Man Utd off and running at the fourth time of asking

Man Utd beat West Ham 2-1 at Leigh Sports Village to collect their first WSL win of the season.

Eva Olid’s side – who picked up just one point from their first three league games of 2026/27 – took the lead inside 10 minutes, when Elisabeth Terland headed in Anna Sandberg’s header unchallenged.

They might have been 2-0 up had it not been for Hammers goalkeeper Constance Picaud, who brilliantly tipped Hanna Lundkvist’s header over the bar in the last action of the first half.

United came out with the bit between their teeth and had three chances in three minutes: Andrea Medina hit the bar, Jess Park shot wide and Terland forced another fingertip save from Picaud.

It took an hour for West Ham’s first shot on target, which came when Estelle Cascarino ran through the middle untracked and hit a dipping drive, which Phallon Tullis-Joyce had to be alert to tip over.

With 18 minutes of the 90 to play, the excellent Medina did make it 2-0 when she collected a peach of a pass from Park and found the postage stamp after her initial shot was blocked.

But Viviane Asseyi prevented United from keeping a clean sheet when she rolled a penalty into the bottom left corner after she was tripped by Sandberg.
Dan Long

Chelsea climb as Gunners stutter again

Chelsea extended their unbeaten run in the WSL to 12 games and moved up to third in the table with a 1-0 London derby win over Arsenal at Stamford Bridge.

The streak – comprising 10 wins and two draws – stretches back to February 8 and ended the Gunners’ own unbeaten record, which spanned 23 games and just under 12 months.

Arsenal were the dominant force for much of the first half and Kim Little, then Mariona Caldentey, were both denied by the woodwork, but they ended the half without a single shot on target.

And they fell behind when Keira Walsh’s shot from 20 yards was saved by Anneke Borbe, with the rebound fired high into the net by Alyssa Thompson.

Renee Slegers brought on Chloe Kelly, Caitlin Foord and Stina Blackstenius to freshen things up going forward for the visitors, but to no avail.

As a result, her side have failed to win for the third league game in succession, meaning they trail leaders Man City by seven points.
Dan Long

Liverpool finally beat Everton at Anfield!

Liverpool secured a 2-0 win against Everton to hand the club their first WSL Merseyside derby victory at Anfield.

Liverpool had previously lost eight of their nine WSL games played at Anfield, with five of those losses coming against Everton.

However, a looping header from Beata Olsson gave Gareth Taylor’s side the perfect start in just the fourth minute.

The Reds threatened throughout but were denied a second on two occasions due to the stoic defensive performance of Ruby Mace in midfield, blocking Natalia Ramos’ goal-bound shot and clearing Cornelia Kapocs’ effort off the line.

Kapocs would not be denied on the second time of asking, however, as she swept home the second to seal the win with just under five minutes to go.
Patrick Rowe

Spurs surge to victory against Villa

Tottenham surged to a 4-0 win against Aston Villa following a dominant second-half performance to keep within touching distance of Manchester City at the top of the table.

The victory moves Spurs within two points of the league leaders with 10 points from their opening four games.

Villa, who sit in 13th, kept their opponents at bay before the break but the floodgates would open following Victoria Pelova’s opener in the 54th minute.

The 27-year-old doubled the lead with a curling effort soon after before Caitlin Dijkstra’s back post header and Cathinka Tandberg on the rebound put the game out of reach.

Birmingham rescue point against Palace in six-goal thriller

Newly-promoted Birmingham are still searching for their first WSL win after rescuing a point in a six-goal thriller against Crystal Palace at St Andrew’s.

Suzu Amano came off the bench for the Blues to hit a deflected 87th-minute equaliser to salvage a point in a 3-3 draw.

Birmingham had looked on course for a first win of the season as they led 2-1 at half-time thanks to Oceane Hurtre’s double.

The forward hit an opener after just 40 seconds, but Palace equalised in the 30th minute after a goalkeeper howler allowed Shanade Hopcroft’s free-kick to go in.

But just three minutes later, Hurtre restored Birmingham’s lead with a powerful strike from a tight angle.

Palace, however, mounted a second-half comeback as Bethany England rebounded in a 70th-minute equaliser before Lexi Lloyd-Smith completed the turnaround with a fine one-on-one finish.

But the home side battled back in a topsy-turvy encounter as Amano struck to pick up Birmingham’s second point of the campaign and deny Palace their second win of the league season.

Australia fell to an ODI series defeat to South Africa with a game to spare as they were beaten by 32 runs in the second ODI match of three in Johannesburg on Sunday.

David Miller (142 off 93 balls) and Temba Bavuma (103 off 116) each smashed centuries for South Africa as they set the visitors a massive 366-run target after being inserted at the toss.

Australia looked well placed early on in their reply, with openers Mitch Marsh (84 off 53) and ​Travis Head (85 off 76) setting the tone by blazing the bowling to all parts.

But ultimately the tourists’ middle-order batting issues and struggles against spin were again laid bare. From 191-2 in the 25th over, they added only 62 for the loss of four wickets in the next 15 and a bit overs to stumble to 253-6.

That left Australia needing another 113 runs to win from the final 10 overs and, despite a late counter-punch from Xavier Bartlett (50 off 28), they’d eventually be bowled out for 333 in the final over.

Keshav Maharaj took 2-54, Bjorn Fortuin 2-70 and Aiden Markram 1-55 among the Proteas’ spin options. Seamer Lizaad Williams 3-54 and Marco Jansen 2-53.

