Page 5 - Women's Soccer Scene Issue No.25 2021-22

FA Women’s Championship

Liverpool saw their seven-match winning run brought to a halt on Sunday
when they battled out a 1-1 draw with third placed London City Lionesses.
Katie Stengel kept up her good form in front of goal by giving the Reds a first
half lead but eight minutes into the second half, the Lionesses hit back and a
Brooke Nunn goal gave them a share of the spoils.
Bristol City meanwhile claimed their fourth win on the trot and this sees them trim
Liverpool’s lead down to seven points, with six matches left to play. Lauren Smith’s side
travelled to Lewes where things remained tight until the midway point of the second half, when
Ffion Morgan gave City the lead. Morgan was then to score a second and Abi Harrison sealed a
3-0 win with the final goal in injury time.
Only two of the top six teams were able to record a victory on Sunday, the other being
Durham Women who were 2-1 winners away to Blackburn Rovers. Rio Hardy put the
Wildcats in front on the half hour, with Blackburn getting back on level terms six minutes into
the second half when a Natasha Fenton free kick was deflected into her own net by Sarah
Wilson. Elizabeta Ejupi restored Durham’s lead just after the hour and this time they held on
for their ninth victory of the season.
Coventry Utd perhaps recorded the best result of the day, a 1-0 victory away to Crystal
Palace. The only goal of the game came midway through the second half, Katie Wilkinson
slotting home from an Olivia Fergusson cross for their second win of the season and a result
which takes their points tally out of the negative numbers.
Charlton Athletic have been in fine form in recent weeks but they also tasted defeat,
beaten 2-0 by Sunderland. This was another match which was goalless at half time and the
deadlock was broken on the hour, Neve Herron firing the Wearsiders in front. The game was
wrapped up in injury time when Holly Manders
was brought down in the area and Herron stepped Watford 0
up to score her second goal from the penalty spot Sheffield Utd 4 (Sweetman-Kirk 12, Lord-Mears 40,
and bring Sunderland’s run of eight league Vyse og 45, Wilson 51)
-
matches without a win to an end. Blackburn Rovers 1 (Fenton 51)
Sheffield Utd meanwhile extended their Durham Women 2 (Hardy 30, Ejupi 64)
unbeaten run to five games, thanks to a 4-0 -
victory away to Watford. The Blades had been on Crystal Palace 0
a difficult run prior to this but their resurgence Coventry Utd 1 (Wilkinson 67)
means they are only six points behind third place. -
Courtney Sweetman-Kirk gave United a twelfth Lewes 0
Bristol City 3 (Morgan 67,81, Harrison 90)
minute lead and after Rhema Lord-Mears made it -
two, a deflected shot from Lucy Watson increased London City Lionesses 1 (Nunn 53)
their lead on the stroke of half time. Ellie Wilson Liverpool 1 (Stengel 27)
marked her return from a long term injury by -
heading in the fourth goal, early in the second half. Sunderland 2 (Herron 60,pen 90)
Charlton Athletic 0
CHAMPIONSHIP P W D L F A Pts GD
LIVERPOOL 16 12 3 1 34 6 39 28
BRISTOL CITY 16 10 2 4 34 16 32 18 LEADING SCORERS
LONDON CITY LIONESSES 16 9 2 5 25 17 29 Abi HARRISON Bristol City 13
8
3
DURHAM WFC 16 9 1 6 23 20 28 Leanne KIERNAN Liverpool 12
CHARLTON ATHLETIC 16 8 3 5 22 14 27 Courtney SWEETMAN-KIRK Sheffield Utd 8
8
CRYSTAL PALACE 17 8 3 6 28 33 27 Beth HEPPLE Durham Women 7
-5
SHEFFIELD UTD 16 6 5 5 25 18 23 Lucy WATSON Sheffield Utd 7
7
LEWES 16 7 1 8 20 20 22 Elise HUGHES Charlton Athletic 6
0
SUNDERLAND 16 4 4 8 14 23 16 -9
BLACKBURN ROVERS 17 4 2 11 13 31 14 -18
WATFORD 16 1 4 11 11 35 7 -24
COVENTRY UTD * 16 2 4 10 14 31 0 -17
Issue no. 25 - 10 March 2022 news@womenssoccerscene.co.uk