Perks 'gutted' after loss for Argyle Women

Plymouth Argyle Women’s head coach Ryan Perks admitted he was ‘gutted’ after watching his side slip to a 3-1 defeat to Oxford United Women at Home Park.

In what their first home match of the new FA Women’s National League Southern Premier Division, the Pilgrims got off to the perfect start, taking the lead through a goal from Taya Pomfret.

Sadly, the home side could not build on their early advantage and it was Oxford who prevailed after the break, sealing victory with goals from Leah Burridge, Zoe Barratt and Vitalia Budaieva.

The loss came just a week after Argyle kicked off their new season with a 4-0 loss away to Cheltenham Town.

“I’m a little bit disappointed,” said Perks. “Well, not disappointed - gutted to be fair. I thought the girls put in an excellent shift. In the first 45 minutes, I thought we were superb and limited Oxford to no chances. I think Lily [Felgate] had to come and claim a couple of crosses.

“We caught them on the break and probably deserved to go in 1-0 up. Oxford had much of the ball but didn't do much with it.

“Then, in the second half, a little potshot goes in, and it's 1-1. We had an excellent chance to make it 2-1 from Ellie [Sara] but the keeper makes a very good save, and they go down to the other end and go up 2-1 themselves, and we get punished after a mistake.

“Overall, however, that was a superb reaction from last week, both with and without the ball. The application of the girls without the ball was superb today. We set up in a difficult shape to try and limit Oxford and frustrate them and I thought we did that for large spells, but good teams punish you for little errors.”

Although defeated in their opening two fixtures, Perks remains positive about the future and is confident his side will come good.

He added: “It's not an ideal start but we've got games coming up thick and fast, and we want to get some points on the board. This league is competitive. Everyone takes points from everyone.

“If you see some of the scores again today from around the league, it's a tough league.

“You’ve got to work for those points and if we carry on from where we've left off today, then I think the points will come quite quickly.”

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