“It’s certainly an area where we need to improve and we’re well aware of that,” Australia captain ‌Marsh said. “I thought we set up our innings really well in both games but we haven’t been able to execute during those middle ‌phases.

“It’s a great learning curve, especially for some of our younger players. But you also have to give South Africa full credit for the way they’ve bowled during those periods.”

Miller’s eighth ODI ton – containing 12 fours and nine sixes – and captain Bavuma’s sixth had helped South Africa to a score of 365-9 from their 50 overs.

Jack Edwards, playing in only his second ODI, grabbed 5-67 and Josh Hazlewood, who dismissed Aiden Markram off the first ball for a golden duck, took 3-70.

Australia, who haven’t won a bilateral ODI series against South Africa since 2014, will look for a consolation win in the last game in Potchefstroom on Wednesday. They’ve lost 19 of their last 25 ODIs against their hosts.

“It was another really good ⁠all-round team performance,” Bavuma said. “It started with the bat. ​Conditions were a little tricky up front but we managed to get through ​that period and build towards a good total.

“David played an unbelievable innings and then the bowlers did their job as well.”

Watch the third and final South Africa vs Australia ODI on Wednesday, live on Sky Sports Cricket from 12pm (first ball 12.30pm). Latest Sky Sports deals or stream with no contract on NOW

Are Arsenal’s title chances over already?

It seems a touch early to definitely say whether or not Arsenal’s title chances are over already, but their start has left a lot to be desired.

Four games in, they have scored only twice and one of those goals – in the 1-1 draw with Man Utd last weekend – wasn’t scored until the fifth minute of second-half stoppage time.

And now their unbeaten run in the WSL, which started all the way back on October 12 last year, has been ended by Chelsea.

It leaves the Gunners seven points adrift of leaders Man City already.

Head coach Renee Slegers was asked about that topic after full-time at Stamford Bridge and she said she wanted to “take the pressure off” of her players.

“I believe in these players. The goals will come and the points will come as well,” she said.

“We have to earn the right again to talk about this [the title race] because we’ve lost too many points.”

With a trip to City up next on October 4, the week ahead feels like a crucial one in the north Londoners’ season.
Dan Long

Medina the keystone as Man Utd’s collect first win

Sky Sports‘ Laura Hunter highlighted Andrea Medina in the lead-up to this game, posing the question as to whether the Spaniard could be Man Utd’s trump card.

Based on her performance on Sunday, the answer is a resounding yes.

Medina was the standout player by some distance at Leigh Sports Village: she created the most chances (4), took the most touches in the opposition box (11), hit the crossbar and scored United’s crucial second goal.

Speaking on Sky Sports+, commentator Gary Taphouse called it “a virtuoso display”. It came as no surprise when she was named Player of the Match.

As Eva Olid’s side look to build momentum after starting with two defeats and a draw, the former Spain U23 international could be the keystone.
Dan Long

Taylor stamps out the Anfield curse

Liverpool’s 2-0 win against Merseyside rivals Everton was the perfect remedy for the club’s curse at Anfield.

Heading into this game, the Reds had lost eight of their last nine outings in the stadium. Five of those had come against the Toffees.

It was an assured and confident performance throughout. After Beata Olsson’s early opener, which settled the nerves, it was just a matter of when, not if, the second arrived.

Cornelia Kapocs delivered and secured all three points. Liverpool move ahead of Everton in the process of their solid start to the campaign continuing.

The fixture list is a relentless one, however, with a trip to Birmingham in the Women’s League Cup fast approaching before an away clash against another foe in Manchester United.

Getting over the hump that is their form at Anfield will be a welcome boost in tackling those challenges. Liverpool can now move forward with confidence.
Patrick Rowe

Are Spurs in the title race?

A confident and strong 4-0 win for Tottenham against Aston Villa now opens up the conversation about a potential title race for the club.

No team has scored more than Spurs. Fifteen goals in their opening four games with just two goals conceded.

They are two points off Manchester City at the top but their upcoming run of fixtures will confirm whether they can assume the role of outside contenders for top spot.

London City Lionesses, Chelsea and Arsenal are their next three opponents in the WSL. Emerge from that October fixture list unscathed and serious conversations may need to be had about their chances…

Sky Sports’ Laura Hunter said that people may need to start paying attention to Spurs in the build-up to this game. The game against Villa was another warning.
Patrick Rowe

Birmingham’s bright display gives hope of earning first WSL win

Birmingham may still be waiting for their first WSL win of the season, but this was a display that shows it will not be far around the corner.

The Blues are playing in the top flight for the first time in four years but have started the season winless from their first four games.

Birmingham led twice against Palace on Sunday, yet somehow needed a late equaliser to rescue a 3-3 draw.

However, it was Birmingham who nearly nicked a winner as Chancelle Effa Effa had a stoppage-time chance to dramatically snatch victory.

That shot was one of 19 for the home side, who had more attempts, shots on target and touches in the opposition box than Palace.

But at the other end, they allowed 17 shots as two mistakes cost them two goals against Palace, as a goalkeeper howler let in the visitors’ first while a slip gave Palace their third.

If Amy Merrick’s side can tighten up at the back and continue to produce positive attacking displays like the one against Palace, then surely they can earn their first WSL win soon.
Declan Olley