Rampant Manchester City send Bristol City back to the Championship

Bristol City’s relegation straight back to the Championship after one season in the Women’s Super League was confirmed with two games to spare as they eventually succumbed to a 4-0 loss at home to top-of-the-table Manchester City.

After their promotion last term, Bristol City’s young and injury-hit squad have not disgraced themselves against the WSL’s heavyweights but they have rarely looked like staying up, winning just one of their 20 league games so far, away at relegation rivals West Ham United.

Whilst it was a sad day for the home side, victory had been vital for Manchester City in their own bid to lift a first WSL title since 2016. Gareth Taylor’s side moved six points clear of Chelsea, but the defending champions have two games in hand, starting with their trip to Liverpool on Wednesday. Despite the absence of injured Jamaica striker Bunny Shaw, the division’s top goalscorer this term, Manchester City were still able to find four goals in the second half, including two from Mary Fowler, whose eye-catching opening goal was one of the season’s best.

Theoretically, the title race could still be decided by goal-difference, and Manchester City’s is now seven goals stronger than that of Chelsea’s, who also still face away games against both of the FA Cup finalists in Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur.

Taylor’s team dominated the ball and prevented Bristol City from creating any efforts on target. Being the only WSL club without the relative luxury of having an affiliate men’s side either in the Premier League or, in the case of Leicester City, in receipt of parachute payments, Bristol City were always going to have their work cut out to stay in the women’s top tier this season, while understood to be operating on the lowest budget in the division.

Before kick-off, Bristol City knew they had to beat Manchester City to preserve their WSL status for at least another week, but realistically even that would have felt like merely delaying the inevitable, because they would also have needed to win away at title-chasing Chelsea next week and to beat Everton on the season’s final day, while simultaneously needing 11th-placed West Ham United to lose both of their remaining league games.

However, the west country outfit looked determined not to go down without a fight, and they frustrated Manchester City in a goalless first 45 minutes at Ashton Gate. Lauren Hemp, Chloe Kelly and Laura Coombs all sent efforts straight at goalkeeper Shae Yanez before the break, with the resolute defensive efforts of 18-year-old Chelsea loanee Brooke Aspin helping to keep the visitors at bay. After half-time, Hemp – who signed a new contract with Manchester City this week – went agonisingly close as she clipped an effort narrowly wide across the face of goal.

The breakthrough finally came when Australia’s Fowler was afforded space to run at the Bristol City defence and swerve a stylish strike into the corner from just outside the penalty area. The 21-year-old from Cairns could scarcely have struck the ball sweeter. Thirteen minutes later, Fowler could scarcely have asked for a better ball in towards the near post from Hemp and the Matildas star dutifully turned in her second goal of the evening to make it 2-0.

After Amy Rodgers inadvertently poked the ball into her own net to make it 3-0, Hemp rushed to fetch the ball from the net and ran back to the centre circle, reinforcing Manchester City’s mantra that goal-difference could really be crucial, come 18 May. Taylor’s team kept pushing for another goal and were finally rewarded deep into stoppage time when England centre-back Alex Greenwood headed in at the far post from a corner, bringing a broad smile onto Taylor’s face.

The crowd of 8,749 was another sign of the positive steps the home side have made off the pitch this season, as they have averaged attendances of more than 7,000, despite losing all 10 of their home WSL games so far. In a signal of their intent to continue investing in the women’s team, the club announced just under an hour after the full-time whistle that they will still be playing all of their home fixtures at Ashton Gate next season in the Women’s Championship.