Albion skipper Victoria Williams has praised the mentality of Albion’s young players that have stepped up to first team duties this campaign.
While Maya Le Tissier is a regular, the likes of Maisie Symonds, Libby Bance, Katie Startup and Katie Robinson have also contributed to the Albion’s WSL season.
Their willingness to put in the hard graft has caught the eye of Williams.
“They’re great characters and they’re a credit to themselves and the club. They work hard, they don’t expect things to be given to them, they work for their opportunities.
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“There is some talented players coming through who have real potential to have a good career in the WSL, and that’s supported by the DCA [Dual Career Academy] group as well.
“That’s been one of the benefits of being at the new training ground, I’ve had the chance to watch a couple of their games and I have been impressed.”
A win on Sunday for Hope Powell’s team would see them finish on 28 points – a record for Albion in the WSL – but 14 points short of fourth place Manchester United.
Williams has been encouraged by performances against the big teams this campaign, but wants Albion to further bridge the gap in coming seasons.
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“The draw against Chelsea showed what we can do and that’s the next step for this group and this club, to close the gap between ourselves and the teams at the top of the league.
“In the game against Manchester City in January, it was even-stevens for the first 45 minutes, but then in the second half we conceded quickly and the game got away from us. So that’s the next big target, we need to consistently put in good performance against those top teams.”
Albion round off the campaign on Sunday with the visit of Everton to the People’s Pension Stadium.
“It’s going to be tough, if you told me at the beginning of the season that Everton would be where they are now, I wouldn’t have believed you. They’ve had a bit of misfortune, it doesn’t seemed to have clicked for them. But they’ve got a new manager who they want to impress.”