It was a case of what might have been for Chatham Town Women on Sunday as they lost to lower-league opposition in the FAWNL Plate competition.

They were looking to bounce back from heavy recent defeats against Portsmouth and Oxford United but were beaten 3-2 at home against Division 1 South East side London Seaward.

Manager Jesus Cordon made four changes to the starting eleven from last time out and saw some positives in the performance, but it was ultimately another defeat for the team, with the match hinging on a vital moment that could have made for a very different outcome.

Cordon said: “We changed some things, we brought a couple of players up from the academy, one of them started and scored one of the goals which was good, that gave us something else.

“We were 2-1 up, there was a moment we hit the post and from the counter-attack we conceded, so then it’s 2-2. We went straight from having the chance of going 3-1 up to then drawing 2-2. The game could have been a totally different story if we scored that one, but that’s football.”

Breon Grant scored for Chats in the first half of the cup match, which was 1-1 at the break, and on her first start academy player Chie Madamombe made it 2-1 before the Anchors hit back on the break and then scored a winner.

Cordon said: “Training was positive before the game, the sessions were good, there was a positive change. On Sunday, even if I think we deserved the win, we created more chances, we hit the post three times, but still we were not at our best and that is why we ended up losing the game against a team who did the basic things right, they took their chances and we didn’t.

“Some things were better, we were better organised, we created more chances, scored a couple of goals and we hadn’t scored too many so far, there were positives, but still we were not at the level we should be.”

Chatham are at home twice now in the space of three days, hosting Plymouth Argyle on Sunday and then playing London Bees in a match under the lights at the Bauvill Stadium on Tuesday, October 10 (7.45pm).