Albion Women are looking to bounce back from successive away defeats as they head to Halifax in the FAWNL Northern Premier on Sunday (2pm).
Siobhan Hodgetts-Still’s side have been on the wrong side of two 3-0 losses on the road, coming against division high-flyers Burnley and Stoke City - where the Baggies had to travel to both team’s stadiums.
Currently placed 7th in the third-tier, Albion have notched 18 points from 15 matches so far, and have opportunity for plenty more in their remaining seven league games - starting with their trip to Yorkshire.
Last time out
Three Stoke City strikes were the telling touches of Albion's latest outing, despite plenty of chances for the visitors to score at the bet365 Stadium.
The opposition
Hosts Halifax have steered into calmer waters compared to their last meeting with Albion.
The Eagles are now, to their credit given their struggles earlier in the campaign, sat three points and three places away from the relegation zone.
And Rob Mitchell’s side come into Sunday’s match having enjoyed a week of rest, compared to Hodgetts-Still’s outfit - who are still playing catch-up to recent postponed fixtures. Halifax were narrowly defeated 1-0 by Rugby Borough in their latest league game.
Halifax have the best defensive record in the bottom five. Conceding just 27 goals - only two more than the Baggies have this year - their goal difference (-14, again the best in the bottom five) could also be key to keeping the Eagles in the division this season.
Previous meetings
Albion Women 0-1 Halifax - November 2025
The Baggies couldn’t find a reply to Eleanor Ashton’s 50th-minute strike at the Alexander Stadium in November. The hosts carved out plenty of openings, but couldn’t make any of them count.
Halifax 2-3 Albion Women - February 2025
A duo of strikes from Fran Orthodoxou and Rhianne Oakley helped Albion steam into a two-goal advantage in Tadcaster, before Simran Jhamat added a third, either side of two Halifax goals.
Albion Women 4-0 Halifax - August 2024
Ashlee Brown’s second-half brace, an own goal and a Mariam Mahmood strike saw hosts, the Baggies to a terrific 4-0 win on the second day of the 2024/25 campaign.
Venue
Bradford-based venue, Myra Shay, will host Sunday’s fixture between the two sides.
The Eagles moved to the stadium at the beginning of 2025/26, and have enjoyed two wins there so far.
Pre-match thoughts
Defender Taylor Reynolds has had to play in less-favourable positions to get a chance at her preferred right-back spot.
The versatile Wales youth international has played in every position across Hodgetts-Still’s back-line since joining in the summer of 2023, and has shown herself to be adept when covering any role - despite her personal ambitions being on the right-side of defence.
But since the beginning of 2025/26, the 22-year-old has appeared to nail down a spot at right-back - starting each of the Baggies’ FAWNL Northern Premier matches this season.
Now with the “must-win” task in Yorkshire at the height of her priorities, Reynolds will lean on her three years of varied experience to match the “physical battle” on Sunday.
She said: “I think we can be a bit disappointed with Sunday. Both in and out-of-possession, they wanted it a bit more in the first half, but in the second half - we came out and battled.
“By then, it’s too late and we’re already a goal down. I felt if we put our chances away, it could’ve been a different game.
“We thought we allowed Stoke too much space, we allowed gaps to open up and didn’t defend as well as we normally do.
“I felt we were up for it on Sunday, we knew there were three points on the line and maybe the result was a bit of a follow on from losing to Burnley the week prior. We know we need to start better going forwards.
“As a team, we can definitely create more chances for our attackers, but those chances can help relieve a bit of pressure on our back-line. We need to make sure we’re not conceding at our end too.
“We can’t afford to lose anymore points, Halifax is a must-win for us, and we definitely want to be up there with Stoke and the rest of the teams come the end of the season.
“This year I’ve played in my favoured position more than in previous seasons. I’ve needed it, moving positions all of the time, and constantly plugging gaps - doesn’t help you settle as well as you can.
“I’m still happy though, I think being here through each season has helped me now to do a job in different positions. Our centre-backs are quite unlucky with little niggles and picking up injuries - I’m happy to help wherever I can.
“I’m really happy that I’ve predominantly played in the right-back or right-wing-back position. I never want to get too comfortable, though, having competition in the team is always healthy but I’ve had a solid start to the season and I hope the rest of it goes that way too.
“I think the important thing is to be clinical in-front of goal on Sunday against Halifax. We gave them one chance to score in our home game against them and they took it.
“Every chance we get needs to be put away, because we’ve seen against them previously that we can get punished. It can be a very scrappy game, and sometimes, as seen against Rugby Borough and Wolves - we can match that physical battle.
“It’s all about getting back to training, taking our chances, and we’ll do our best. We’ll give our all and try to get three points.”
How to follow
Tickets are available to purchase at the turnstiles on Sunday, which open 90 minutes before kick-off.
They are priced at £5 for adults, with one person under-16 able to attend for free alongside every paying adult (additional U16s priced at £2). Both cash and card payments are accepted.
The clubhouse at Myra Shay will be open throughout, serving a range of drinks, food and snacks.
Car parking is also available for free and on a first-come, first-served basis. The car park can be accessed through the main entrance gates, just off Barkerend Road.
For those unable to attend, coverage will be provided across Albion Women’s social media channels, as always.
Reaction, the match report and match highlights will be available on the club website over the coming days.
