MANCHESTER CITY WOMEN 5, YEOVIL TOWN LADIES 0
Claire Emslie produced an individual moment of magic to break some stiff Yeovil Town Ladies resistance before laying on a second goal for Nikita Parris who went on to score a hat trick and win a late penalty which was converted by Izzy Christiansen as Manchester City’s women’s team took the upper hand in the race for second place in WSL1.
City will finish second if they match or better Arsenal’s result on the final match day on Sunday against Everton after a season of disappointment.
This season hasn’t gone the way that City would have preferred, having lost the short interim Spring Series last year to Chelsea Ladies, they also lost the Continental Cup to Arsenal in the final in March, and were beaten by a Lucy Bronze goal as they went out of the Women’s Champions League in April at the semi final stage.
Chelsea also knocked them out of the Women’s FA Cup at the semi-final stage this season before they capitalised on a couple of blips by City to lift the Women’s Super League title yesterday with victory over Bristol City to seal the domestic double.
City started Wednesday just a point ahead of Reading and Arsenal in the race for a second place finish to guarantee Champions League football next season but crucially still had their fate in their own hands with home games against struggling Yeovil Town Ladies and Everton Ladies to come but the Gunners had looked set to capitalise on any further slips by City before the Blues asserted themselves.
City used Nikita Parris as the lone striker, dropping both Jane Ross and Nadia Nadim from the side that lost to Arsenal last weekend. Demi Stokes also stepped down as Nick Cushing went with Esme Morgan in defence with Claire Emslie, and Mel Lawley patrolling the flanks.
Although City didn’t lack in effort they fell short in intensity as their opponents frustrated them in their early attempts to score.
Steph Houghton’s free kick after nine minutes tested Megan Walsh in the Yeovil goal while Emslie sent a low ball across the area inviting a tap-in which never came.
Abbie McManus released Parris but Nicola Cousins got a saving tackle in before the winger could get a shot away while Jill Scott’s header from Emslie’s follow-up corner landed on the roof of the net.
Judicious use of a high line and the offside trap by Yeovil confounded City, who were unable to attack the visitors consistently, reducing them to a long range speculator from Jill Scott early on although they remained dangerous from set pieces with Jen Beattie’s header cleared off the line from another Emslie corner.
City had to be careful, though, and were almost caught out on the half hour mark when a Yeovil free kick was spilled by Karen Bardsley but Cousins couldn’t control the lost ball to get a shot off.
Emslie was proving a dangerous corner taker, with another one of her set pieces diverted goalwards by McManus only to be cleared off the line again by a Yeovil defender.
Thankfully, City were not short of individual moments of brilliance and Emslie produced the goods just before the break from the left flank, stepping infield with a curling shot that beat Walsh and went inside the back post.
Izzy Christiansen came on for Jill Scott at the break and three minutes later City had doubled their lead with a goal by Parris after Emslie turned provider.
Georgia Stanway’s cross into the Yeovil area was sent just wide by Abbie McManus as the flood gates threatened to open but City kept up the pressure with Stanway’s shot deflected to safety after another Emslie corner was half cleared while captain Steph Houghton was denied a goal after connecting, predictably, with another fine Emslie cross only to see her header saved by Walsh.
Tessel Middag was on for Keira Walsh by this time, as City continued to look for a third goal against the flagging visitors.
There was a glimmer of hope for Yeovil, though, as Bardsley denied a chance before City broke with Stanway haring down the pitch with the ball before her run was brought to an end by an accidental collision with Megan Walsh.
It was only a matter of time, Nikita Parris scored her second of the night, City’s third, as the Blues swarmed around the Yeovil goal.
Parris completed her hat trick with a quickfire double and then was brought down to earn a penalty which Izzy Christiansen converted.
Parris could have had her fourth after a late City break but her big chance was saved, McManus lashed the follow-up over the bar and Stanway tried a couple of trademark rockets which went wide as City ended the game on a high and in the drivers seat for a place in next season’s Women’s Champions League.
MANCHESTER CITY WOMEN VS YEOVIL TOWN LADIES MATCH STATS
Man City Women: Bardsley, McManus, Beattie, Houghton, Morgan, Walsh (Middag 60), Stanway, Scott (Christiansen 46), Emslie, Lawley (Toone 81), Parris
Man City Women Subs not used: Roebuck, Jans, Nadim, Ross
Goals: Emslie 45, Parris (48, 73, 75), Christiansen 81 pen
Yeovil Town Ladies: Walsh, Gemma Evans, Burridge, Cousins, Green, Heatherson (Buxton 86), Miles, Jackson, Pusey (Gauvin 68), Piggott (Cochrane 77), Georgia Evans
Attendance: 715