Southampton hosted Birmingham City in what would be the Saints‘ biggest test of the Barclays Women’s Championship season so far this afternoon. The stage was set, the wind whipping around a vocal St Mary’s Stadium for the duration of the tie.
The fixture marked Southampton’s dedicated Saints Foundation Matchday. The club’s focus alongside being on the game was on spreading the word about the work the charity does in the local community, and raising important funds.
The Blues were dominant at Southampton’s home ground, maintaining a clean sheet and securing three points thanks to goals from Lucy Quinn and Lily Agg.
The Lineups
SOU: Stenson; Mott, Kendall, Bourne, Dean, Pike, Rowe, Griffiths, Purfield, Collett, Palmer
BIR: Thomas; Quinn, Harrison-Mui, Agg, Holloway, Magill, Quinn, McGowan, Akpan, McKenna, Herron
The Action
Birmingham City got proceedings underway, and the away side were quick to launch their first attacking effort of the match. Saints retaliated, but there was no one to put away Molly Pike’s early long ball.
Southampton goalkeeper Fran Stenson was called into action as Agg looked to open the scoring. The home side were once again quick to respond, as a ball out from Blues shot-stopper Lucy Thomas deflected off of Saints summer signing Rachel Rowe, landing just wide of the far post.
Lucy Quinn found the back of the net for Amy Merricks’ side in the 12th minute. The forward’s back post header across goal made it into the back of the net, putting the current table-toppers in front.
The contest continued, and Southampton looked to contain their confident visitors, searching for a chance to strike. After a short spell in attack for the home side, the Blues continued to target the left flank. Megan Collett did well to nullify Lucy Quinn, however, and the deficit remained 1-0. The Birmingham City goalscorer had to leave the field shortly after due to an injury she picked up earlier on.
Tegan McGowan looked especially dominant for the Blues, the No. 19’s 34th minute cross in to Simone Magill looked likely, but ended up fired just over the crossbar. McGowan made sure Saints captain Jemma Purfield had her work cut out for her, creatively threatening the hosts at every opportunity.
Remi Allen’s side pushed hard for an equaliser as the half-time whistle drew near, moving the ball through the final third with pace. The Saints also kept composure as Merricks’ Blues continued to work for a second. The guests may have been the stronger outfit for the majority of this opening half, but it was still all to play for in the second.
The Blues continued on the front foot as the second half got off to a busy start. The visitors doubled their lead in the 50th minute after some brilliant build up play from McGowan once again. Rebecca McKenna pulled it back for Agg, and the midfielder’s right-footed shot could not be gathered by Stenson, who should have done better between the sticks in this instance.
The Saints were caught offside several times, their few chances through on goal mistimed and hindered by the flag. Growing frustrated and still trailing two goals behind their guests, Southampton failed to capitalise on a flurry of opportunities and set pieces in and around the box.
Birmingham City began to look less defensively structured in defence as Southampton’s short-lived control over the game continued. Thomas performed well under pressure, gathering a Saints shot in her gloves to keep the Blues comfortably two goals to the better.
Despite the Saints’ late pursuit of a goal of their own, Merricks’ cohesive side ensured the scoreline was unchanged. Substitute Ivana Fuso twice came close to securing a third, denied only by the woodwork and a subsequent Rowe clearance, before Stenson redeemed herself with a strong save.
As the end of the 90 minutes approached, the Blues were on the attack time and time again. The Saints did enough to prevent further damage, but ultimately took nothing away from the clash, even after coming close to a consolation goal in the dying moments of the game.
The well-earned win sees Birmingham City keep hold of the top spot in the league standings, whilst Southampton will be disappointed to drop down to seventh in the Barclays Women’s Championship table despite their efforts.
The Halfway Line Player of the Match: Tegan McGowan
