Defender dedicates win to Lydia Bennett
Burton Albion defender goalscorer Phil Edwards dedicated today’s 1-0 win over Luton Town to Burton Albion Ladies player Lydia Bennett, who passed away recently.
Edwards’ header was his second goal in as many games to send the Brewers second in League Two, but it was also a day to remember Lydia, as a minute’s silence was held before kick-off, and supporters from both sides rose to applaud on the 29th minute of the game, Lydia’s shirt number for Albion Ladies.
“Firstly, I want to dedicate the win today to Lydia. We all did it for her.
“It was a really tough game and they’re top of the league for a reason. To come out on top today is obviously a good result and catapults us up the league a bit.
“We knew it would be a tough game from the start. We didn’t think there would be many chances and there weren’t, but thankfully I’ve been able to get my head on one and get it in.
“We had to grit in and it wasn’t the best performance in the world, but when you look back it the result is what people will look at,” said Edwards.
Edwards hadn’t scored this season until his header at Wycombe on Monday night, and he hopes the chances keep coming his way in the future.
“Nothing has changed really. I’ve had chances in the past and probably haven’t got the direction. Thankfully they’ve found me in the right positions lately and long may that continue.
“It’s about fine margins and I’ve nipped in about half a yard in front of their defender and sometimes that’s all it take,” Edwards said.
Albion ended Luton’s 11-game unbeaten run, and Edwards says the resilience the team showed today will stand them in good stead for next week’s trip to Shrewsbury Town.
“We knew we’d have to dig deep and we’ve defended very well today. We haven’t given them that many chances and we had to put our bodies on the line, but thankfully we held on in the end.
“We’ve had the top three in our first games and we wanted to get the points so they couldn’t pull away from us. If we keep that form we’re showing then it looks positive for Shrewsbury.”