Everton Ladies draw Brighton and Hove Albion

Around the same time Everton men played Bournemouth on Sunday, Everton Ladies played an away game against Brighton.

Being one spot away from the relegation zone, Everton Ladies were in need of the full three points but, instead came away with a scoreless draw. Brighton are in 9th place with 8 points while Everton are in 10th place with 6 points.

Manager Willie Kirk said that while they would have preferred a win, the clean sheet was a positive:

“We said to the players before that it’s important if you’re involved in a scrappy game and you’re not winning the game then you need to make sure that you don’t lose it.”

Everton’s last game against Brighton was a thriller, with Brighton fighting back from a deficit to draw Everton 3-3. Gabby George, Inessa Kaagman, and Chloe Kelly all scored for the Blues.

This time around, the Toffees showcased some strong defending, including some very important clearances around the box:

Kirk wants the squad to focus on finishing their chances:

“We should have been better. We could have been better. We certainly created opportunities but when it came to that final ball or final decision we should have been and will be better in the future.

“A cool head in the final third can make a big difference with creating a real goal scoring opportunity or half a chance. I thought we had a lot of half chances today. It’s something we’ll work on in training.”

Since Kirk has started, the Blues have only scored 2 goals in 4 league matches.

Lineup:

Everton striker Elise Hughes has gotten her third start in a row, with no sight of Hannah Cain in the lineup.

Manager Kirk changed his lineup since the Chelsea game by starting Inessa Kaahman with Chaney Boye-Hlorkah on the bench. Captain Dan Turner is back from injury and Taylor Hinds (who was recently called a WSL Young Player to Watch by the FA website) has been getting regular starts under Kirk.

Everton (4-3-3): Kirstie Levell, Danielle Turner, Georgia Brougham, Gabby George, Inessa Kaagman, Simone Magill, Chloe Kelly, Angharad James, Taylor Hinds, Megan Finnigan, Elise Hughes

Substitutes: Chaney Boye-Hlorkah for Magill 61, Dominique Bruinenberg for Kaagman 69

Substitutes not used: Rebecca Flaherty, Faye Bryson, Siri Worm, Claudia Walker, Abbey Stringer

Next up:

There will be an international break and then Everton play Chelsea on February 3rd it the FA Cup. The Toffees will be looking to better their last outing against Chelsea, which ended in a 3-0 loss.

The transfer window closes near the end of the month, and the club is looking at any possibilities for movement. Kirk told the Everton.com:

“It would be nice to bring in a couple [of players]. It might mean that one or two have to move out, which we’ll need to make sure is for the good of the player and the Club.

“There will be players that probably have not played as much as we would have liked and might think they’ve got better chances getting game time elsewhere and I totally accept that and agree with it.”

WSL News:

Man City beat West Ham, which gave them enough points to go into 1st place and sent Arsenal down to 2nd while Chelsea are in a close third.

In the 2nd tier of the WSL, the Manchester United vs Charlton match was called off due to Charlton player Charlotte Kerr receiving medical treatment on the pitch for an hour before leaving via ambulance.