With the Gloucestershire outfit having completed the double over last weekend’s victory over Birmingham by clinching three points against the FA Women’s Super League’s bottom club.
While the boss was satisfied with that triumph, he is hoping for improvement on the back of a more structured week of preparation.
“I was really pleased with the result,” he told mcfc.co.uk. “We looked like a team that hadn’t played together for eight weeks but I thought we grew into the game.
“Although at times, we were a bit scruffy and a bit sloppy, our possession got better and we started to dominate the ball more. We saw what we wanted to see in terms of playing style.
“Before the game, we knew - with the lack of preparation time we’d had and the week the England players had been through - we just had to get through the game and win.
“We could have scored more goals. We created lots of opportunities which was pleasing because we hadn’t been together for so long.
“Saturday’s game against Bristol has been easier to prepare for because we’ve had more time but we still had to recover the players - they still needed rest.
“We always go into every individual game to win it and we prepare to beat the team in front of us. Hopefully, we can come home with a win.”
City rose to fifth in the table on Sunday before Liverpool leapfrogged with a win at Arsenal. The Blues now sit just four points behind the second-placed Gunners and Cushing asserts every point is crucial if his side are to challenge for a Champions League spot.
He stated: “We wanted to hit the ground running in the second half of the season because this league is so tight - last year proved that. Wins are essential.
“We were disappointed with our start and we have no excuses so now we want to kick on and finish as high in the table as we can.”
The manager also took time to thank the City fans who turned out to show their support last weekend. A record-breaking 2,102 cheered their side onto victory and their efforts were appreciated.
“It was fantastic,” Cushing declared. “The reception the team got when they first came out was exceptional, but it doesn’t surprise me because City fans love their football and their teams - they’re really loyal.
“Hopefully, they’ll come back and watch us again - that’s what we want - and their support could be the difference.”
You can follow updates of Saturday’s game at Bristol on MCWFC’s Twitter account. Kick-off is at 6:30pm BST.
We’ll also have a match report on the website shortly after full-time.
