Albion Women came from behind to grab a dramatic late winner against Stoke City in their first game the Alexander Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
Delphi Cole opening the scored in the first 45 for the visitors, but efforts from Fran Orthodoxou with 17 minutes remaining and then Phoebe Warner in the final seconds secured three big FAWNL points at their new home venue.
Siobhan Hodgetts-Still made two changes to the side that beat Leicester City PGA at The Hawthorns last weekend. Seren Watkins took Kate Evans’ place in midfield, while Warner came in for Molly Kehoe in attack.
The Baggies had some defending to do in the early stages. Izzy Green denied former Albion loanee Cole with a firm block inside the goalmouth, but the hosts soon found their feet in the encounter.
Monique Robinson’s pressing was at the heart of the first Albion attack, sliding in to win the ball high up the field. Warner made an incisive run beyond the Potters’ back-line to receive a pass, but her effort lacked the necessary conviction to beat Lucy Farrell.
It was Robinson who again looked to drive Albion forward, swivelling past two Stoke players before slipping through to Amya Hammond-McLean, who couldn’t quite keep her shot down.
The away outfit were awarded a penalty just before the half-hour mark when Green was adjudged to have fouled Evie Priestley inside the area. Cole opened the scoring with the spot kick.
Albion pushed for an equaliser and almost found one immediately after the interval. Warner raced away to meet Robinson’s through ball before rolling past the goalkeeper, however, a last-ditch Stoke clearance left the midfielder mystified as to how her attempt didn’t find the net.
Substitute Orthdoxou found her usual form from set pieces as the game pushed on. The midfielder latched onto a half-cleared free-kick before unleashing a volley into the roof of the net, bringing Albion back to level terms.
From that moment, the tide turned in the hosts’ favour, and even though Simran Jhamat’s strike was ruled offside, they still found a way to win. In the 95th minute, Warner prodded a loose ball home to give the Baggies a well-fought comeback victory at their new home.
Albion won’t have to wait long to return to the Alexander Stadium. They’ll welcome FAWNL Northern Premier high-flyers Burnley to Perry Barr next Sunday.
Albion: Clarke, Reynolds, Green (Evans 40’), George, Haughey, Hammond-McLean (Jhamat 46’), Watkins, Rabjohn (Orthodoxou 46’), Warner, Oakley, Robinson.
Unused substitutes: Howard, Sharp, Heselden, Kehoe.
