Chelsea Ladies are looking to win their first ever piece of silverware on Saturday, as they take on Notts County in the FA Women's Cup final.

The Blues’ previous best result in this competition was just three years ago, coming runners-up in dramatic fashion in the 2012 final. They led the game twice against Birmingham City, but eventually lost 3-2 on penalties at Ashton Gate. Claire Rafferty, Drew Spence and Laura Coombs, who are all likely to feature for Chelsea on Saturday, started that final. Rafferty and Spence were two of the three unfortunate Chelsea players to miss in that shootout.

Two other of Chelsea’s current squad, Eni Aluko and Marie Hourihan, were on the winning side that day.

The Blues had to win in three previous rounds to make this historic Wembley final.

Round of 16

Chelsea, along with the seven other WSL 1 teams, joined the draw in the round of 16. They were drawn at home to Watford, who play one division below, in WSL 2. The Blues had beaten Watford 4-0 just weeks before, in a final pre-season friendly.

One of Chelsea’s new signings, Marija Banusic, scored in that friendly – and she continued to prove a nightmare for Watford’s defence, bagging a hat trick on her first competitive appearance.

Despite it being Chelsea’s opening game of the season, the team looked like they had been playing together for years, eventually running out 6-0 winners.

This year's PFA Player of the Year, Ji So-yun, opened the scoring, while debutants Gemma Davison and Millie Bright also bagged a goal each in what was a comfortable opening game.

Quarter-final

The next stage of the competition saw the Blues face much tougher opposition – nine time FA Women's Cup champions and holders, and bitter London rivals, Arsenal at Meadow Park.

Chelsea didn’t take long to get going though, as former Gunner and current Blues captain Katie Chapman rose highest to head home a corner in the 18th minute.

The Blues were 2-0 up within the half hour, as a trademark dribble and low drive from another ex-Arsenal player, Davison, put them in cruise control.

An audacious lob from out wide by Reds’ left-back Emma Mitchell brought the hosts within touching distance just before the break, but Chelsea defended valiantly in the second half, and were worthy of the 2-1 win.

Semi-final

Another tough match was in store for Chelsea in the semi-final, as they faced fellow WSL 1 side Manchester City. The two teams had not met since City ended Chelsea’s title hopes on the last day of the previous season, so the Londoners certainly felt they deserved a bit of revenge.

The game was surprisingly open for a cup semi-final, as both teams had many opportunities to score, especially early on. Had it not been for the form of both ‘keepers, Hedvig Lindahl and Alex Brooks, either team could have seen themselves take a comfortable lead.

The introduction of Spence into midfield for Chelsea proved to be the catalyst for the Blues’ attack, as she took advantage of a Steph Houghton misclear and laid the ball off to Ji, who was able to finally break the deadlock in the 84th minute, firing into the bottom left corner.

The one goal was enough to earn Chelsea a place at the first ever Wembley cup final, after an already impressive campaign.

Final

Chelsea play Notts County in the final, after the Lady Pies defeated FA Women's Southern Premier League side Tottenham Hotspur, and WSL 2’s Aston Villa and Everton. Both teams have conceded just one goal over the campaign, Notts also outscoring Chelsea 12-9 (although County had a considerably easier draw).

It will be somewhat of a reunion for the teams, as County’s squad has no fewer than five former Blues; Laura Bassett, Dani Buet and Rachel Williams making the swap during the 2014/15 offseason, and Dunia Susi and Carly Telford having played with the Blues in 2013.

Both teams are coming into the game off the back of 2-1 defeats; Notts losing at Arsenal, while Chelsea were beaten by Manchester City. Chelsea have struggled since returning from the World Cup break, with a lacklustre display in their 4-1 win over Bristol Academy, before falling to a heavy, unexpected defeat at Sunderland.