General view of a Wolverhampton Wanderers branded corner flag ahead of the Premier League match at Molineux Stadium, Wolverhampton. Picture date: Saturday January 15, 2022.
Wolves and West Brom kick-off campaigns with victories
Wolves and Albion opened the FA Women’s National League North with victories.
Wolves came away with a 2-1 win from their trip to Derby County, while Albion ran out 3-1 victors over Stoke City on home soil.
It took just 14 minutes for Wolves to open the scoring.
Beth Merrick delivered a free-kick into the box with pinpoint accuracy, and Ellie Wilson got across the front of her marker to glance an unerring header into the far bottom corner.
Wolves consolidated a strong start by doubling their advantage nine minutes before the break.
Amber Hughes embarked on a slaloming run, and left the Derby defence floundering with some exquisite footwork to break into the box.
The forward made no mistake with the finish either – lifting it powerfully beyond Derby goalkeeper Anna Draper, as the ball crashed in off the crossbar.
A third goal refused to come for Wolves, and Derby halved the deficit on the hour-mark when Molly Sutherland swept a deflected effort into the bottom corner.
That made for a tense finale but Wolves remained defensively resolute to close out the victory.
New head coach Siobhan Hodgetts made her debut in the dugout at their new Redditch home, as the Baggies bagged a first win in the opening fixture.
Stoke had an early goal ruled out for offside inside the opening four minutes, before Olivia Rabjohn fired Albion into the lead after 19 minutes. Rabjohn returned to Albion from Rugby Borough in the summer after spending four years in the club’s academy.
And she marked his debut in style with a swivelling turn in the box and a powerful finish into the top corner.
Albion added a second on the cusp of half-time when Hannah George converted from the spot.
Fran Orthodoxou wrapped up the win after getting on the end of an Albion corner to extend their lead shortly after the restart. Heidi Logan grabbed a late consolation for the Potters, but Hodgetts opened her reign with three points.
Elsewhere, Stourbridge received a rough welcome to the FA Women’s National League North, as they were condemned to a 7-0 defeat by Nottingham Forest.
Charlotte Greengrass and Sophie Domingo both hit doubles in the first half, while Holly Manders and Nat Johnson also got on the scoresheet to send Forest into the break with a 6-0 lead.
Greengrass completed her hat-trick just after the hour-mark to rub salt into gaping Stourbridge wounds.
Sporting Khalsa got off to a winning start in the FA Division One Midlands with a 3-1 triumph over Leafield Athletic on home soil.
Skye Owen scored the opener, before Lowri Walker bagged a brace, as the Lions roared to victory.
