West Ham United women's team 0-4 Chelsea
Barclays Women's Super League, Chigwell Construction Stadium, Sunday 28 September, 2.30pm BST
Three first-half goals helped Chelsea on their way to a 4-0 victory over ten-player West Ham United women’s team at Chigwell Construction Stadium in the Barclays Women’s Super League on Sunday.
Strikes from Aggie Beever-Jones, Johanna Rytting Kaneryd and Erin Cuthbert put Sonia Bompastor’s side in the ascendancy inside 15 minutes, before Inès Belloumou was shown a straight red card for a foul on Alyssa Thompson.
The heads of Rehanne Skinner’s side didn’t drop, though, as they worked tirelessly with a player less in east London, and crafted good opportunities for Katrina Gorry, Amber Tysiak, Viviane Asseyi and Ffion Morgan in a resilient second-half display.
Unfortunately for the Hammers, Wieke Kaptein added a fourth with 20 minutes left to play as the east Londoners fell to defeat.
Before the contest, all of Chigwell Construction Stadium observed a minute’s applause in memory of Matt Beard, who sadly passed away last weekend. Beard managed both clubs and took both us and Chelsea to Women’s FA Cup finals.
We started brightly, and after a clash between Riko Ueki and Millie Bright, Gorry emerged with the ball, surged forward and picked out Asseyi in the middle, but she sent her effort wide of the mark.
Chelsea replied quickly just a few minutes later, with Cuthbert testing Kinga Szemik from range before Keira Walsh bent a strike wide.
The chances kept coming in the opening ten minutes, as Ueki latched on to Thompson’s loose ball to find Asseyi in space in the area, but she dragged her shot wide.
After an end-to-end start in Dagenham, it was the visitors who took the lead through Beever-Jones, with the No33 scoring a spectacular free-kick after Shelina Zadorsky brought her down outside the box.
It was a case of fine margins for the Hammers, as after a venomous Gorry strike crashed against the post, Chelsea quickly doubled their advantage when Kaptein flashed a ball across goal for Rytting Kaneryd to tap home.
The visitors soon made it three inside 15 minutes through Cuthbert, who found the top corner with a strike from outside the box.
Then on 23 minutes, we were reduced to ten players when Belloumou was shown a straight red card for pulling the hair of Thompson. Chelsea came close to finding their fourth shortly after the Algeria international’s dismissal, as Kaptein was denied by a brilliant sliding challenge from Zadorsky, before firing an effort straight at Szemik.
In seven minutes of first-half stoppage time, the Blues’ No18 went close again, striking Szemik’s near post from close range, which came after Beever-Jones was denied by the Poland international.
Szemik was called upon quickly in the second half to palm away Walsh’s effort before Orian Jean-François’ near post effort crashed against the side-netting.
Those in Claret and Blue never stopped running, tackling and putting their bodies on the line, and enjoyed a lot of the ball in Chelsea’s half midway through the second period - and the possession turned into chances.
First Tysiak headed Asseyi’s corner narrowly wide, then the France international forced Hannah Hampton into making a smart stop from a well-struck free-kick.
After Eva Nyström did well to block substitute Guro Reiten’s shot, Morgan burst through one-on-one, but her effort was saved by Chelsea’s No24.
Following Hampton’s stop, the visitors went up the other end to net a fourth of the afternoon, as Kaptein slid in to convert Catarina Macario’s low cross.
Chelsea’s No9 then came close to getting on the scoresheet, but she was denied by an excellent save from Szemik at point-blank range before she struck the upright with five to play.
West Ham United: Szemik, Denton, Tysiak, Nyström, Zadorsky, Belloumou, Siren, Gorry © (Piubel 78), Morgan (Endo 81), Ueki (Wandeler 90+1), Asseyi (Martinez 82)
Subs not used: Walsh (GK), Paví, Csiki, Brasero, Hanshaw
Booked: Zadorsky, Nyström
Sent-off: Belloumou
Chelsea: Hampton, Bright ©, Buurman, Cuthburt (Hamano 72), Thompson (Baltimore 60), Björn, Kaptein (Kerr 72), Kaneryd, Jean-François (Reiten 60), Walsh, Beever-Jones (Macario 61)
Subs not used: Peng (GK), Carpenter, Nüsken, Alber
Goals: Beever-Jones 8, Rytting Kaneryd 12, Cuthbert 15, Kaptein 70
Booked: Bright, Björn
Referee: Callum Jones
Attendance: TBC
Skinner: I'm proud of the performance in the second half
Manager Rehanne Skinner was pleased with her side’s second-half showing in east London against Chelsea.
