Arsenal secured the FA Women’s Super League title with a 4-0 away win over Brighton & Hove Albion, in front of a WSL record crowd at the Amex.
FA WSL results for 28 April
Brighton & Hove Albion 0-4 Arsenal (Att: 5,265)
Birmingham City 2-0 Liverpool (Att: 1,545)
Everton 3-2 Reading (Att: 174)
Manchester City 2-1 Yeovil Town (Att: 1,369)
Bristol City 1-2 West Ham United (Att: 602)
Gunners champions with a game to spare
Arsenal claimed a first top-tier title since 2012 with a 4-0 win at Brighton & Hove Albion, thereby avoiding a decider with rivals Manchester City next month.
Vivianne Miedema settled her side with an early goal, fired home off the underside of the crossbar from the edge of the box, the Dutch forward then turned provide for Katie McCabe to double the lead.
Ellie Brazil missed a chance to halve the arrears after the interval and Sari van Veenendaal denied Danielle Buet a goal back.
Beth Mead cut inside to net from 30 yards and Danielle van de Donk made it 4-0 when Brighton failed to clear a cross.
Man City have to come from behind to beat Yeovil
What a start 🙌@YeovilLadiesFC take an early lead over @ManCityWomen!#FAWSL pic.twitter.com/Y51GLzN1Ra
— The FA Women’s Super League (@FAWSL) April 28, 2019
Manchester City had to settle for the runners-up spot as they narrowly defeated relegated Yeovil Town.
However, the Glovers stunned their hosts inside 25 seconds as Olivia Fergusson fired past Ellie Roebuck.
City levelled around the half-hour mark, Lauren Hemp brought down in the box and Nikita Parris converting.
Hemp might have scored herself before the break but for Megan Walsh clawing the ball away from the line but she did find the net midway through the second half, heading home Parris’s cross for the winner.
White brace sends Birmingham third
Ellen White bagged a first-half double in a ten-minute spell to set up a Birmingham City win over Liverpool and lift them above Chelsea in the table.
White’s first was a tap in on 20 minutes after Charlie Wellings’ shot came back off the post, her second was a header over the onrushing Fran Kitching off a Chloe Arthur cross.
Laura Coombs and Christie Murray both came close to getting the Reds back into the game inside the last 20 minutes.
White might have completed her hat-trick but Kitching backtracked to tip her effort over the top.
Hammers hit back at Bristol
That cross @abiharrison_ 😍
On a plate for @BristolCityWFC‘s @_payneheather 🍽#FAWSL pic.twitter.com/ivN7W7SN0c
— The FA Women’s Super League (@FAWSL) April 28, 2019
West Ham scored twice in the last 20 minutes for a 2-1 win away to Bristol City, putting them two points short of their mid-table hosts with a final game in hand.
Gemma Evans twice kept the Hammers out in the first 45, cutting out an Adriana Leon cross and recovering the ball from Alisha Lehmann.
Heather Payne came off the bench for the Vixens and had an immediate impact, scoring from Abi Harrison’s ball into the box just before the hour mark.
Leanne Kiernan pulled West Ham back level within about a dozen minutes, turning to fire into the bottom corner from the edge of the box.
Into the last minute of the ninety, Jane Ross rose highest to turn in Brianna Visalli’s cross to give the visitors victory.
Blues fightback to beat Royals
Everton overcame an early deficit in defeating Reading 3-2, a result that moves them within a point of Brighton in ninth.
The Royals were ahead 7 minutes in at Everton, with Natasha Harding squaring the ball for Remi Allen to slot home.
Inessa Kaagman collected Grace Moloney’s goal kick and hit it over her to level the scores, then 5 minutes into the second half Everton took the lead, Chaney Boye-Hlorkah getting away from the defence to shoot into the bottom corner.
Straight after Reading’s Fara Williams had a free kick saved, Simone Magill made it 3-1 to Everton when following up Moloney’s fine save.
Williams did find the net on 75 minutes though, dinking the ball over the keeper from Allen’s pass and Rachel Furness went close to an equaliser from a free kick but Everton took all three points.
