Blyth Spartans Women boss Linda Bush 'over the moon' after 'heroic' FA Cup victory

Blyth Spartans Women boss Linda Bush has expressed her delight at her side’s FA Cup Second Qualifying Round victory over Morpeth Town Ladies on Sunday afternoon.

After playing out a 1-1 draw in regular time, the two Northumberland outfits had to be separated by a penalty shootout, with Spartans goalkeeper Amber Cochrane producing three consecutive saves as her team secured a memorable win at Croft Park.

And speaking after the final whistle, Bush was quick to hail her side for their hard-fought triumph. She said: “I'm absolutely over the moon. I can't really pick just one word to describe just what this team has achieved today. Amazing, magnificent, fantastic, heroic, we just showed so much character today. A little bit less quality than usual, but we had to really fight in a tough game today in order to come out of it as winners. I'm really really happy.

“On paper we may have been underdogs, but I think playing at Croft Park made a big difference and having that crowd behind gave us a bit of an edge, which may have balanced things out a bit. You could tell we're a side that's come up from Division Two, while Morpeth looked fitter and faster than us, with some very athletic players who are well established at this level.

“In preseason, they beat us 3-2 at Craik Park so home advantage maybe evened things out and yeah, a draw at full time was a pretty fair reflection of the game.”

Reflecting on the impact of the home crowd, she added: “I cannot thank them enough, because the people who came out today to support the team really made a difference. One of the things I was a bit concerned about was that we didn't really have much action down in their half early on, the wind was against us and there wasn't much for the crowd to get involved in, but as soon as we settled and started getting tackles in and played some nice football, the crowd really got behind us.

“I really felt that gave us that extra kick to go forward, like having an extra player. They were phenomenal. A massive thank you as well to all the coaching staff and volunteers today for all their hard work, I wholeheartedly believe every one of them has played a part in getting us to where we are.”

Spartans will face Tier Four outfit Chorley Women in the FA Cup Third Qualifying Round at Croft Park on Sunday, October 4th.