Larkspur Rovers Ladies 1-5 Reading Women: Match Report

Reading Women eased through to the semi-finals of the League Cup with a 5-1 victory over Larkspur Rovers Ladies at the Brunel University Sports Park on Sunday.

A goal from midfielder Emmi Tong put the Royals

ahead at the break. The visitors then put in a ruthless second-half display with goals from Ava Broke-Smith, Sarah Thompson and Tyra Wilson (x2) – Rovers’ Shenice Dyer grabbing a late consolation – to seal what looked like a very professional and comfortable performance.

This new-season, new-look Reading team had already gone one round further than last year by reaching the quarter-finals of this competition. They were up against a Larkspur Rovers side in confident form and undefeated in 2026 (without conceding a goal), after victories against Slough Town and Oxford City’s development side (with Reading beating City’s seniors last weekend).

Rovers play their football in tier six (one level below the Royals): Division One North of the Southern Region: the same league as Kidlington Youth and Penn & Tylers Green, both knocked out by Reading in the opening two rounds of the competition. Larkspur currently sit second, level on 24 points with league leaders Denham United, but having played three matches more.

Reading manager Ed Jackson-Norris made four changes from last weekend’s starting XI.

With Bethan Poole recovering from the head injury she sustained after just five minutes against Oxford City, Ellie Manners once again slotted in at right-back, and deservedly so after having excelled in that position last weekend.

Belle Rowden and Lucy Bolitho were named in the starting line-up, with neither Poppy Whitburn nor Tia Johnson part of the matchday squad.

And there was a surprise name on the team sheet with debutant Eliska Simpson (dual-registered with Bristol City) wearing the number one jersey, in goal for the Royals.

Team: Eliska Simpson (GK), Ellie Manners, Sarah Thompson, Belle Rowden, Keziah Banduka (Keren Banduka, 83’), Jazz King (Lauren Knight, 60’), Mia Parker (captain) (Lucy Bolitho, 83’), Emmi Tong (Tyra Wilson, 60’), Lucy Bolitho (Ellie Szekeres, 60’), Nat Cowell (Georgia Hayes, 60’), Keren Banduka (Ava Broke-Smith, 60’)

Reading goalscorers: Emmi Tong, 20’; Tyra Wilson, 67’, 76’; Ava Broke-Smith, 78’; Sarah Thompson, 85’

Larkspur Rovers goalscorers: Shenice Dyer, 87’

Reading yellow cards: Keziah Banduka, 45+1

Larkspur Rovers yellow cards: None

Reading red cards: None

Larkspur Rovers red cards: None

First half

With the University 3G pitch in high demand (not uncommon at this level of football), it meant both teams experienced a disrupted pre-match routine with very little time to prepare and warm up on the pitch itself.

Any ill-effects of this late preparation were quickly brushed aside however by a Reading team who, from kick-off, played and looked like a team a tier (or more) above the opposition, passing and moving the ball quickly and easily through the channels.

The Royals were dominant and in control from the get-go, with defender Thompson in the thick of the action throughout. She came close to opening the scoring from Reading’s third corner of the match, her headed attempt on 18 minutes just over the crossbar from King’s set-piece delivery.

The opening goal looked like it was always coming and it did, just two minutes later. Cowell – in a now-familiar style – controlled, shielded and unselfishly passed the ball to Tong. From the edge of the penalty area, she struck her shot sweetly past a stunned Sienna Sargent in the Rovers net to put the Royals ahead and bag her first goal of the season. 0-1.

It could have been two a few minutes later, but for some brave defending from Rovers’ Ivanka Koleva. A cut-back from Keren Banduka set up Reading forward Bolitho for a close-range effort, her blasted shot blocked by the Larkspur Rovers defender, who was poleaxed in the process and required treatment.

It took 40 minutes for Larkspur to register their first shot of the match. Reading goalkeeper Simpson, who had a confident, vocal and relatively quiet opening to the game, remained alert and got down quick to save the well struck effort from Rovers’ Savana Fearon.

