Matildas hero Mary Fowler makes new year statement as Manchester City get to FA Cup fifth round

Matildas ace Mary Fowler has begun the New Year as she finished 2024, in fine form, as Manchester City cruised into the fifth round of the Women’s FA Cup with a comfortable 3-0 home victory over Ipswich.

Fowler, fresh from being voted as one of the Women’s Super League fans’ nominees as player of the month for December, led the line for City, in the absence of star striker Khadija Shaw, in her first match of the year as the WSL powerhouses had a stroll against the National League South leaders on Sunday.

Fowler didn’t get on the scoresheet, but teammate Vivianne Miedema marked her return from a long-term knee injury with a goal as the three-time winners were always in control from the moment player-of-the-match Jill Roord gave them a first-half lead.

Laura Coombs scored her first of the season after the break before Dutch ace Miedema, the all-time leading scorer in the English women’s game who’s been sidelined since knee surgery in October, completed the win in the 76th minute.

It continued a good patch for the 21-year-old Fowler, who scored in City’s 4-0 WSL against Leicester, and also converted a late penalty at Everton in the final league match before the Christmas and New Year break.

She was also impressive in European action, against St Polten and at Barcelona.

Chelsea are still waiting for their FA Cup totem Sam Kerr to return to the fray after her own recuperation from knee trouble.

But in her absence Sonia Bompastor’s team still had absolutely no problem making it 17 games unbeaten in all competitions this season, with their 4-0 stroll against Charlton at Kingsmeadow.

Winners in three of the last four seasons, Chelsea continued their superb Cup record with Mayra Ramirez and Guro Reiten netting in the first half, and Aggie Beever-Jones and Niamh Charles doubling the tally after the break.

Arsenal’s three Matildas Steph Catley, Caitlin Foord and Kyra Cooney-Cross were left to wait to launch their Cup campaign after their home tie with Bristol City at Meadow Park was one of several fixtures that had to be called off in the cold snap.

Another casualty was the tie between Clare Wheeler’s Everton and a Spurs side expected to feature their own Matildas’ group of Hayley Raso, Clare Hunt and Charli Grant as they hope to make another run to Wembley, where they lost in the final to Manchester United last season.