Women’s FA Cup: Chelsea FC Ladies At Wembley Preview
By Lee Fraser
The Route To The Final
The opening fixture of the season was a 5th round FA Cup match at home to Watford Ladies FC on the 22nd March. Goals from Ji So Yun, Gemma Davison and two from Marija Banusic meant a 4-0 lead by half time. A hat trick goal in the 2nd half from Banusic and another from Millie Bright rounded off a 6-0 scoreline and secured a safe passage to a quarter-final tie with Arsenal.
Two league games passed with two victories before the meeting with Arsenal and with the Blues full of confidence, a potentially tricky tie was won 2-1 with all the goals scored in the 1st half. Katie Chapman and Gemma Davison were the scorers before a 1st half last minute goal by Arsenal made for a nervy 2nd period. The scenes of celebration at the end showed just how much the victory meant for everyone at Chelsea.
A further 3 league games were played (W2 D1) before the “revenge” semi-final match against Manchester City Women. The revenge was because of the final game of last season: a 2-1 loss that day meant Chelsea Ladies FC had been pipped to the League crown on goal difference.
The match was played at a neutral venue, Adams Park (the home of Wycombe Wanderers), and was a tense affair, both sides knowing victory would see them through to Wembley for the final. Chelsea Ladies had the better of a goalless 1st half, with Man City in the ascendancy for the majority of the 2nd. However in the 84th minute Drew Spence passed to Ji So Yun on the edge of the box who expertly rifled home the winner. Five minutes were left to see out and the Blues had won and were Wembley bound!
Next: Chelsea Ladies Current Form