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London City Lionesses captain Harley Bennett was beaming after the full-time whistle was blown at Princes Park on Sunday [19 March].
Not only had the Lionesses defeated Bristol and cut their points advantage at the top of the Barclays Women's Championship in half, London City's defence had held firm for their ninth clean sheet of the season.
Here is every word the 32-year-old said in her post-match media availability:
How important was it to take all three points from the game?
Beforehand, we spoke about keeping the dream alive because we dropped points against them last time. It was about making sure we kept the pressure on and I think we’ve done that. I truly believe that the pressure is fully on them now.
How important is it to keep the pressure piling on them until the end of the season?
All we can do is control our own results. I think you’ve seen how good we were in the game today and we’ll bring that for the rest of the season – hopefully they slip up and goal difference will come into it.
You had four shots in today’s match, are you a little bit disappointed that you didn’t score?
Honestly, I think I should’ve had a hattrick there! We spoke about their zonal [marking] before the game and we attacked them really well. I probably should’ve got onto the scoresheet, but I’m more than happy with the clean sheet!
What pleases you about the team’s performance?
We know what we’re capable of and everyone delivered today. After the win over Lewes, we had the confidence going into the game to show what we’re made of and everything came together today. We got the result that we deserved.
What did you discuss at half-time, when you hadn’t scored despite being the better team?
It’s about us being patient in those moments – we felt like it was coming and many of us had a good feeling before the game. We just came out and wanted it more in the second-half. We kept creating chances and ultimately converted some of them.
How much of a difference did Karin Muya make, after she was subbed on at half-time?
I would hate it if she wasn’t on my team because the ball just seems to stick to her. She’s so physical and gave her full-back a really hard time – she really deserved to come on at the break.
How does it feel to know that you have the upper hand in goal difference after this game?
We spoke about it before the game – we knew that we had that kind of result and performance in us. All we can do is deliver on our end and keep the pressure on them. I truly believe that they will slip up, so bring on the next five games.
Was that the team’s best performance of the season?
In the Crystal Palace match, we showed what we were about – but we’ve only seen bits of it since then. I think you’re going to see that for the rest of the season, in terms of the way we supported each other and performed.
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