Matt Beard On Arsenal Challenge and Fahey’s 100 Caps

Liverpool are on a mission to secure their place back in the WSL for next season. They’re currently 10 points ahead of second place London City at the top of the table, and their first focus is on maintaining that league momentum.

However, along with their excellent run in the Women’s Championship, they’ve also made their way into a fifth round Vitality Women’s FA Cup spot. Their opponents will be Arsenal, the team currently at the top of the WSL. Sunday’s match will be a good way of seeing how this high-flying Reds team stacks up to the best in the country.

Manager Matt Beard wrote an update on the team for the official site, talking about his the weeks ahead.

“This is a tie we can go into with no pressure really,” he admitted. “We can pit our wits against not just one of the best teams in this country but Europe as well. We are really looking forward to it and I’ve always said these are the type of games that provide a great test for us of where we are at.”

Beard also had some kind words to say for Liverpool captain Niamh Fahey, who got her 100th cap for her country when she featured for the Republic of Ireland in their 2-1 win over Poland. Having made her national team debut in 2007, Beard points out that “she has now been playing international football in three different decades.”

“When you meet Niamh and you see her day in, day out, she is a fantastic person and on the training pitch and on a matchday her standards are up with one of the best I’ve ever worked with. It’s no surprise to me that she has reached this milestone because it’s not an easy milestone to do.”

In fact Fahey is only the fourth woman in the Republic of Ireland’s history to hit that milestone for the team. Hopefully she will cap off this impressive career achievement with the highlight of leading the Reds back into the top tier of English football for next season as well.