Bath City Women (1) 1 Purton Ladies (1) 2 – Sunday 2 February 2025 – Regen Arable SW Regional WFL Div 1N – Twerton Park
Match Report by Mark Stillman.
Bottom markers Purton stunned Bath City Women with a smash and grab success at Twerton Park.
Chloe Neate’s double proved enough for the visitors, who turned up with only 11 players.
Shannon Redhouse had given the Romans the lead with her second goal for the club.
But a failure to build on it due to wasteful finishing and solid goalkeeping consigned Matt Abreu’s injury hit side to a shock defeat.
All looked rosy for the hosts as their early dominance was rewarded with an opener.
Tara Taylor was well picked out on the right by Kelly Cutler, and her pull back saw Redhouse initially denied by goalkeeper Shona Moore before she tapped in the rebound.
Redhouse nearly forced home a second but Jasmin Payne did enough to block her on the line, and the forward blazed over from Jasmine Rennie’s pull-back as the Romans threatened more.
They were made to pay for not extending their advantage when Neate was cleverly played through by Amelia Fowles and coolly side-footed across Sadie Farley to equalise.
The second half remained largely attack versus defence as City enjoyed a lot of the ball.
Cutler shot off target twice from distance before Libby Goater’s curler from the edge of the box was batted away by Moore, who just beat Rennie to the follow-up.
Purton’s only real threat of the second half resulted in what proved to be a winner with five minutes remaining.
A tidy move down the right saw Fowles’ ball in intelligently left by Payne for Neate to convert under Farley from 12 yards.
Neate nearly inadvertently cost her side when Redhouse anticipated her short backpass, but Moore tackled the striker before she could shoot.
The result leaves City’s chances of finishing second in peril, as they’ll look to bounce back at improving Downend Flyers this weekend.
City’s Line-Up: Farley; Gray, Fry, Trivett; Taylor, Spratt, Cutler, Key; Goater; Redhouse, Rennie. Subs used: Hemmings, Heilmann, Thorner-Atkinson, Pearce.
Scorers: City – Redhouse (5); Purton – Neate (36, 85)
Referee: Kelvin Day