The Blues’ manager had previously stated that rotation would be key during the busy fixture period, and seemed delighted at how everybody has played their part.
“The squad depth is really important” said Cushing. “To win a league you have to have every side, the performances, the physical side, the psychological side to deal with all of the moments you’re going to encounter.
“Having a competitive squad that’s enthusiastic and motivated do their part on and off the pitch gives you the best chance of winning and we’ve got that at the moment.”
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Georgia Stanway struck early in the match. Her 12th minute effort was the only goal of the game, and extended City’s winning run to five in all competitions.
Cushing added: “I thought we started well today, I thought we started lively. It showed that we’d rested a few players in the week and those fresh legs allowed us to start well.
Though freshness isn’t the only reason the manager has been rotating his squad, the quality of performances from those when given the chance is giving Cushing a nice selection headache to have.
“You know what, this week and the same for the Sheffield game, we didn’t rotate purely to save legs” Cushing explained. “Players like Janine Beckie and Claire Emslie, then Abbie McManus who went in midweek and retained her place they’re working hard, playing well, training well and deserve their chance.
“That’s why we’ll probably change it up again and those players that missed out today, such as Gemma Bonner who was unfortunate to miss out today, will play a big part in that game.”
City will play their final game of 2018 on Thursday, away to Aston Villa in the Continental cup. With no more league games this calendar year, the Blues remain the only unbeaten side in the WSL going into 2019.
“We understand that winning games helps you win trophies” Cushing said. “Whether playing well or badly, if you’re a winning team you’ll be there come April.
“We did that last year and didn’t get over the line, we did that in 2016 and we did, so winning gives us the opportunity to be up there in the table come the real crunch time in April, and at the moment we’ve put ourselves in a good position, but we have a difficult January coming up.”
