SAINTS Women secured passage into the FA Cup second round with a narrow 1-0 victory over Swindon Town on Sunday.

In-form Lucia Kendall hit a superb curling effort into the top-right corner to give Saints the victory, having created a number of quality, unconverted chances throughout.

Both teams observed a minute of silence before kick-off, as captain’s Shannon Sievwright and Rianne Bourne-Hallett laid down Remembrance Day wreaths.

Saints were high on confidence having just defeated National League Southern Premier promotion rivals Ipswich Town 1-0 last weekend, in the National League Cup.

And they continued against Swindon in the same fashion, Katie Rood, the New Zealand international making her first start for Marieanne Spacey-Cale, firing a good chance straight at the opposition keeper early.

But Kendall did open the scoring before the half-hour mark, cutting inside from space out right to send a left-footed curler in off the underside of the crossbar.

Rood was then denied again by a diving Emily McGrogan, before she had a third chance to get a goal but sweeped over later in the second-half.

Spacey-Cale’s organised defence saw the game out with error and ensured their name would be in the hat for the FA Cup second round draw.