Before then, Reading pushed forward looking for that vital second goal. Thompson fired a long-range effort straight at the goalkeeper.

After a Rovers back-pass had resulted in an indirect free-kick inside the penalty area, it was Thompson who rolled the ball to Cowell, only to see her shot charged down by the Larkspur defence.

And, in a flurry of action for the commanding defender, Thompson was unfortunate not to double the lead when she got on the end of another Reading corner, only to see her headed attempt crash off the crossbar.

It was easily one of the most one-sided and comfortable first 45 minutes for Reading fans to watch.

Half-time: 0-1

The trouble with comfortable 1-0 leads is that, when you are in control of the game, you really have to push on and show ruthlessness to grab that second or third (or more) goal to kill off the match. However, that’s exactly what Reading did in the second half.

The Royals continued from where they left off before the break, forcing their dominance from the restart. Keziah Banduka tested the ‘keeper, while both Tong and Cowell fired early shots wide of the goal.

The crossbar of the Larkspur goal was – twice – the only difference between Reading and extending their lead early in the second half, a shot from Cowell and yet another headed corner effort from Thompson both smashing against the framework.

The popular hour-mark substitutions came with an additional surprise when Jackson-Norris elected to make five changes in one go. On came the new front line of Wilson, Hayes and Broke-Smith – in place of Keren Banduka, Cowell and Bolitho. Szekeres and Knight slotted seamlessly into midfield for Tong and King.

To underline the strength of depth within the squad – and the difficult decisions the manager has to make – the changes not only meant the match finished in some style, but with goals added by the substitutes too: for the third match in a row.

It was Broke-Smith, in her first competitive match for the Royals, who had the first attempt. Her effort was saved by the Larkspur goalkeeper, after being released for a good chance through on goal.

Wilson copied her feat from last weekend to grab herself another brace. She made her first goal look easy with a deft touch at the near post to slot home a cross from Keziah Banduka. 0-2.

Wilson had hit the side netting in a shot/cross before scoring her second of the match (and seventh of the season).

Receiving a pass inside the penalty area from Keziah Banduka (for her second assist of the afternoon), she coolly looked up, picked a spot and threaded her shot into the far right-hand side of the goal for a neat finish. 0-3.

Two minutes later, Broke-Smith made no mistake with her second chance and rifled in a shot from just outside the box, which the Rovers goalkeeper was unable to stop, for her first Reading goal. 0-4.

With the match now firmly in the bag, Jackson-Norris made two further changes, utilising the rolling substitutes provision to reintroduce Keren Banduka in place of her sister Keziah and Bolitho for Parker, swapping the armband in the process.

With five minutes of normal time remaining, Thompson finally got her reward, timing her jump perfectly to head home a left-footed corner taken by Wilson. 0-5.

Not that it affected anything but the only disappointment of the afternoon came when the hosts who, to be fair had never given up, grabbed a late consolation. Dyer fired a shot from the edge of the box past the outstretched arm of Wilson in the Reading goal. 1-5.

Full-time: 1-5

Even though it took the team over an hour to score the second decisive goal, from the fans’ point of view it was an enjoyable, relaxed and comfortable performance to watch, made even more enjoyable with the rain holding off for a perfectly timed couple of hours.

It was also another example of how well the team have gelled, with the confident nature of the performance meaning the result was not in doubt from the opening minutes of play.

Reading can now look forward to a League Cup semi-final at Arbour Park (on a date yet to be scheduled) against AFC Porchester, who defeated a strong Farnham Town side (favourites to be promoted to our league next season) 5-4 on penalties, after the match finished 3-3. It also means Reading and AFC Porchester now have to play each other three times, in quick succession, before the end of the season.

Before then the Royals travel to Fleet Town next weekend (Sunday February 15, 2pm kick-off), looking to extend their unbeaten run to five games and keep the pressure on the teams at the top of the table. See you there!