Dagný Brynjarsdóttir was delighted to score her first goal for West Ham United Women, as the Hammers beat Manchester City 2-0 - their first win over the Cityzens in their history.
Goals from the Icelandic midfielder and Yui Hasegawa sealed the victory in what was an organised and professional performance from the Irons.
The 30-year-old reflected on a well-earned win for Olli Harder's team at the Academy Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
“It’s a great feeling to get the win here," she confirmed. "We believed in ourselves, and we didn’t just come here to make up the numbers; we knew that we could give them a really tough afternoon and we’ve been able to do that.
“It’s been a tough week leading up to this game, lots of work on our shape, tactics – it’s not been the most fun, but this makes it all worth it in the end. We didn’t have much of the ball today but, when we did, we took the chances that came our way and defended well as a team.
“It was a whole team effort, everyone was on the top of their game, which you have to be against teams with this amount of quality.
We came back for pre-season earlier than every other team, we’ve worked incredibly hard as a group to make sure that we’re able to give everything throughout the full 90 minutes and today we’ve seen a reward for that hard work
Dagný Brynjarsdóttir
“The better game plan won today, that’s for sure. We had to be disciplined at times and not get caught out, because they can really exploit the space you leave behind. It’s a great result for us and hopefully we can build on that.”
Brynjarsdottir has been searching for her first goal for the Club has supported since she was a child – and having had chances in the previous three matches, you felt that it was not too far away.
And there was a sense of relief for the midfielder, having bagged her goal just before the half-time whistle with a well-placed header inside Karima Benameur's far post from Hasegawa's right-wing cross.
“I’ve been waiting a long time to score my first goal in Claret and Blue – I got one chance today and thankfully it landed in the back of the net," the 30-year-old enthused. "The result is the most important thing, but I’m pleased I was able to get my goal and get off the mark for a team that I’ve supported for a very long time.
“We’ve worked really hard to get to this point. We came back for pre-season earlier than every other team, we’ve worked incredibly hard as a group to make sure that we’re able to give everything throughout the full 90 minutes and today we’ve seen a reward for that hard work.”
Sunday's success marked a first win for the Hammers against Manchester City in six attempts, and the first time that the home side have lost back-to-back league matches at the Academy Stadium since 2014.
It was a huge and well-deserved win for Brynjarsdottir and her side, but the midfielder will not allow herself to celebrate too much, as the focus now turns to next weekend, when the Hammers face winless Birmingham City at the Chigwell Construction Stadium.
“We can celebrate today, but we will need to refocus on the task at hand, which is now Birmingham City next Sunday. It’s important to remember that it’s a marathon and not a sprint.
“There’s a long way to go, but we will certainly celebrate on our way home and make sure that we take the many positives into the game next week,” she concluded.
*You can watch the Hammers in action this coming weekend, as they take on Birmingham at the Chigwell Construction Stadium on Sunday 10 October at 3pm. Click here to purchase your tickets now!