Manchester City put their club on course for a cup double double with an ultimately convincing Women’s FA Cup final win over lively underdogs West Ham United. City’s male and female teams have already won their respective league cups, the Carabao and Continental Tyres Cups. If Pep Guardiola’s men can defeat Watford here in the FA Cup final on 18 May the club will have won all four domestic pots.
It took a pair of untidy goals to break West Ham’s resistance. A long shot from Keira Walsh was deflected in after 52 minutes, then Georgia Stanway, from nearer in, saw her shot squeeze in via another deflection. Lauren Hemp, another young Englishman woman, added a late third as City lifted their second Women’s FA Cup in three years.
This was West Ham’s first Wembley FA Cup final since the men beat Fulham here in 1975 and there was good support for a team that less than 12 months ago was an amateur one that barely registered for most Hammers’ fans.
It was an indication of their rapid progress under Matt Beard that they ought to have been ahead at the break. However, City played much more to form in the second period and ended dominant.
City fielded the same line-up that defeated Chelsea in the semi-finals, an XI all bound for the summer’s World Cup except Tessa Wullaert, and that only because Belgium have not qualified. To the team that beat Reading in the other semi-final Matt Beard recalled fit-again New Zealand international Ria Percival and introduced Adrianna Leon.
The Canadian took her place on the right of a 4-3-3 which quickly shifted to a 4-5-1 when City were in possession. Contrary to expectations that was not all of the time, West Ham showing composure in possession and the confidence to attack. This cheered the noisy West Ham contingent in a 43,264 crowd that, despite the unseasonably damp and chilly weather, was as much neutral as committed: this is the sport’s Big Day Out as well as a cup final.
They nearly had a lot more to shout about as the game neared the half-hour. Overlapping right-back Erin Simon exchanged passes with Jane Ross and delivered a cross the Scottish centre-forward did not quite get enough contact on. This almost caught out Karen Bardsley but the England keeper reacted quickly to claw the ball away. Ross, knowing what a good chance it was, beat the ground in frustration.
West Ham continued to press and City’s usually solid defence looked panicked on several occasions. On the sidelines Nick Cushing was agitated but his side weathered the storm. They emerged early for the second half, the sure sign of a team which has been given a talking-to at half time and knows they need to improve.
City did start to have shots, but first Caroline Weir, then Walsh, made a hash of them. Undeterred Walsh had another go, from nearly 30 yards. This time she connected properly and when the ball deflected off the Percival’s shoulder it wrong-footed Anna Moorhouse.The ‘keeper scrambled to recover but though she got hands to the ball was unable to keep it out.
City now played with poise and confidence, stretching the play, moving their opponents around. A suddenly nervous Moorhouse was almost embarrassed by Stanway on 68 minutes as the Hammers tried to play out from the back but redeemed herself almost immediately with a fine save from Nikita Parris.
As City searched for a killer second West Ham broke but Alisha Lehman’s shot was straight at Bardsley. That was to prove West Ham’s last chance. With nine minutes left Stanway cut in from the left and her shot squirted in off the legs of Brooke Hendrix as the defender sought to block. With two minutes left Hemp added a third, beating Moorhouse as she rushed unnecessarily from goal. It was a smart finish, but a cruel one for West Ham.
