The fourth-round tie marked a first Leigh game of 2026 and was a great way to start the new year at home, with five different scorers and several individual milestones.
After coming off the bench against Arsenal in the WSL last weekend, new signings Lea Schuller and Hanna Lundkvist were each handed full United debuts from the start. Ellen Wangerheim, whose arrival from Hammarby was announced on Friday, made her debut off the bench with half an hour to play and received a warm United reception from the crowd.
Burnley, an ambitious club who turned fully professional last summer in a bid to earn promotion into WSL 2, had scored 23 goals across their three FA Cup ties prior to kick-off.