Last week the champagne was on ice but thoughts of celebratory beers turned to tears as Chelsea saw Liverpool pip them to the FA Women’s Super League title in dramatic style.
Emma Hayes’s side thought they’d wrapped up the title – and their first trophy in 22 years – last week only for rivals Birmingham to score a late winner in their match, meaning three teams headed into the final weekend of the season with hopes of glory.
Chelsea lost 2-1 to Manchester City, Birmingham City drew 2-2 with Notts County and Liverpool – who started the day three points behind the Blues – retained their title with a 3-0 victory over Bristol.
And that meant more heartache in a season of so near but yet so far for Chelsea, who also lost in the semi-finals of the FA Cup and Continental Cup.
Chelsea Ladies finish second in the @FAWSL and reach the Uefa Women’s Champions League! @chelseafc
— Chelsea Ladies FC (@ChelseaLFC) October 12, 2014
Chelsea only needed a point to take the title but goals from former Everton duo Jill Scott and Toni Duggan gave City victory at the Manchester Regional Arena.
Gilly Flaherty pulled one back for the Blues but they couldn’t take advantage of Abbie McManus’ sending off for an elbow on Yuki Ogimi despite throwing everything at their hosts in the frantic closing minutes.
However, second place secures a debut in the next season’s Champions League, a remarkable turnaround considering they finished second from bottom 12 months ago.
