ReactionGareth Taylor on derby win: 'Huge credit to the girls - everyone was superb'
Gareth Taylor commended the quality and steel Liverpool FC Women displayed in Saturday's 3-2 victory at Everton.
The Reds had a 3-0 lead at half-time of the Barclays Women's Super League affair at Goodison Park through Ceri Holland's double and a Martina Fernandez own goal.
Grace Fisk's sending-off for a second bookable offence and Aurora Galli and Zara Kramzar efforts made it a tense finale, but Taylor's side held on to the Merseyside derby spoils.
Read on to see what the Liverpool head coach had to say in a post-match interview.
On his assessment of the game...
There was a lot going on in that game. We were enjoying it, I was enjoying it up until Fisky suffers the second yellow card. I thought we were exceptional. We started the game really well, we controlled the play, we gained control. In the second and third phase, I felt like a lot of our play was outstanding. You know you're going to have to weather some moments against Everton but we really nullified them to very, very little while we were 11 players on the pitch.
And then the second half obviously becomes a little bit more difficult when that happens. I thought there were some funny decisions today from the officials, just in the sense of yellow cards which probably are yellow cards but they're coming off the back of a free-kick that should have been given. That's for both teams. I think their second goal is arguably not a free-kick as well. It can frustrate because we worked so hard for that.
But I think it's a different type of performance from us in the second half and I think it epitomises everything that we're about. We really want to improve, we want to get better, we're very honest, we're very brave in everything that we try to do. Thankfully, we've got the three points today. We'd have liked it to have been more comfortable but that's what football is all about – it can really put you through the wringer.
On the intensity of the press in the first half...
We try to be aggressive in everything that we do – particularly without the ball – and put pressure on most teams we play against. Because similar to Brighton last week, if you give teams time on the ball, they'll animate and try to overload you in midfield areas and cause problems. I think Everton can be quite direct and then towards the end they're obviously going to be direct because they've got players at the top end of the pitch. Dealing with that or trying to stop it is really key to what we tried to do.
On Fisk's dismissal...
I think Fisky has had a kick out but I think she gets fouled before that. Again, that's probably what I was talking about before where there's an action before a real action. So the second action, most of them today are probably yellow cards. But I feel with both teams that there's an element of anger in the fact that they haven't been given the previous one. So, no real kind of complaints from us. Fisky has just apologised but I said, 'Look, it gives us another proposition.' And she's been outstanding for us, Grace Fisk, she really has. But huge credit to the girls – every one of them was superb. When you need someone to be super-calm, there's none better than Jen Falk.
On what he wants to see from his side in the remainder of the season...
We try to approach every game and try to win every game, no matter who we play against. We know some of the challenges are more difficult than others. Someone said to me afterwards that it's five, six years since we've beaten Everton here, so I think it's a big one for us. It gives confidence – particularly in the manner in the second half. We talk a lot about skill and will to win games – and we certainly showed a lot of will in the second half.
On Holland's performance...
She's got a big sponsorship with Barclays, I hear, [as] she keeps winning that Player of the Match! She deserves it. To take that penalty at that stage is big. She's just super-cool. The second half is outstanding. I think if we keep 11 on the pitch in the second half, I think we open them up a little bit more and she has a chance for a Merseyside derby hat-trick. She is doing a lot for us, puts in so much effort and endeavour and is just a great player to work with.