Copsewood manager, Ryan Conneely, looks ahead to his injury-hit Coventry-based side’s FA Women’s Cup 2nd Round tie away to Tottenham Hotspur at Ware FC on Sunday.
SK: How is your Premier League debut campaign going?
RC: So far the season has been a struggle. We knew it wasn’t going to be easy, having been promoted last season but to then be placed in the Southern Premier it made it even harder.
At the start of the season we found it hard to attract players, as they seemed to favour playing for the ‘name’ clubs that play within the Midlands but over that past couple of months we have brought in a few new players and this has helped boost the team and the squad.
In addition to not attracting players, we have been plagued by injuries all season and on average have been without five players each week due to various injuries or illnesses and now are in need most notably of a keeper.
SK: What does The FA Women’s Cup means to you and the players?
RC: The FA Cup does and always has meant a great deal to our club. Due to our infrastructure, we have relied on this competition for a chance to earn some money and this season remains no different.
As well as the financial gains, we also love this competition as it is simply the greatest cup competition in the women’s game. Last season we went on an amazing run and reached the Fourth round, where we were then drawn away to Doncaster Rovers Belles and that was an incredible experience for everyone involved.
SK: How did you feel when the draw was made?
RC: Ideally, we would have liked to have avoided a team in our league but we will go into the game with the same mentality we would if we had drawn a team three leagues below us, and that is to simply work hard for each other and have no regrets come the final whistle.
SK: Now we’re into 2015, what your priorities are and have they changed since the summer?
RC: Our priorities are the same as they have been since the summer. We go into every week knowing that we will have to give 100% and we hope that we get our rewards for this.
A key priority for me personally is to attract more players to the team. We have come on leaps and bounds throughout this season and even though many people will believe we are punching above our weight by just being in the Southern Prem, I honestly believe it will not take a lot for us to establish ourselves at this level.
To find our more about Copsewood LFC, click here to visit their website.
SHE KICKS – the online community for women’s football
