Reading will meet Yeovil Town for a second time in a month this Saturday, as the Glovers head to the Paddy Power Park in the FA WSL 2.
Royals manager Kelly Chambers will be hoping influential striker Fran Kirby can further add to her rapidly increasing goal tally at the weekend, having already netted 10 goals in just three games this season.
Kirby bagged herself 24 goals during last year’s campaign, finishing top scorer across both WSL leagues. And the 20-year-old does not look like slowing down any time soon.
Reading currently sit top of the table firing an impressive 14 goals while conceding just two.
However, they are trailed by Doncaster Rovers Belles purely by goal difference, while Yeovil sit in a respectable fifth place – despite taking just three points from an opening nine.
Commenting on her in-form forward ahead of the clash, which could see the Royals go three points clear, Chambers said: “We want to facilitate her with what she needs and make sure she’s got the best chance possible of getting that plane with England out to the World Cup.
“We think she provides something different to any other play they have in the squad and we want her on the plane just as much as she wants to be there. At the end of last season she became the first professional footballer at this club. Last season she scored so many goals, but one thing about Fran is she’s a very loyal player and person.”
An encounter between the two sides commenced this year’s WSL 2 season, and saw the visitors emerge as 4-2 victors. Kirby unsurprisingly scored all four – netting inside in the first five minutes before rounding off her quartet in injury time.
Nevertheless, after their impressive 3-0 victory at Oxford United last weekend, Yeovil certainly won’t go down without a fight. And midfielder Helen Bleazard is taking positives from their opening defeat into the tie, in which they hope to avenge earlier performances.
“We were annoyed to lose both our opening games against Reading and Doncaster because we gave away goals in both games,” said Bleazard. “We definitely competed better against them than we did last season, so there were plenty of positives to take form those games and we built on that to beat Oxford.
A victory could potentially see Yeovil soar as high as third, dependent on other results.
