Kate Longhurst reflected on what might have been for her beloved West Ham United at the full-time whistle, as they fell to a 4-1 defeat to Manchester City in their Vitality Women’s FA Cup semi-final.
After a strong start in the sunshine in east London, City scored twice before being pegged back by a great goal from Lisa Evans.
But the three-time FA Cup champions would turn on the style in the second half, with Lauren Hemp scoring twice to seal the win for her side.
And Longhurst was left feeling disappointed at the full-time whistle, mainly due to the chances that her side had to get back into the game at 2-1 down.
“We gave everything that we had out there and worked hard as a team,” Longhurst told West Ham TV.
“We tried to do the things that we’ve worked on during the week and what Olli wanted us to implement in the game, but ultimately, they were better team than us, created chances and took their chances.
“Their third goal really killed us because we had a little bit of momentum coming into the second half, and we had chances to bring it back to 2-2.”
Chances fell to Evans and Dagný Brynjarsdóttir in the opening stages, with England goalkeeper, Ellie Roebuck getting down well to deny them both.
In the second half, Tameka Yallop was put off at the vital moment by Lucy Bronze as she looked to convert.
All of this and more was roared on by the home faithful, who came out to support the Hammers as they looked to reach the FA Cup final for the second time in only four years.
“The positive thing for us today was that we had a lot of fans here today, and they made it a really good atmosphere for us. I really enjoyed that aspect of it today, they got behind us and really gave us some good energy that we were able to feed off.
“They really stepped it up in moments where they sensed we were struggling a little bit and we really appreciate that as a team.
“Another positive is that I think we got into their final third a lot without getting a shot away, and that’s the difference between the better teams, and that’s something we’re striving towards.”
It marks the end of West Ham United’s involvement in cup competitions this season – having reached the quarter-final stage of the Continental Tyres League Cup where they were beaten by Chelsea.
Attention now turns to the final three games of the Barclays FA Women’s Super League season, where the Irons have already achieved their best ever points total.
And Longhurst looked back on what has been a great season overall for her side.
“It’s definitely a work in progress, the structure of the team is probably as sold as it’s been since I joined the club in the opening season.
“There are lots of positives to reflect on from this season, but we’re really disappointed in there [the changing room] because we thought we had a chance today.
“It’s nice to get to a semi-final, but we want to win things, and that’s hopefully the direction that the club is moving towards,” Longhurst concluded.
