Oxford City Women suffered a 2-1 defeat to Reading FC Community Trust following a gallant late comeback.
Grace Craven’s goal in the dying minutes ignited a potential turnaround for The Hoops, only for The Royals to finish with a one-goal lead.
Reading, maintaining early dominance, kept Oxford City pinned in their half during the initial 20 minutes of the game.
Oxford found their rhythm as the first half progressed, with Hannah Gerrow making a notable save shortly before the half-hour mark to keep the score level.
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Oxford came close to an early lead in the first half with an effort from Ellie Walecki going just over.
The match remained quite balanced through the first half, with limited chances for both teams.
The second half saw an invigorated City, who appeared to have significantly picked up the pace of the match.
Following a coordinated play, a Harris shot landed on the roof of the net.
After 76 minutes, Reading seized the lead, capitalising on a throw-in that was squeezed in at the near post, contrary to the prevailing action on the field.
Six minutes later, The Royals doubled their lead.
However, Craven managed to pull one back for City just before full-time.
Despite pushing for an equaliser, it wasn’t meant to be as Reading managed to secure all three points.
Oxford City manager Aliyah Anthony expressed pride in her team’s performance.
She said: “Today we showed desire and when you have staff backing you, that’s what can happen.”