Houghton eyes eleventh heaven

The FA Women’s Cup sponsored by E.ON 2011 Final
2pm, Saturday 21 May
Ricoh Arena, Coventry City FC
Winning club will receive £5,000 from The FA prize fund
Tickets are priced £5 for adults and £2.50 for children, or £10 for a family of four

Arsenal midfielder Steph Houghton has urged her team-mates to play to their capabilities in Saturday’s FA Women’s Cup sponsored by E.ON 2011 Final against Bristol Academy.

The sides have had two close encounters in The FA WSL in the last month. A 40-yard shot from Gunners full-back Jennifer Beattie was all that separated the two sides in April, while Bristol’s former Arsenal defender Corinne Yorston scrambled home a late equaliser last Thursday as the sides played out a 2-2 draw.

Houghton is expecting The Final to be equally as tight but believes Laura Harvey’s side have it within themselves to lift the trophy for the eleventh time.

“We want to make this trophy ours,” she said, “but we have to prepare properly because we know Bristol are going to be a tough team to beat.

“They are well organised, difficult to beat and they have got some good individual players and internationals as well. We have played them twice in the WSL and we know they are going to be a tough proposition. It’s more important that we focus on our own performance.

“We have played a lot of good teams this year and we know that if we perform how we know we can then the result will take care of itself.”

This will be Arsenal sixth consecutive appearance in The FA Women’s Cup Final and they have won the competition in five of the last seven seasons. They relinquished their grip on the trophy to Everton last May when an extra-time strike from Natasha Dowie handed the Toffees only their second-ever Cup triumph, but Houghton says Arsenal have used that defeat to motivate them this time around.

“There was a lot of talk of revenge when we played Everton in [this season’s] Fifth Round and that Final defeat really spurred all the girls on,” she said. “I know they do not want to go through that losing feeling again. We just need to make sure we are prepared on the day. We are taking nothing for granted.”

Houghton moved from Leeds Carnegie to Arsenal last summer and has made good progress at Boreham Wood this season. Capable of playing at both full-back and in midfield, the 23-year-old came off the bench against Sweden on Tuesday night to make her 16th appearance in an England shirt, and she is hoping to finally make it to the Finals of a major tournament having missed out on the last World Cup and European Championship through injury.

She helped Leeds lift The FA Women’s Premier League Cup last season, but is relishing the chance to walk out in The FA Women’s Cup showpiece.

“To be a part of Finals like this is the reason I joined Arsenal,” she admitted. “I’m excited and I can’t wait for it to come around.

“I’ve been to a few Finals previously but The FA Cup Final is one of the biggest days in the women’s calendar.

“Arsenal is the best club in the country. Every player dreams of playing for them and it’s great to be a part of it.”