Everton pick up first home win after seeing-off West Ham

Everton’s search for that first home win of the season is over in the Barclays Women’s Super League after The Blue Girls defeated West Ham United 2-0 at Walton Hall Park this afternoon.

Martina Piemonte and Aurora Galli got the goals as Everton finally collected maximum points on home turf.

Everton started the match well and they had a chance to get ahead early into the first half. Elise Stenevik took a long corner and there was a slight scramble as Katrina Gorry tried to clear the ball. The clearance only fell as far as Lucy Hope’s foot but she couldn’t convert with a bicycle kick.

At the other end, Megan Finnigan’s clearance fell perfectly to Gorry who passed the ball to Honoka Hayashi. Her shot was heading Courtney Brosnan’s way but the keeper stayed alert and punched the ball away.

Everton were the next team to create a good opportunity to score but visiting keeper Mackenzie Arnold made a brilliant save to deny Justine Vanhaevermaet.

West Ham United applied some pressure to the Everton goal early in the second half with consecutive corners but The Hammers failed to test Brosnan.

With Everton searching for that first home win of the season, the crowd were really making themselves heard, cheering every time one of the girls in blue touched the ball. Their backing was finally rewarded seven minutes from time when Everton got their goal through Piemonte. Heather Payne took a free-kick that fell onto the head of the Italian international striker and she expertly found the back of the net.

Three minutes later, The Blue Girls made it 2-0 through Galli. She found the top corner of Arnold’s net, firing the crowd up even more.

The win sees Everton leapfrog West Ham United into ninth place in the Barclays Women’s Super League table.

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