The Reds play their closing dwelling fixture of the 2023-24 marketing campaign this afternoon towards Manchester United because the battle for fourth place within the Barclays Ladies’s Tremendous League continues.

Beard writes: “That is our closing dwelling sport of the season and I would prefer to pay tribute to our followers who’ve been magnificent in travelling dwelling and away to get behind the ladies.

“We all know they’ll cheer us on once more till the ultimate whistle this afternoon and hopefully we have given them one thing to be pleased with this 12 months.

“We’re actually pleased with what we have achieved and we all know that that is simply the beginning of the journey with this group as it is a younger squad.

“Once I take into account a number of the performances of the gamers this 12 months, I feel, ‘What are they going to be like subsequent 12 months with this expertise of getting to do it week, in week out?’ As a result of that is the largest factor and if you’re all the time getting ready for the subsequent sport, you do not actually get the chance to consider it.

“When gamers like Marie Höbinger, Jenna Clark and Mia Enderby go away this summer time and so they assume, ‘Wow, doing that week in, week out was powerful’, they’ll have realized a lot this 12 months.

“It is not nearly performing within the video games. You have to do it on the coaching pitch each single day too as a result of the extent is so excessive.

“So it is an thrilling time for the membership and the supporters have been implausible, particularly away from dwelling.

“I am going again to the Arsenal sport on the opening day and it was superb. That was the primary time we have ever actually seen all of the followers in the identical part in a stadium like that and it has been nice. It is simpler for us as a result of we all know the place to go to both have a good time with the supporters if we win or thank them if we have been crushed.

“They have been good and so they undoubtedly could be enthusiastic about this staff for the long run. It is a staff that is going locations.”

He provides: “At the moment’s sport towards Manchester United might go an extended approach to figuring out who will end fourth and we’re delighted to be on this place.

“After ending final season in seventh on our return to the WSL, our intention this season was to attempt to break into that prime half of the desk and to enhance 12 months on 12 months, so we might have taken this example going into the ultimate few video games.”

• Get your copy of the matchday programme at Prenton Park this afternoon