Lucy Finch | The result has to fuel us for next week

Swansea City Women defender Lucy Finch insists her side must use the disappointment of their 2-1 defeat to Cardiff City as motivation to come out on the right side of the scoreline in the return fixture next week.

It was the first south Wales derby of phase two in the Genero Adran Premier, and in a typically feisty encounter that saw nine cards shown between the two sides, the Swans dominated large spells of the contest.

Finch’s side took the lead when captain Jess Williams reacted quickest to convert after Chloe Chivers’ free kick had crashed against the crossbar.

Swansea had further opportunities to extend their advantage, but a quick brace in the space of four minutes from Cardiff forward Mikayla Cook turned the game on its head and left the hosts trailing despite their control of the match.

The Swans continued to push for an equaliser but were unable to convert their chances – a rare occurrence for a side that had scored 40 goals in their previous seven matches heading into the game.

Finch admitted the result was a huge disappointment after such a strong performance, but has urged her teammates to use that frustration as motivation ahead of the return fixture in Cardiff next Sunday.

“It was tough to take. Coming into the changing room, everyone’s emotions were high and anyone watching would probably agree we dominated the game for 80 minutes," she said.

“Unfortunately there was a lapse of concentration for the second goal. It comes down to fine margins - they took their chances and we didn’t.

“We can’t dwell on it too much now, we have to dust ourselves off and go again.

“The training leading into the game was at a really high intensity and we all had a clear mission. Everyone was singing from the same hymn sheet in terms of what we wanted from the game.

“We turned them over in the first half, which is probably something they weren’t expecting from us, and that’s something we need to keep doing. Maintaining that intensity and those standards has to be the base of what we do.

“If this result doesn’t give you fuel in your belly to go again and put it right, I don’t know what will. We have them again next week and although we’re disappointed today, we have to use that disappointment as motivation to go there and hopefully get the result we want.”