Newcastle United Women come unstuck against Toffees | OneFootball

Newcastle United Women headed into their final League Cup game already mathematically eliminated from the competition.

As were Everton, which meant it was something of a ‘Dead Rubber’, but a chance for a second tier side to measure themselves against a WSL side they might yet face in the promotion/relegation playoff in May.

During the week United had announced a permanent replacement for Becky Langley, when current Northern Ireland Manager Tanya Oxtoby was appointed. The former Australia international defender has previous managerial experience at Nottingham Forest and Bristol City, as well as serving as an assistant to Emma Hayes at Chelsea prior to taking the Northern Ireland job.

With that announcement it would prove to be interim manager Claire Ditchburn’s last game in charge, having secured a near perfect seven points from nine from the three league games coming into this clash.

She made seven changes from the side which beat Sunderland last weekend, with a recall for Claudia Moan in goal, and Lia Cataldo in defence, while Jemma Purfield made her first start in a black and white shirt having recovered from injury.

A dull opening half at Gateshead International Stadium saw neither side come close to opening the deadlock. The closest either team came was 15 minutes in when Everton’s Yuka Momiki, one of four Japanese internationals in their line-up, sent in a dangerous cross that was almost turned into her own net by Jemma Purfield.

The Toffees went close again just before the half hour mark when Toni Payne tried her luck with a volley from 25-yards out. Her venomous effort tested Claudia Moan in the United goal, who was able to hold her powerful strike.

The visitors would get the breakthrough moments later courtesy of a debatable free-kick that was given. Momiki curled in her effort perfectly from 20 yards out. Whipping the ball over the wall before squeezing home just inside the post, giving Moan no chance to stop it.

Everton started brightly in the second half and were it not for Moan’s spreading save to deny Payne six minutes in, the Lasses could have been further behind. Soon after Ornella Vignola came close to doubling Brian Sorensen’s side when her strike whistled past the post after great work from Hayashi saw her dispossess Jas McQuade in a promising position.

But Newcastle began to find their feet and were almost back level on the hour mark after an excellent cross from Freya Gregory saw her pick out Emily Murphy. Last weekend’s derby hero controlled before slipping in the overlapping Jordan Nobbs who saw her near post effort saved by Everton’s goalie Courtney Brosnan.

Claire Ditchburn last match in charge

Everton responded and tried everything to increase their lead. A right wing cross which evaded everyone was heading goal bound, before Newcastle right back Lia Cataldo cleared off the line. Before Moan had to make another impressive save, tipping Payne’s header on the bar from point-blank range after Half time substitute Katja Snoeijs did excellently to head the ball back across goal to pick out her team mate.

But the game finally got away from Newcastle with two goals conceded in quick succession. A simple cross from the right by Payne found Snoeijs, who had the easy task of tapping home into an empty net to make it 2-0. Less than a minute later, Payne dispossessed Moan in the box to make it three.

The Lasses got one back a couple of minutes later as Beth Lumsden forced home a Nobbs inswinging corner at the near post for her first goal of the season.

Aoife Mannion was perhaps lucky to still be on the pitch when she appeared to lash out at Snoeijs inside the final 10 minutes. She escaped with a yellow card whilst her Dutch international opponent was forced off with an injury.

The final word went to Newcastle United Women, with them introducing one of their Under-21s players Amelia Freeman for what was her first-team debut.

Newcastle United Women: Claudia Moan, Jordan Nobbs, Jemma Purfield (Demi Stokes 75), Shania Hayles (Oona Sevenius 5), Freya Gregory (Molly Pike 75), Deanna Cooper (c) (Aoife Mannion 46), Malgorzata Grec, Jasmine McQuade, Beth Lumsden (Amelia Freeman 90+4), Emily Murphy, Lia Cataldo

Subs not used: Anna Tamminen, Hannah Hawkins, Charlotte Wardlaw, Abbie Richardson.

Everton: Courtney Brosnan, Rion Ishikawa (Karen Holmgaard 77), Ruby Mace, Martina Fernandez (Kenzie Weir 77), Hikaru Kitagawa, Yuka Momiki, Ornella Vignola (Rosa van Gool 77), Honoka Hayashi, Clare Wheeler, Toni Payne, Kelly Gago (Katja Snoeijs 46, Ellie Jones 83).

Subs not used: Emily Ramsey, Hayley Ladd, Katie Robinson.

Where that leaves NUFC

With that defeat, Newcastle’s interest in the League Cup is over for another year. The five group winners along with the three teams involved in the Champions League (Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester United) will make up the quarter final draw.

Although the competition does provide the opportunity to give squad players some important minutes, there is a sense that with the additional games and subsequent distraction out of the way the Lasses can now focus on the job in hand, namely promotion.

With just the top two positions being good enough for automatic promotion and United lying some six points adrift, they have some work to do. Third place would see the club play the bottom placed side from WSL 1 for a shot at promotion. At present that would either be West Ham or Liverpool, with the former having improved their form of late.

What’s coming up

Another international break sees a weekend off for the Lasses before the final fixtures of 2025 take place. They are next in action on Monday 8th December, when they take on a talented Southampton side at the GIS. The game having been pushed back a day to accommodate a Gateshead men’s fixture.

The following weekend sees the start of another cup competition. Newcastle will host Liverpool Feds, a side that pipped them to promotion from Tier 4 back in 2022 and are currently in the league below the Lasses.

Rounding out the opening half of the season will be a trip to face Portsmouth on the Sunday before Christmas.