Mansfield 2-0 Rotherham United Women 

Rotherham United Women slipped to a first league defeat of the season on a disappointing afternoon in Nottinghamshire.

A contested penalty from Mansfield Town’s Crystal Smiley and a ruthless finish by Maia Taylor following a defensive mix-up proved the difference at the RH Academy.

The Millers went into this one on a run of four successive victories but failed to find a firm foothold in the contest until after they fell behind.

Mansfield dominated midfield before the break and opportunities for Rotherham strikers Milly Colford and Jessie Broadhurst were hard to come by.

Katrina Parsons in the Millers goal was the busier keeper before the break and had just pulled off a smart stop when Mansfield were awarded a spot kick ten minutes before the break.

There was some confusion about the decision but it appeared full back was penalised for a foul on Smiley, who picked herself up and smashed the penalty into the top corner.

With Amy Nowell sin-binned for dissent in the aftermath of the penalty award, the Millers were forced to see out the first half a player down.

They will have hoped to regroup at the interval and come back out on the front foot but soon suffered another setback.

A defensive tangle saw Taylor pinching the ball in a dangerous area and giving Parsons no chance with her finish.

Millers boss Pete Jarvis sought to swing the momentum with a series of substitutions with some success, Demi Weekes in particular giving the home defence plenty to think about down the right.

Lauren Brogan tried her luck with a series of long range efforts, the last of switch saw Mansfield stopper Amy Price diving low to claw it away, while Mia McDonald and Maddy Wilson also prompted Price into action.

But a much brighter second half display wasn’t enough to salvage a draw or better and the Millers went home empty-handed.

Attention now turns to back to the FA Cup, with a First Round date against Worcester City at Roundwood on Sunday. Kick-off is at 2pm.

Millers: Katrina Parsons, Sidni Simmons, Lori-Anne Tart, Amy Nowell, Dina Sarayreh, Halima Essa, Lauren Winter, Jess Jones, Rachel Hale, Jessie Broadhurst, Milly Colford. Subs: Mia McDonald, Maddy Wilson, Lauren Brogan, Abbie Staples, Demi Weekes.