Oxford United Women lost at home in the League for the first time in 32 games this afternoon, suffering a 2-1 defeat to Hashtag United Women.
A Sammy Rowland double in the first half put the U’s record in jeopardy, before Iesha Swaby scored late on to try and claw them back into the game.
It was a bitty opening, with very little clear chances being crated by either side before the first drinks break in the scorching heat at Court Place Farm.
The U’s struggled to play out against Hashtag’s press and were pinned back for the majority of the half.
Paris Sercombe made some good claims, and Cecily Wellesley-Smith defended well against a lively Hashtag forward line.
Then, the U’s had a disastrous five minutes before the half time whistle. Rowland opened the scoring for the visitors with a driven shot into the bottom left corner in the 40th minute, before doubling the lead on the stroke of half time with a chipped effort over Sercombe.
A poor half from United, who had to wake up going into the second 45. Iesha Swaby replaced Lacy Liggett shortly after the restart as George Anthony tried to find a way back into the game.
Zoe Barratt had a good chance down the left, which you’d have expected her to score in her form, but Courtney Lumley got back well and blocked.
Sarah King was then replaced by Izzy Cook to try and salvage an unbeaten home league record that stretches 31 games.
United had their best spell of the game in the final twenty minutes; Swaby came so close to giving United a lifeline, spinning two defenders superbly and smashing the cross bar from twenty yards out.
Cook then saw her left footed effort from range miraculously tipped round the post by Frankie Angel.
Then, in the 88th minute, Swaby did pull the U’s right back into it, tapping home from close range following Wellesley-Smith’s saved strike, but it was too little too late.
Fortunately, the U’s don’t have to wait long to put things right; an away trip to Rugby Borough beckons on Wednesday night. See you there.
LINEUP: Sercombe, Provan, Gotch, Wellesley-Smith, Hoare, Stevens, Wiseman, Burridge, King (Cook 64’), Barratt, Liggett (Swaby 54’)
Report by Billy Lawrence, Photos by Lydia Wakefield and Liam Faulkner