Blues boss Kieran McKenna says Ipswich Town Women reaching the quarter-finals of the Vitality Women’s FA Cup was a fantastic achievement.

The Tractor Girls beat fellow FA National League Southern Premier Division high-flyers Southampton 4-2 on penalties after a 1-1 draw at the Goldstar Ground, Felixstowe to secure their place in the last eight for the first time.

Monday’s draw saw them paired at home to FA Women’s Super League West Ham at home.

“It’s a fantastic achievement,” McKenna said. “Everyone at the club is delighted for them. It’s wonderful for the whole the club, the training ground has had a boost from it, the stadium and those that work at Portman Road have had a boost, and I think people around the town who support the football club. Everyone was behind it.

“It’s a great achievement, especially with how the game went as well, to have conceded a goal in the 120th minute from a header from a goalkeeper, which is probably as extreme as you can get in terms of an emotional roller-coaster.

“To have responded from that so quickly and go into a shoot-out to get the win was brilliant.

“I had a good chat with [Tractor Girls boss] Joe [Sheehan] about the game on Tuesday, and he was filling me in more on the backstory of the players and some of the performances.

“And how young some of the penalty takers were as well. It showed a lot of character on their part. Also, how many academy players we had in the squad, maybe 16 of the 18 or something like that have come through the system at one point or another here.

“So, brilliant for everyone involved in the club on the men’s and women’s side and has given everyone a real boost.

“A really good draw against West Ham as well, so I think everyone is looking forward to that and hopefully we’ll get a good crowd to Felixstowe on the 20th and give them a good support and maybe even go one further.”

He added: “It’s a young squad with a real homegrown base, so I think that’s always a fantastic starting point for building a football team.

“They’ve got a real spirit in that group and [defender] Paige Peake, who has been a big part of the team, works on the analysis side with us and is a big part of the work that we do here as well. So everyone has been supporting her and she keeps us up to date with her progress as well.

“It’s great, they’ve shown a lot of character and it’s a team that’s been developed together, it’s come through the ranks together to a large extent as well and now to play against a team from the Super League is a great challenge for them.

“Speaking to Joe and the staff and knowing the nature and make-up of the squad that they have, I’m sure it’s one that they’ll look forward to and relish, and we’ll give them a good support.

“I’m sure lots of people will be down at Felixstowe to cheer them on, and we’ll see if we can cause a real good upset.”

Photo: Ross Halls

slade1 added 11:30 - Mar 4 McKenna is a breathe of fresh air for this club. I like the way he gets involved in all aspects of the club
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Fat_Boy_Tim added 18:43 - Mar 4 Agreed, I know he was probably asked the question but I can't remember many of our previous managers giving much time to speak about the women's team. I didn't know Paige Peake works as an analyst for the men's team (If I'm reading that correctly) which is very interesting and integrated. Love this club and where it's going.
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