The surprising club who attracted the biggest crowd for a women’s match in England this weekend | OneFootball

Newcastle United (club website)

The biggest crowd for a women’s match in England this weekend was at Newcastle United.

The Magpies hosted Sunderland in a WSL2 Tyne-Wear derby – and attracted 18,972 fans to St James’ Park.

That attendance was higher than the two big derbies in the top-tier WSL – the 17,520 who watched Manchester City versus Manchester United at the Etihad on Saturday, and the 6,788 who watched Tottenham Hotspur against Arsenal at Brisbane Road on Sunday.

It means that Newcastle United are second only to the Gunners in terms of attendances at a women’s home game this season.

Newcastle United: their win over Sunderland

Newcastle beat Sunderland 3-1, with a brace from Emily Murphy and one from Deanna Cooper doing the damage, and Keira Barry’s header the only consolation for the visitors.

Newcastle United’s interim head coach Claire Ditchburn said after the game that she was delighted with the result as well as the size of the occasion.

In her post-match press conference, she described it as “a massive momentum builder for us, so it is continually stepping stones and we don’t get carried away but it is a really good platform from which to continue to push on.”

And she added: “It feels brilliant. It does feel good when you walk around the stadium at the end and you see everybody is delighted. It is a real honour, to be honest, you feel privileged to be in that position and a memory that will probably live with me for the rest of my life, it’s really special.”

And of the Tyne-Wear derby at such a big stadium and the appetite to support the women’s teams in the area, she commented: “They are great events. I think you have to be in and around the stadium before the game, during the game and after the game.

“They are fantastic events and I think everyone who comes raves about it, they rave about the atmosphere, the product on the pitch, so it is really good if we can continue that trend and keep growing and building the women’s game as well football in the north-east.”