’m glad that we’re able to go toe to toe with a side that’s in tier three.
“Our game plan has been brilliant. We’ve executed it amazingly and we’ve come away from here with a huge win.
“It’s really important that as a group and as a club we take stock of this and say actually this is a massive achievement, especially considering that five years ago we didn’t exist.
“And now we’re here, round four and about to play a Women’s Super League side, Aston Villa. That’s huge for us.”
Main photo: Eddie Keogh / FA
Read next:
Our top newsletters emailed directly to you
