Chris Church | You could see what it meant to the players

Swansea City Women interim head coach Chris Church praised the togetherness of his side after they ended Cardiff City’s 35-match unbeaten in the Genero Adran Premier with a 2-0 south Wales derby win.

The Swans took the lead through a stunning strike by Chloe Chivers, her 35-yard piledriver giving the visitors a well-deserved interval advantage following a dominant first-half showing.

Despite an improved second-half showing from the Bluebirds, Swansea captain Katy Hosford would make it 2-0 with 10 minutes remaining as she tapped home an Emily Thomas cross.

Coach Church was delighted with the fight that his side showed to earn three points, and felt the win was crucial as they narrowed the gap in the title race to five points at the end of phase one. 

“You could see what it meant to the players after the game, the togetherness was there for all to see,” said Church.

“We had to work hard second half because we were under a lot of pressure, but to go and make it 2-0 was incredible.

“Everything that we worked on in midweek we implemented really well, we had a game plan and we truly believed in it.

“It was always in our hands, we knew we had to beat Cardiff. That’s one out of the three games we have against them in the league before the end of the season, now we will see what happens in phase two, but I’m excited for it.

“We knew it would be difficult and that there was a lot riding on it, but these players have dealt with big pressure situations before, and they continue to deliver.

“The defence had to dig in, the three in the middle got through a mountain of work. Sammy [Wynne] and Rachel [Cullen] dug in and really helped their teammates out.

“You could see the reaction from the players after the final whistle, it means so much to them. Now it’s important we build on this.”