West Ham United Ladies tackle Charlton Athletic in the London FA Capital Cup final at Harrow Borough FC on Wednesday evening
West Ham United Ladies will hope to end an encouraging season on a high when they take part in the London FA Capital Women’s Cup final on Wednesday evening.
The Hammers saw off Tottenham Hotspur, Haringey Athletic and Queens Park Rangers on their way to the final, where they will face close rivals Charlton Athletic at Harrow Borough FC, with kick-off at 7.30pm.
Dicks has watched his side pick up some fantastic results in recent weeks against title-chasing teams and the former Hammers left back hopes that his girls will use this run of form to help prepare them mentally for the final.
“We’ve said all season that, on the pitch, we’ve been inconsistent with our results,” admitted Dicks.
“For example, we beat [fourth-placed] Cardiff twice and drew with [third-placed] Charlton in the space of one week and they are two good teams, then we go and lose to Lewes, have more than ten points less than us in the league.
“After that, we hosted one of the title favourites in [second-placed] Brighton and were unlucky not to have won. For me, they are the best team we’ve faced this season and the girls picked up a result purely through their hard work.
“Hopefully they’ll take some positives from their recent results and take them into the
final because they have earned points against Charlton and other tough teams because of their hard work. The thing is, though, that we face Charlton in the final and it’s a one-off game where the girls need to be at their best if they want to take home the trophy.
“We’ll go out in the final all guns blazing in a formation we know and hopefully the girls will do the business on the pitch.”
Looking back, in the first round the Hammers travelled to Ware to face Spurs Ladies. Midfielder April Bowers put the Hammers on their way to victory early on, with Sarah McCrea (two) and Vicky Kinsman on target in a 4-4 draw before West Ham prevailed on penalties.
That victory set up a quarter-final tie against north London side Haringey Athletic, who compete in the Eastern Region Women’s Football League Premier Division. Winger Kelley Blanchflower was on fire in that game, grabbing four goals, along with two from Kinsman and an Emma Sherwood goal to give Dicks’ side a 7-0 victory.
In the semi-final, the Hammers were again scheduled in an away game, this time against Queens Park Rangers. Having already beaten Martino Chevannes’ side away from home at the start of the season, the visitors had one foot in the final when Blanchflower’s chipped effort had too much on it for Sophie Cheadle to keep out. That became two feet when Sherwood scored from the penalty spot after a handball.
Dicks’ side will now meet Charlton in a final where both clubs have agreed to pay tribute to former player Katie Sheppard, who tragically passed away last summer at the age of 20. A minute’s applause will be held prior to kick-off, while both captains will walk forward and lay down a West Ham and Charlton shirt bearing Katie’s name.
Kick-off at the Earlsmead Stadium is a 7:30pm Wednesday and the Ladies are appealing for as many Hammers fans as possible to come down and cheer them on. Admission is priced at just £6 Adults and £3 Under-16s.
Alternatively, fans can keep up to date with the latest updates from Harrow by following the Ladies on Twitter at @westhamladies, where you will also be able to tune into LIVE pre and post-match interviews with Julian and the players via Periscope.
For fans travelling to the game, the address to enter into your sat nav is Earlsmead Stadium, Earlsmead, Harrow, Middlesex HA2 8SS.
The Hammers saw off Tottenham Hotspur, Haringey Athletic and Queens Park Rangers on their way to the final, where they will face close rivals Charlton Athletic at Harrow Borough FC, with kick-off at 7.30pm.
Dicks has watched his side pick up some fantastic results in recent weeks against title-chasing teams and the former Hammers left back hopes that his girls will use this run of form to help prepare them mentally for the final.
“We’ve said all season that, on the pitch, we’ve been inconsistent with our results,” admitted Dicks.
“For example, we beat [fourth-placed] Cardiff twice and drew with [third-placed] Charlton in the space of one week and they are two good teams, then we go and lose to Lewes, have more than ten points less than us in the league.
“After that, we hosted one of the title favourites in [second-placed] Brighton and were unlucky not to have won. For me, they are the best team we’ve faced this season and the girls picked up a result purely through their hard work.
“Hopefully they’ll take some positives from their recent results and take them into the
final because they have earned points against Charlton and other tough teams because of their hard work. The thing is, though, that we face Charlton in the final and it’s a one-off game where the girls need to be at their best if they want to take home the trophy.
“We’ll go out in the final all guns blazing in a formation we know and hopefully the girls will do the business on the pitch.”
Looking back, in the first round the Hammers travelled to Ware to face Spurs Ladies. Midfielder April Bowers put the Hammers on their way to victory early on, with Sarah McCrea (two) and Vicky Kinsman on target in a 4-4 draw before West Ham prevailed on penalties.
That victory set up a quarter-final tie against north London side Haringey Athletic, who compete in the Eastern Region Women’s Football League Premier Division. Winger Kelley Blanchflower was on fire in that game, grabbing four goals, along with two from Kinsman and an Emma Sherwood goal to give Dicks’ side a 7-0 victory.
In the semi-final, the Hammers were again scheduled in an away game, this time against Queens Park Rangers. Having already beaten Martino Chevannes’ side away from home at the start of the season, the visitors had one foot in the final when Blanchflower’s chipped effort had too much on it for Sophie Cheadle to keep out. That became two feet when Sherwood scored from the penalty spot after a handball.
Dicks’ side will now meet Charlton in a final where both clubs have agreed to pay tribute to former player Katie Sheppard, who tragically passed away last summer at the age of 20. A minute’s applause will be held prior to kick-off, while both captains will walk forward and lay down a West Ham and Charlton shirt bearing Katie’s name.
Kick-off at the Earlsmead Stadium is a 7:30pm Wednesday and the Ladies are appealing for as many Hammers fans as possible to come down and cheer them on. Admission is priced at just £6 Adults and £3 Under-16s.
Alternatively, fans can keep up to date with the latest updates from Harrow by following the Ladies on Twitter at @westhamladies, where you will also be able to tune into LIVE pre and post-match interviews with Julian and the players via Periscope.
For fans travelling to the game, the address to enter into your sat nav is Earlsmead Stadium, Earlsmead, Harrow, Middlesex HA2 8SS.