History awaits Wolverhampton Wanderers on Saturday evening as the SEAH Stadium in Telford plays host to the WSL elite in Manchester United.
Wolves are no strangers to the latter rounds of the FA Cup, and it is the second successive season that they have reached the last sixteen following a commendable 4-1 defeat to Brighton and Hove Albion twelve months ago.
Head Coach Dan McNamara knows the test that awaits his side will be tough but isn’t daunted by what will be a memorable occasion for him, his players and all associated at the club. His Wolves side are once again in a competitive title race in the FA Women’s National League (FA WNL) Northern Premier Division, pushing the likes of Nottingham Forest and Burnley all the way despite the latter investing more into their setups.
What Wolves may lack in financial backing, they certainly make up for it in togetherness and pride. The third division side were minutes away from taking WSL Brighton to extra time last season and similarly frustrated West Ham United in the same competition a year before.
Manchester United manager Marc Skinner is under no illusions about how tricky this fifth-round tie could be, and used his press conference to reiterate how the same preparation has been in place for this fixture as it would be for any other. Skinner went as far as saying “We need to treat Wolves as if they are a WSL team” to ensure what would arguably be the biggest cup shock doesn’t take place in Telford.
The Manchester United head coach feels they learnt a considerable amount from their fourth-round fixture against West Bromwich Albion, a tie which comfortably finished 7-0 but took United until late in the second half to cement victory.
With ambitions to retain the trophy they won last May, Skinner expects his team to be patient in their build-up and clinical when opportunities are presented to “hunt the Wolves”. Above all, he said they must be respectful of the home team and be mindful of their defensive organisation and the attacking threat they carry.
With Wolves averaging crowds of below 500 at Telford this season, the 5,000 strong expected turnout on Saturday will be a record which even beats fixtures that have been staged at Molineux.
Wolves 32,000 capacity stadium was considered to host this match, but McNamara believes packing out their usual home ground in Telford could give them an edge with the support behind them, and it is something Skinner has also acknowledged. “Their fans will be out in force as well as our fans in a really compact stadium. I think it will be a typical FA Cup game, as close to a men’s FA Cup game as you can get.”
If you cannot be there then you can stream the match live, see below.
