Manchester United navigated a safe passage to the Adobe Women’s FA Cup semi-finals with a 3-1 win over Barclays Women’s Championship side Sunderland on Saturday evening.
First half goals from Leah Galton and Maya Le Tissier put the Red Devils in control, and although Louise Griffiths was able to pull one back, Ella Toone’s injury time header ensured it was they who would be in the hat for Sunday’s draw.
The Lineups
MUN: Tullis-Joyce; George, Turner, Le Tissier, Mannion, Miyazawa, Clinton, Galton, Toone, Bizet, Malard
SUN: Lambourne; Stapleton, Westrup, Goddard, Corbyn, McInnes, Flannery, Fenton, Beer, Scarr, Kitching
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The Action
Manchester United were rapid out of the blocks. Celin Bizet had earlier threatened with a volley from outside the area that flew just wide. On 9 minutes, she was the provider, her accurate cross headed home by the stooping Galton to giver the Red Devils a deserved 1-0 lead.
What followed was total domination by Marc Skinner’s side, but wasteful finishing in final third prevented a greater scoreline. Moments after taking the lead, a clever pass from Toone sent Galton scurrying down the left flank. Her cross was met by Melvine Malard on the volley, but instead of finding the back of the net, her effort crashed off the crossbar with Demi Lambourne beaten. Bizet had another chance add her name to the scoresheet, as Galton once again delivered from the left. But like Malard, she opted for the volley and failed to hit the target.
As the clock passed 45, the failure to convert their dominance into anything more tangible on the scoreboard was leaving the door open to Sunderland to potentially cause an upset. However, such fears appeared to have been abated in first half injury time. Gabby George supplied a superb delivery from the corner, and Maya Le Tissier raced into the 6-yard box to meet it with an accurate header that left Lambourne with no chance. Two crosses, two shots on target, two goals, and Manchester United were now in complete control.
If the first half had started fast, the second had down shifted into a catatonic malaise. United appeared content to pass the ball around the Sunderland penalty area without creating very little from the territory the Black Cats were affording them. The supporters were briefly awoken when Galton was wiped out by a wild challenge from Natasha Fenton, leading to a heated altercation between both sets of players. Galton and Fenton were booked for their troubles.
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Then, out of nowhere, the game veered wildly away from its established narrative. Sunderland had been merely a passenger for much of this cup tie, but they received a huge stroke of fortune with 20 minutes to play. There appeared little danger when Man United cycled the ball through their backline. But Le Tissier failed to spot Louise Griffiths in her peripheral vision, and her attempt to clear the ball ricocheted off the substitute and beyond the dive of Tullis-Joyce to bring the score back to 2-1
From a position of serene calm, Manchester United suddenly found themselves vulnerable to the potential embarrassment of a cupset. Stirred from their slumber, they upped the tempo and laid siege to the Sunderland box, desperate for a crucial third goal to quell any potential response. Rachel Williams thought she had done just that, meeting Anna Sandberg’s cross with a textbook header, only to see it parried away at point blank range by Lambourne.
Lambourne was called into action again, having to claw out Bizet’s looping cross from underneath her own crossbar. Sunderland had no way out, the pressure from Man United unrelenting. Williams had an air shot when it looked certain she would score. Toone saw her strike deflect over the bar. Then, just as three added minutes were shown on the board, Bizet sent one final cross into the box, and Toone timed her run perfectly to head it home and finally seal Manchester United’s spot in the FA Cup Semi Finals for a third successive season.
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The Halfway Line Player of the Match: Celin Bizet
Manchester United’s main source of joy throughout the contest was the delivery from the wide positions, and Celin Bizet was key to that. Two excellent deliveries, at the start and at the end of the game, provided the ammunition for Galton and Toone to see off Sunderland’s spirited resistance.