- Jemma Purfield scored direct from a corner in LCFC Women’s win over Birmingham City
- The full-back’s strike added to Jess Sigsworth’s penalty in the first half at St. Andrew’s
- A Louise Quinn goal could not prevent the Foxes opening a five-point gap to Blues in the WSL
- Purfield says Leicester are keeping their feet on the ground and concentrating on going again
Two first half goals proved to be the difference in the Midlands, despite Louise Quinn’s late goal halving the deficit for Birmingham City, with Leicester moving five points ahead of Sunday’s opponents in the Barclays FA Women’s Super League as a result.
“Of course, we are really buzzing about the result and to get three points,” the defender commented to LCFC TV after the final whistle. “I think there’s a little bit of relief as well at the end. It was obviously a tough battle and credit to Birmingham; they came out fighting.
“We knew they would, they had nothing to lose in that sense, so we knew they were going to come out and give it a go, but we battled right until the end and at the end of the day, we got the job done.”
The game’s major moment came just before the half-hour mark when Jess Sigsworth took the ball past Emily Ramsey, only to be brought down by Blues’ ‘keeper in the box, resulting in a red card and a spot-kick that Sigsworth converted.
While Leicester were already on top and creating chances by that point in the game, they then used their player-advantage to great effect, doubling the lead via a perfectly-executed Purfield corner that looped into the roof of the net after bouncing awkwardly in front of substitute goalkeeper Lucy Jones.
Talking through the goals, the 24-year-old said: “Sometimes you create your own luck in that sense. We put them on the back foot, and we really went out there and had to start the game well, as we knew they would.
“So credit to us for that and the whole squad, because we finished the game strong as well. We work on set pieces quite a lot so I’m just buzzing that it came off and could help the girls.”
Remaining composed in the final minutes of the game was key and after Lydia Bedford made four changes during the second half, the Foxes were able to stand strong and claim a second successive victory across all competitions.
Purfield, who has featured in 12 of Leicester’s opening 14 WSL fixtures, starting 11 times, added that the team are united in not getting carried away, despite moving into a more comfortable position in the table, and are determined to remain focused for the remainder of the season.
“We made changes as well,” the ex-Bristol City full-back continued. “So it shows the depth of the squad now and how important that is and how together we are. I think that’s really important for us moving forward. We've got to keep pushing on and keep trying to get better.
“We’ve got to keep winning games and picking up points and I think that’s what we’ll aim to do, sticking together and getting better every day.”