Norwich City Women boss Shaun Howes saluted Natasha Snelling after the striker equalised late against AFC Wimbledon to preserve their unbeaten record in the league this season.
Snelling struck in the last-minute against the Dons at the Nest after the visitors had taken the lead in injury time at the end of the first half.
Snelling was quickest to a ball that the Dons failed to clear to get her 6th goal of the season.
“She never gives up,” said Howes. “She took so knocks and took some challenges. She never gives up and that’s why she gets those chances, so I am so pleased for her. Give her a chance in the box and she will score.
“We knew we would get chances. We knew if we were patient and determined in the press we would get a chance.
“In the first half we had half chances but second half we did really well and on another day we could have nicked it.”
Defender Ceri Flye took a hit in added-on timeat the end of the first period and was moving gingerly when Wimbledon scored their goal. “They’ve taken advantage of that but it’s a good cross and good header,” added Howes. “We should have been quicker to close it down but I can’t really complain.”
Flye though was delighted her side were able to grab a point at the death.
“It felt amazing; we were pushing and pushing the whole of the second half,” she said. “Tash is always there to finish those chances. We thought we were going to get one more but it wasn’t to be.
“Today was two really strong sides. I think that showed today. That was tough for us today. It was a very even match.”
Referring to her injury, Flye said: “(It was) very painful I think it was just impact. My initial thought was ‘I’ve broken something’, but rest, ice and go again Sunday.”
She kept playing though and finished the 90 minutes.
“I’m very determined, I will not give up,” she added. “I will do everything in my power to stop that ball from going into the goal. I love a good battle.”
The Canaries were without last year’s player of the season and goalkeeper Bryony Williams and Howes gave an update on her injury after having to use outfield player Jess Harper on Sunday.
“Bryony is desperate to play. It’ll be a couple of weeks for her. So we will have to look into what we do for the next game.”
Eloise Morran, 16, who progressed through the club’s player pathway system made her full debut which was a success for everyone to see.
“She’s fearless,” said Howes. “Megan (Todd) who runs the pathway told us about her. We brought her in and she has excelled ever since. She broke things up, she kept things simple. For a 16-year-old, she’s such an intelligent footballer.
“We just want to keep winning and keep performing. It’s just about being as competitive as possible. Learning and growing and being better and performing in front of a big crowd like we did today, so thank you to everyone for coming.. we just want to keep doing that. We will just keep pushing and pushing.”
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