RIVA Casley could not hide her disappointment as Oxford United finished their home campaign with a 2-1 defeat at home to bottom side Watford.

The hosts had hoped to sign off at Court Place Farm on a high in front of a bumper crowd of more than 500.

But instead the visitors extended the side’s miserable winless run in all competitions to ten games.

United had looked like ending that torrid spell of form when they fortuitously took the lead thanks to an own goal from Frances Kitching.

But Helen Ward and Simona Petkova struck to earn Watford their first victory of the season.

The U’s end the campaign with a daunting trip to champions Doncaster Rovers Belles this Sunday and Casley cut a despondent figure.

She said: “It’s hard to put into words how disappointed we are.

“We’ve all worked so hard for the past two weeks coming out of the Sheffield game.

“We were so disheartened and coming into this game we saw it as our last home match ever maybe as a team, maybe as a club, so we just wanted to put absolutely everything into it.

“We can’t doubt the effort of any single one of the girls, but we’re just so disheartened.

“We’ve still got such a young team, if you look at the starting line-up you’ve got about three or four under-20s playing.

“The experience of the other players does help, but when you’re young and coming into an environment such as this, your confidence does tend to be a little bit shaky.

“But for every one of us playing, including me, a bit more confidence could have changed the game and the result.”

United started brightly with Ellie Noble and Flo Fyfe forcing goalkeeper Kitching into early saves.

They broke the deadlock on 15 minutes when Noble’s long-range effort cannoned off the crossbar and hit the back of the unlucky Kitching before finding the net.

But Watford levelled moments later as Ward fired low past Demi Lambourne.

The U’s goalkeeper prevented the same player from putting the visitors ahead, only for Petkova to turn in a cross at the back post on 64 minutes to make it 2-1.

Oxford pressed for an equaliser, but Kitching denied Dan Carlton.

Oxford Utd: Lambourne, Franklin-Fraiture (Baker 90), Short, Casley, Hillman, Lancaster, Carlton, Noble, Chivers, Fyfe (Timms 67), Allen. Sub not used: Thomas.

Attendance: 525.

l To buy tickets to an FA Women’s Super League match go to www.fawsl.com/tickets.