Chloe Gover was happy to score, but was disappointed her goal did not count towards a win as Aberdeen Women drew 1-1 with Hamilton Accies.
The 23-year-old – who has been deployed as a defender this season rather than in her usual position as a winger – netted the opener after 27 minutes at the ZLX Stadium on Sunday.
Her superb free-kick was cancelled out by Accies’ Josi Giard, who levelled the score in the 66th minute, meaning the SWPL points were shared.
It was a game which left boss Clint Lancaster seething – describing his side as “nowhere near good enough” – and Gover agrees the Dons’ performance was not up to standard.
Gover said: “I’m always happy to get my first goal of the season.
“It came at a good time as well and put us 1-0 up, but it is a shame that the game ended in a draw.
“It feels like a missed opportunity. If we had got the three points, then it would have taken us closer to the top six.
“It wasn’t our best performance at all and that is really frustrating.
“We didn’t create enough chances, test their goalkeeper enough and the passes were sloppy at times.”
Ending the year on a high the aim for Dons’ next match
Gover has welcomed her new defensive challenge this season, becoming a mainstay on the left side of Aberdeen’s back three.
She added: “It is still something that I am getting used to because it is obviously different from where I have played before.
“I need to learn stay back at times instead of wanting to push forward, because that is what I am used to doing.
“I’m still on set-pieces, so it is still good to be able to contribute like that when those chances come, and then it was good get the goal from the free-kick.”
Following the draw with Accies, the Dons remain seventh in the SWPL table after 15 games played and now have 19 points.
Gover believes their current standing reflects how her side has improved this term – as this time last year Aberdeen were sitting second bottom with eight points after 12 games.
She said: “You can see we are playing better football this season, but some results just haven’t gone our way.”
Aberdeen sign off 2023 with a home clash at Cormack Park against Hibernian on Saturday afternoon, where Gover says they will be aiming to secure a win.
She added: “We have to react and be looking to get the three points in that game.
“It is the final home game of this year. We want people to come out and watch us end the year on a high.”
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