The Adobe Women's FA Cup

Arsenal travel to Birmingham as defence of SSE Women's FA Cup continues

Sixth Round draw

Monday 20 Mar 2017
Gemma Bonner, Siobhan Chamberlain and pupils from Holly Lodge Girls' College made the sixth round draw

Holders Arsenal will travel to 2012 winners Birmingham City SSE Women’s FA Cup sixth round after the draw was made by two school pupils from Liverpool on Monday.

The Gunners head to the Midlands in good form having beaten north London rivals Tottenham Hotspur 10-0 in the fifth round.

Birmingham also saw off local rivals as they edged past West Bromwich Albion.

Sixth Round draw
  • Birmingham City v Arsenal
  • Bristol City v Manchester City
  • Chelsea v Sunderland
  • Liverpool v Notts County

FA Women's Super League 1 champions Manchester City, who knocked out Reading on Saturday, face a trip to two-time runners-up Bristol City.

Chelsea, Cup winners at Wembley in 2015, will host Sunderland, while Liverpool entertain Notts County.

The draw was conducted by Isabelle Randles, 12, and Mona Dimitrova, 16, both from Holly Lodge Girls’ College.

They were joined by Liverpool duo Gemma Bonner and Siobhan Chamberlain who watched on as the eight clubs were pulled out of the hat. The Liverpool stars spent time with pupils from Holly Lodge before joining in with a football session.

Chamberlain said: “We wanted a home game and we got that.

“There are no easy games at this stage – every team has a strong squad with good players. It’s all about performance on the day so we’re going to work hard and look forward to the game on Sunday.”

The quarter-final ties will be played on Sunday 26 March and each winning club will receive £4,000 from The FA prize fund.

Gemma Bonner and Siobhan Chamberlain meet pupils from Holly Lodge Girls' College

This season each draw has been made by pupils at schools around the country as part of SSE's new partnership with education charity Teach First. By involving pupils in the draws and bringing female footballers to speak in the classroom, the activity aims to encourage more girls to get involved with grassroots football and provide inspirational role models to schools in low-income communities.

John Stewart, SSE’s director of human resources, said: “We are extremely proud to sponsor the SSE Women’s FA Cup and to see the number of people attending the Final growing year on year.

“It’s been an exciting competition so far, with more to come as we enter into the sixth round.

“Through our partnership with Teach First, we are raising the aspirations of girls from low-income communities, particularly in the areas of STEM science and sport, by holding the draws for the SSE Women’s FA Cup at Teach First schools around the country.

“We hope to see another record breaking crowd at the Final later this year and we’ll again be giving our customers access to special offers and the chance to win money-can’t-buy experiences at this fantastic family day out.”

This season’s SSE Women’s FA Cup Final will be played at Wembley Stadium connected by EE on Saturday 13 May, kick-off at 5.15pm.

Tickets for the Final are on sale now and, thanks to The FA’s partnership with SSE, children can attend for free.

Adult tickets are priced £15 and group booking and Charter Standard discounts apply. Tickets can be bought via www.TheFA.com/Tickets or by calling 0844 826 2010.

By FA Staff