Salicki says Durham Women will give it everything in Everton crunch

Defender Becky Salicki says the Wildcats will be giving everything they have in pursuit of promotion when they travel to Everton Ladies this weekend.
Durham Women's Becky Salicki (right) takes on Aston Villa's Katie WilkinsonDurham Women's Becky Salicki (right) takes on Aston Villa's Katie Wilkinson
Durham Women's Becky Salicki (right) takes on Aston Villa's Katie Wilkinson

The two sides sit third and fourth respectively and, with the promotion battle very much still wide open, the three points at stake are vital.

Lee Sanders’ side are only a point behind their Merseyside rivals, with both teams having two games in hand on Bristol and Yeovil above them.

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It’s been a fortnight since Durham last took to the pitch in a 3-0 victory over Watford Ladies which saw them close ground on Everton.

And Salicki says the weekend off has given the side time fine-tune their performance:”Having a couples weeks off has definitely given us time to refocus ourselves and build on the win over Watford.

“We have been working hard in training and everyone is pushing to get the most out of ourselves as a team.”

The Toffees’ last encounter saw them draw 1-1 with Sheffield, having beaten Oxford and leaders Yeovil before that.

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“We are expecting a tough battle against Everton and we will show respect where needed, but not too much,” said Salicki.

“They’re in exactly the same boat as us pushing towards the top of the league but, just like everyone else, they have dropped points.

“It’ll be a hard game and they have some very strong, experienced players but so have we and we will be giving our everything to bring the three points home.

“It is extremely tight at the top and it is hard to guess who will take points off who in this league so we need to do everything we can to keep ourselves in the mix.

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“We focus on ourselves and do our best to get a result where we can.”

With some good results and performances so far this season, Salicki insists that the spirit is excellent in the Wildcats’ camp: “Confidence and spirit are high in the camp at the moment – we’ve had a good solid two weeks of training and there is a buzz in the team.

“We have a tight bond between us and we know we will give everything for each other when we step onto that pitch.

“Myself included, there are some new faces to the team this year but we have all clicked and there’s such a positive atmosphere at training and hopefully we can carry all this on to Sunday.”

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There’s only seven games remaining for Durham in 2016 and Salicki took time to reflect on her first season at the club thus far: “For me personally the season has been a mix of ups and downs so far.

“We’ve had some amazing results where we have played other teams off the park and others where we have had to grind out a result.

“We’ve also had some disappointing defeats as well, but we have always bounced back together.

“I think what has been the stand out for me this year is the team cohesion and how when things aren’t going our way we pick ourselves back up and move on as a team. “

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“I don’t think many would have thought we would be in amongst the battle for promotion but we are and, like I said, the spirit in the camp is high and we will take each game as it comes, and you never know where we may be come November 6th.”