Women's FA Cup fourth round roundup: talking points, debuts, record breakers & more

The Women's FA Cup fourth round took place across the weekend of 29-30 January, as 32 teams hoping to make it all the way to Wembley were cut down to 16.

From teenage debutants to a sprinkling of FA Cup magic, here's all the headlines from round four of English football's most prestigious cup competition.

Upset of the round

Southampton were the giant killers of the FA Cup fourth round, as the third tier side got the better of Championship outfit Bristol City.

Ella Morris netted in extra time, before Jessica Wooley missed from the spot for Bristol as the Saints ran out 1-0 winners at St Mary's.

Southampton boss Marieanne Spacey already has a proud history in the FA Cup, having won the competition five times during her illustrious playing career.

Individual performance of the round

Billericay Town came agonisingly close to pulling off a major upset of their own. The tier four side held Championship outfit Coventry United to a 1-1 draw after extra time, before crashing out of the competition on penalties.

The tie hung in the balance for 120 minutes thanks to the heroics of Alex Baker in the Billericay goal, who pulled off a number of fine saves as the Essex outfit came within a whisker of becoming just the second fourth tier side in Women's FA Cup history to make the fifth round.

Headline debuts

Fourth round weekend was the date for notable debuts and proud parents.

Nineteen-year-old forward Karna Solskjær made her senior Manchester United bow during the final minutes of her side's 2-0 win over Bridgewater United, with her father Ole watching from the stands.

Everton also got in on the act during the latter stages of their 4-0 victory over Huddersfield, with 18-year-old defender Kenzie Weir also making her first team debut in front of father David.

Record breakers

Records of both the goal scoring and attendance variety were sent tumbling across the fourth round weekend.

Georgia Stanway kicked off proceedings for Manchester City during their 8-0 demolition of third tier Nottingham Forest. The England international - who is still just 23 years old - hit a hat-trick to take her tally for the club to 64 and become City's all-time top scorer, surpassing the record previously held by Nikita Parris.

Bridgwater United's 2-0 loss to Manchester United was played out in front of a capacity crowd of 2,500 - a record attendance figure for the club. Huddersfield also recorded a new all-time high attendance as they crashed out of the FA Cup at the hands of Everton in front of a crowd of 1,168 at the John Smith's Stadium, eclipsing the record set at this stage of the 2019 competition.

Giant killers to watch out for

Three tier three sides remain in the hat for the fifth round draw; Southampton, Ipswich and West Brom.

Both Southampton and Ipswich are flying high in the Southern Premier Division and battling it out for the league's sole promotion spot. The pair boast two of the most impressive setups outside of the top two flights, the Saints having already proven their pedigree with their victory over Bristol, while Ipswich signed a number of players onto full time professional contracts for the first time in the club's history this summer. The Tractor Girls have previous in the FA Cup, having pulled off a trio of giant killings to reach the fifth round in during the 2019 competition.

The fifth round draw

The fifth round draw takes place from 7:30pm on Monday 31 January on talkSPORT 2.