After falling three goals down at the break, having also had Inès Belloumou sent off, the Hammers came out for the second period and fought for everything.
They crafted chances for Amber Tysiak, Viviane Asseyi and Ffion Morgan, but were unable to put the ball past Hannah Hampton.
Skinner was pleased with her Hammers’ mentality to keep going against the Blues, but admitted the goals we conceded were a low point in the game.
The spell when we conceded the three goals was a real low point for us.
The way we defended during that time cost us, and you can't give time and space the way that we did.
We were really tentative with our defending and it's just not what we're about. They were too cheap, the goals, and against a team like Chelsea, they're going to punish you for that. We had good chances we didn't take as well, so we have to reflect on those.
I think when we went down to ten players, that actually changed the mentality in the team for the better.
I think we showed a lot of grit, resilience and determination during that time and we obviously got through to half-time with a little bit more organisation, a little bit more fight within the team. I'm proud of the performance in the second half, but unfortunately, we just can't be in that position in the first instance.
We had chances to score goals in the second half as well. I don't think it would have changed the outcome of the game, but ultimately, the fact that we're still creating chances in the circumstances, I think we can also be pleased with.
We just haven't got that [consistency of performance] for the whole game.
That's the bit that's been missing, not necessarily from the start, but just little spells where we haven't given the best account of ourselves in the way that we did last year.
That's something that we've talked about and we're striving to achieve. Ultimately, when we do stuff like that with ten players, that's what we know we're capable of. So, if we can do that with eleven, that's essentially what's going to change the narrative for us, really.
It takes a lot of concentrating when you're defending for large chunks.
There's a lot of people we can talk about in their determination and the way they've put their bodies on the line and stayed diligent to the task as well. I think everybody showed their mindset to try and get something out of the game. That never-say-die attitude is there within the team.
Gorry: There are positives to take out of the game
Despite a 4-0 defeat to Chelsea, West Ham United women’s team captain Katrina Gorry was proud of her side’s never-say-die attitude at Chigwell Construction Stadium on Sunday.
The east Londoners created multiple good chances against the six-in-a-row Barclays Women’s Super League champions, which saw Gorry, Amber Tysiak, Viviane Asseyi and Ffion Morgan very nearly hit the back of the net.
And Gorry was keen to praise her side and take the positives, but highlighted their execution in key moments as an area they lacked against Sonia Bompastor’s side.
“We had a few really good chances at the start of the game, and [if] we put them away, it could have looked different,” admitted Gorry.
“To concede three goals in a short amount of time is always tough, but the way the girls defended, definitely in the second half after we went down to ten players, it's something I'm really proud of.
“It’s tough looking at the scoreline, but there are positives to take out of the game, and the way we defended in the second half is how we have got to show up every game.
“If you give a team like Chelsea a small sniff, they'll take it, which is unfortunate for us, but it's just a part of the season that we've got to learn from, and we've got to learn really quickly.
“We've had some tough fixtures, so it’s tough to build confidence in that, but we've got so much belief in the team. We've got to stick together, take the positives out of the games that we played and keep showing up. I know when the tables turn, it will turn quickly for us.
“I think it would have been easy for a team to put their heads in their hands and move on and forget about the game a little bit. But for us, it's about standing up, taking pride in what we do and defending our lives, and I think that's exactly what we did when we went down to ten players.
“We still created chances, which I think is a massive positive for us, and I think it shows how much belief we have in the team and how well we can defend. So for us, it's about doing those things for 90 minutes and then taking our chances when we get it.
“It (Aston Villa) is a game we can definitely win if we defend like that (second half) and we take our chances.
“We can get three points, and I think everything can change. We've had some tough fixtures, but it's where you learn the most. I think for us, it's about sticking together, keeping belief in ourselves and in the team and what we're doing.”
