Liverpool boss Matt Beard hailed his side's Continental Cup victory over Blackburn Rovers as a "good day all round", with the Reds making it three wins from three in the competition this season.
The hosts had most of the ball in the first half at Prenton Park, with Jasmine Matthews heading home on the stroke of half time to make Liverpool's early dominance count. Top-scorer Katie Stengel and defender Leighanne Robe squandered opportunities to extend the Reds' lead after the break, however one goal proved enough to seal Liverpool's first win since their 4-0 demolition of Leicester in October.
The result provides a welcome boost to Matt Beard's squad and ensures Liverpool remain top of Group B ahead of their decisive cup clash with Manchester City on December 7. The fixture will determine who automatically qualifies for the next round, with the quarter finals set to take place in late January.
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Reflecting on the game, the Liverpool manager said: "I was pleased. We’ve got a lot out of today. We got minutes into the legs today and managed to rotate and look after people as well so from that side of things I think all in all it’s a good day."
He added: "We could have played a bit better tempo and I think, if I look at the goal, we didn’t get enough bodies in the box, especially in the first 30/35 minutes and, when we did, we obviously got the rewards from it. They’re tough games to play but we got through, kept a clean sheet and that’s another three points in the group."
Beard made eight changes from the side that drew against Reading in midweek, with goalkeeper Faye Kirby handed her Liverpool debut and 18-year-old Hannah Silcock given the nod in defence.
“Faye, I thought she was good today," he said, "she deserved that opportunity. She’s been great since she's come in.
“I thought Hannah was excellent. It’s really good to see how far she’s come. We’ve said with Hannah it’s about physically getting her to be able to compete week in week out and I think that’s her fifth 90 in three weeks now so we’re really pleased with how she’s kicking on and what a player she’s going to be in the future for us."
Sunday's clash marked the first of four consecutive home games for Liverpool, and Beard believes the win over Blackburn could prove a source of inspiration when the Reds welcome Paul Konchesky's West Ham to Prenton Park next weekend.
He said: "It’s a big week for us. We know that, we’re not stupid. We’re looking forward to the game.
"We like playing here and, as I say, I think today’s performance could give us a lot going into this run in."
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