CLINICAL finishing proved the difference as Bradford City Women suffered a heavy 6-2 defeat at the hands of high-flying Stoke City in the FA Women's Premier League.

It was a sloppy start that cost the Bantams as they never recovered from two conceding goals in the opening 12 minutes of the Northern Division clash.

It means City have now suffered back-to-back defeats for the first time since November and manager Charlotte Stuart had some strong words to say about Sunday's result.

"I think the one word that springs to mind is disappointment," she said.

"It was a poor performance, one of the worst – if not the worst – I have seen us produce all season.

"The scoreline was perhaps a little bit harsh but in the end Stoke deserved the win. They were the better team."

Things could not have started much worse for the home side as Hannah Keryakoplis, sent off in this fixture last season, put Stoke ahead with a deflected shot in the third minute.

The Welsh international added her second goal of the day almost as quickly with a clever lob, giving City a mountain to climb if they wanted a share of the points.

The two sides then exchanged blows in an end-to-end first half – Abi Lee pulling one back for the Bantams, Ashleigh Hayes restoring Stoke's two-goal cushion and Hannah Smith halving the deficit again with a stunning strike from distance.

Yet despite going in at half-time only a goal down, City were unable to continue their comeback and Stoke ran away with the second half, Keryakoplis scoring twice more as Emily Owen also got on the scoresheet.

"We seemed to have got back into the game but then we missed a couple of chances," said Stuart.

"From there, Stoke got a hold of the game. We were second to every ball and just looked off the pace."

City's squad was, however, stretched for the fixture, with regular starters Zoe Roberts, Ellie White and top-scorer Laura Elford all missing.

Stuart was required to complete her match-day squad with youngsters Keavy Smith and Jess Dunlop and, while they came in for praise, she is eagerly awaiting good news on the injury front.

"Both Keavy and Jess stepped up from the reserves again and got into the game the best they could," said Stuart.

"We are lacking in strength and depth in our squad at the moment due to unfortunate injuries again. But I will be looking for the players to give 110 per cent this week to put Sunday's performance right."