Alisha Lehmann’s quickfire double, after Danique Kerkdijk’s opener for the away side, secures West Ham Women’s first Women’s Super League win of the new decade.
The Hammers, who were playing their first of 2020 at the Rush Green against Brighton & Hove Albion, looked to overcome the heartache of last week’s late loss against Spurs.
1,799 people were in attendance to see Matt Beard’s side overcome the Seagulls.
Brighton came close to gaining an early lead in bizarre fashion as Katharina Buanach’s unorthodox header from Lea Le Glarec’s acrobatic pass was looping into Courtney Brosnan’s goal before the ‘keeper tipped over the bar.
Aerial Threat
From the resulting corner, centre back Danique Kerkdijk’s header was deemed to have crossed the line by the referee’s assistant, despite being cleared off the line in a goalmouth scramble. The lack of goal line technology looked to have gotten the better of West Ham, who were dominated throughout the first half.
Both teams came close to scoring before the half in a game where chances were scarce.
Brighton nearly doubled their lead after an inch-perfect cross was delivered by left-back Felicity Gibbons but the subsequent shot by Aileen Whelan was rolled comfortably into the arms of Courtney Brosnan.
West Ham’s best chance to equalise came from their captain, Gilly Flaherty, towards the end of the first half. An inviting delivery from Baunach lead to the skipper powering her header just past the far post.
Bright Spells From Brighton
Despite Matt Beard’s half-time substitution in which he substituted Jacynta Galabadaarachi for the debuting Fillipa Wallen, the visitors nearly doubled their lead through Kayleigh Green who capitalised on Aileen Whelan’s tame effort in the box, but her close-range effort was skied over the goal.
The Seagulls came even closer with their next attempt from Lea Le Glarec. A well worked one-touch move across the West Ham defensive area was almost finished off by Le Glarec who seized upon Kirsty Barton’s backheel by riffling a shot which glanced just wide of Brosnan’s near post.
Final Throw Of The Dice
The clear changing point for West Ham was the introduction of Cho So-Hyun and Julia Simic, which forced Alisha Lehmann to play as a lone striker.
Fine Margins
Beard’s change in tactics almost paid off instantly after a fantastic bit of skill and eventual through pass from Kenza Dali to Lehmann have her first clear cut opportunity of the fixture, but it was pulled just wide.
Lehmann made amends for her earlier miss as she got onto the end of Kate Longhurst’s deep cross and sent it into the roof of the net from just a couple of yards out.
With the momentum beginning to change, Brighton continued to attack as Green was put through on goal but Brosnan quickly rushed out of the box to block Green’s effort from outside of the box.
The Turn-Around
Confidence was clearly brewing for Lehmann and West Ham as just four minutes later she was through on goal for a third time in the half. She slipped it past the keeper at the near post for her and West Ham’s second securing the Hammers’ first win of the calendar year.
The much-needed win for West Ham puts them four points ahead of Brighton, as they steer away from the relegation zone.
West Ham will see January out with a home game in the FA Cup against WSL Champions Arsenal on Sunday. Matt Beard will be hoping that his side can replicate last season’s cup run in which they reached the FA Cup final.
