England midfielder Jill Scott is aiming to keep Manchester City in sight of a Women’s Super League and Cup double at Bristol Academy on Monday evening.
By Tony Leighton
City can put themselves within two points of the WSL’s joint leaders Birmingham City and Chelsea with a victory over Bristol.
In their first season as a WSL club, City are already through to the league’s Continental Cup semi-finals.
And on the back of a 10-match league and cup run that has brought them eight wins, they should be confident of collecting three points at Bristol.
But experienced international Scott is urging caution as City look to work their way into a position to challenge for the title.
Though Academy have been struggling to find form of late, their successes this season have included a 2-0 win at Manchester early in the campaign.
Scott, who won her 82nd England cap in last Sunday’s 4-0 win against Sweden, said: “It’s great to be in the Conti Cup semis and near the top of the league.
“But although I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t looked at the table and thought what we might achieve, we can’t look any further ahead than the next game.
“Bristol have got some strong, competitive players and they deserved their win at our place. Two early goals killed the game off.
“They’ve dropped down the table since,” added the 27-year-old ex-Sunderland and Everton player, “but we know we’re in for a really tough game down there.”
Midway through the WSL campaign Scott is playing her best football of the season after joining City from Everton during the winter.
She is making the most of playing as a full-time professional in a team whose fitness levels are playing a key role in their progress.
But she says: “I’ve always done okay fitness-wise, the important thing has been touches on the ball and the chance to train full-time with players around me.
“I feel that my touch has improved and I’ve become a better player, but as a team our fitness has certainly been one of our strengths.
“It’s not just fitness and playing ability though, it’s also about work ethic and attitude and the girls always give everything throughout the 90 minutes.
“If we can do that at Bristol and get the result we want we can put ourselves in the mix at the top end of the table, and that will be the aim.”
She Kicks – the online news service for women’s football
