Reaction'It hurts but we're proud' - Olivia Smith on Liverpool's defeat in Women's FA Cup semi-final
Olivia Smith was left disappointed but proud after Liverpool lost to Chelsea in unfortunate circumstances in the semi-finals of the Adobe Women’s FA Cup.
A stoppage-time winner by Aggie Beever-Jones defeated the Reds 2-1 at Kingsmeadow on Saturday lunchtime as the hosts advanced to next month’s final at Wembley.
Smith had earlier put Amber Whiteley’s team into a first-half lead with a typically assured finish, though Chelsea were level at the break as Erin Cuthbert equalised in added time.
And the Barclays Women’s Super League leaders would go on to win thanks to Beever-Jones’ 94th-minute header, which came just moments after Taylor Hinds had struck the crossbar at the other end.
Smith told BBC Radio Merseyside post-match: “Definitely extremely disappointed.
“I can say the same for my teammates. But we left it all out on the field, I’m very proud of them. It’s an unlucky result.
“This one is definitely going to hurt, we’re not going to be at Wembley. But we left it out on the pitch and we’re all proud of each other. We just have to stick together and look forward to the next game.
“Now we’ll reflect and feel it. Then moving forward to training this week, we’ll look forward to the next match. The same goes for my teammates, we’re definitely going to feel this one, but moving forward we’ll be OK.”
Smith’s goal was assisted in sublime fashion by Marie Höbinger, increasing her tally for the season to eight in all competitions.
She added: “I saw space in behind and I know Marie has the quality to just slip that in. Then I just trusted my ability, took my shot and scored.”
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