Oxford United fans - bring your tickets!

The result may have gone against Oxford City Women at the weekend but the day will live long on the memory after a record crowd came along to the MGroup Stadium to support the team.

Over 750 fans smashed the record crowd for a City Women’s game and as Aliyah Anthony, who has driven the women’s development pathway at the club told us, the club will now look to build on that.

“First of all it was a huge effort from everyone at the club” she told us. “It doesn’t matter if they were on the turnstiles, working in the bar, selling fifty-50 tickets or out there on the pitch looking after the mascots, or doing any of the countless jobs around the ground. I thought it was an outstanding effort and really highlighted what we are about as a football club.

“We have had so many messages thanking us for making people feel feel welcome and that includes some really wonderful messages from our mascots.

“In terms of the game itself Swindon are obviously a very good side so we know it was going to be tough. That’s their 19th win in a row but we were always in the game and stuck to the game plan well. I certainly think the girls should be proud of what they did.

“In that squad we had players like Emily Harris, Sophie Lester, Yas Edwards, Kiera Maskell, Amelia Davis, Poppy Gorman, Reese Ayers who have all come through the Velocity programme here: Young players who did the club proud. That’s what we set out to do here: a clear pathway to help young footballers. To see them hugging their parents after the game or high-fiving the young girls who had come to watch was a great moment.

“We have had 500, then 600, and now over 700 at the last three cup games and now we have to carry that on. We know there won’t be that sort of crowd next Sunday when we are at home to Badshot Lea but we have to keep building and keep the momentum going in everything we are doing here.

“We want to thank the fans who have been unbelievable and I think the match report summed it up nicely: this season's adventure closes but the journey for women’s football at Oxford City continues…