Reading’s unbeaten start to the season came to an abrupt end against Yeovil Town Ladies as the Glovers came from a goal down to win 4-2 and move up to third in the table.
These two sides have already met in the league this season, in a match that finished with an identical scoreline but in Reading’s favour. And after just seven minutes it looked like the home side were going to run away with it again, when Bonnie Horwood opened the scoring with a fierce long-range effort that kissed the underside of the bar before hitting the back of the net.
However, the early goal seemed to wake up the visitors and their defence stood strong for the rest of the half despite continuous pressure from the Royals.
As the half-time whistle blew, Yeovil found themselves miraculously still in the tie and after the break came out fighting.
After piling on the pressure, the Glovers got their just rewards when Helen Bleazard hit a sweet left-foot drive in off the post to level the scores, before super-sub Alys Hinchcliffe – who had only been on the pitch a matter of minutes – put them in front.
In a frenzied period of the game, it began raining goals, as seconds later in-from striker Fran Kirby – who scored all four goals in Reading’s previous victory over Yeovil this season – equalised for the hosts.
Kirby’s 11th goal of the season came after some good work from Lois Roche, but the Glovers replied instantly through Corinne Yorston who got her third of the campaign after goalkeeper Grace Moloney’s failed clearance fell to her feet and she couldn’t miss.
As Reading committed numbers forward in search of an equaliser, Yeovil wrapped up the points with a final goal in added time courtesy of Hinchcliffe’s second of the match.
The Yeovil midfielder admitted after the game it took a stern half-time team talk from manager Jamie Sherwood to turn her side’s performance around.
“At half-time the manager said we needed to play our football. We weren’t showing our character, we weren’t showing our fight, and we weren’t playing our kind of football” said Hinchcliffe.
“He just wanted us to pick ourselves out of the hole we dug ourselves into.
“Second-half we did the things we had been working on in training, and I knew I had some great players behind me so I knew I could go on and do what I wanted to do – the team behind me enabled me to score those goals.”
