SAINTS Women stole the game against the run of play at St Mary’s, as they won their first game in five 1-0 against a formidable London City Lionesses.
Katie Wilkinson broke the deadlock late on, converting a deflected corner for her fifth league goal of the season - firing Saints up to fifth place in the Women’s Championship.
The away side dominated the game, and big saves from Kayla Rendell saw Saints keep the clean sheet despite being on the back foot for 80 minutes.
London City started the stronger team and two inch-perfect slide tackles from Rosie Parnell inside the Saints penalty box prevented almost certain goals within the first 10 minutes.
Ella Pusey had the chance to strike first - she cannoned the ball towards goal with her first touch from Ella Morris’ low cross but her shot went wide of the near post.
Rendell made an outstanding save just before half-time to keep things level, getting her fingertips to Grace Neville’s top corner shot and pushing it over the bar at full stretch.
But in an even more dramatic finish to the half, Pusey tackled Shae Yanez metres away from the goal line - but the London City goalkeeper managed to tackle and clear it before Pusey could score.
After a cagey second half made pitiful by wasteful passes and offsides, the deadlock was finally broken in the 82nd minute when an inch-perfect corner fell at Pusey's feet.
She fired it toward the goal, and it was saved into the path of Wilkinson, who smashed it past a downed keeper to win her side the match.
Saints: Rendell, Morris, Mott, Parnell, Pusey (Williams, 90), Pharoah (Kendall, 63), Peplow (Lumsden, 78), Griffiths, Wilkinson (Lloyd-Smith, 90), Collett, Peake
Unused subs: Rafferty, Freeland, Wynne, Ward, Howard
Booked: Wilkinson, Peplow
London City: Yanez, Nevile (Heuchan, 84), Girasoli, Rodgers, Napier (Shepard, 89), Bennett, Nolan, Muya, Fitzgerald (Joel, 84), Primus (Kitching, 89), Hopcroft (Carusa, 60)
Unused subs: Cull
Booked: Hopcroft
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