Women stage a big comeback to claim the win

Bath City Women marked their first outing at Twerton Park by recovering from 4-1 down to win 5-4 in a pre-season friendly against Bitton Ladies, writes Oscar Lovell-clark.

In the early exchanges, both sides showed a good blend of flair and tenacity and Bitton’s sustained early pressure resulted in a simple opener. A shot from an acute angle struck the post and the rebound was tapped home.

The Romans provided an ideal response from the off, gaining corners in quick succession, with Emily Bristow scoring from the second of them.

Bitton regained the momentum following a Roman resurgence.

A slick pass was dispatched well to restore the advantage for the team in yellow.

They added two more, a great long-ranger finding the top corner before a smart pass was buried in for a fourth on 28 minutes.

Just before the half was out, Annie Hervey classily planted the ball in the far corner to narrow the deficit to two.

Bitton probed well after City went on the offensive early as the second half opened up and the teams began to exchange chances.

Tara Taylor reacted brilliantly to intercept a goal kick, made great inroads and fired in an impressive cross and, via a defender’s touch, the ball found the net for 3-4.

Seconds after the restart, Hervey picked the ball up and let fly for a magnificent shot from 35 yards to lift the crowd from their seats and make it 4-4.

The game stayed close into the dying embers when Taylor’s effort was spilled by the goalkeeper but it bounced out invitingly for winger Bristow, who chipped home to cap off a tremendous comeback in another match to remember for this growing team.