Albion Women were held to a draw on the final day of the 2025/26 FAWNL Northern Premier season by Middlesbrough on Sunday afternoon.
The Baggies created plenty to warrant taking the lead at Stockton Town FC, but were unable to do so, leaving them to seal a sixth-placed finish in the division.
Boss Siobhan Hodgetts-Still made two changes to the side that were beaten at The Hawthorns a fortnight ago. Hannah George made her full return from injury to replace Naomi Sharp, while Fran Orthodoxou dropped out for Seren Watkins.
There was an opportunity apiece for either side in the opening stages. Ellen Turnbull prodded a corner wide before George tested Ruby Cook with a low free-kick.
The hosts had the best opportunity of the half after a quarter of an hour. Boro skipper Millie Bell was left unmarked at the back post, allowing her to meet a corner which she turned the wrong side of the post.
Continuing the dangerous set-piece theme, Seren Watkins lofted a dangerous free-kick onto the head of Zoe Creaney - but she wasn’t able to keep her header down to notch an Albion opener.
Middlesbrough continued to show their final-day flair too. Lauren Robson caused Charlotte Clarke momentary worry as her dipping free-kick landed on the roof of the net, prior to the home number 10 scooping a promising opportunity off-target.
The Baggies returned for the second half with a renewed vigour, and almost took the lead had it not been for Cook in the home goal. She sprung into action to tip Riya Mannu’s dipping strike over the bar.
Despite there being little in the way of second-half chances, goalkeeper Clarke was called into action in the final five minutes. She raced out to smother Armani Maxwell’s shot as she raced away from the Albion back-line, before the hosts hit the post in the dying embers.
It wasn’t to be for the Baggies, though, as neither team could find a winner in the dying stages, leaving both sides to settle for their existing league standing.
Albion: Clarke; Green, Creaney, George; Reynolds, (Oakley 68’) Watkins, Rabjohn (Orthodoxou 68’), Haughey; Robinson, Jhamat (May 81’), Mannu.
Substitutes: Johnson, Heselden, Janny, Rhodes.
