Sheffield United: Blades prepare to renew their rivalry with Aston Villa

Jade Pennock, whose form in front of goal has been a driving force behind that run, made the admission ahead of tomorrow's Continental Cup tie at Boldmere St. Michaels which brings together early frontrunners in the FA Women's Championship.

Despite losing at Villa in Villa in August - a match which saw them surrender a 2-0 lead - Carla Ward's side climbed to second after thrashing Crystal Palace last weekend.

Pennock, who scored her 12th goal in only 11 outings during that rout of the Londoners, said: "Going into this weekend, the players think highly of each other and the way we're playing at the moment is just a reflection of the work we're putting in during training. We're behind each other going into games and we've got threats all over and that's amazing really."

United are well-placed to progress through the group stages after beating Super League side Liverpool last month.

Pennock, who together with Maddy Cusack and Katie Wilkinson was on target during that tie, missed their recent trip to Villa through injury but is expected to start the latest encounter with Gemma Davies' squad. Earlier this year, officials at Villa unveiled a major investment programme in their women's division.

"Before we even played a game we thought we had a realistic chance at getting out of the group this season," Pennock added. "Beating Liverpool has put us in a good position and we're positive within the team we can get the results to get out of the group."