Chelsea 4-2 Brighton and Hove Albion
Report by Elsie Nash, exclusive photography from Ben Gilby at Kingsmeadow (22/10/23).
Above: Chelsea’s Aggie Beevor-Jones reacts after scoring her team’s fourth goal. Photo: Ben Gilby for Impetus.
Chelsea overcame a stuttering first half which saw them fail to click and fall a goal behind, to hit back to comfortably defeat a stubborn Brighton and Hove Albion side at a packed Kingsmeadow this afternoon.
The champions struggled to find their rhythm in the opening 45 minutes, but, as expected they did dominate the possession and the half chances when they came. The first main chance game when Sophie Ingle escaped from the clutches of her former Blues teammate Maria Thorisdottir to find Sam Kerr. The Australian star motored up the pitch and hit a shot on the angle that was well saved by Sophie Baggaley in the Brighton goal.
The Seagulls made Chelsea pay for their inability to break through in the fourth minute of first-half stoppage time when Katie Robinson’s cross was turned in from close range by German international Pauline Bremer.
Chelsea are always a better team with Fran Kirby in it, and after she was fed by Millie Bright and got free to have a shot that came off of the side of the bar. Kerr also had another opportunity when Eve Perisset’s free-kick came her way.
The home side levelled four minutes into injury time when Sjoeke Nusken headed home Jess Carter’s cross.
The decisive moment came seven minutes into the second half. Ann-Katrin Berger’s goal kick ended up with Kerr who supplied a pass back to Nusken to sweep home her second.
With just over a quarter of an hour remaining, Chelsea extended their lead with Kerr the supplied once more as she fed Nusken who hit a shot that was diverted into her own net by Guro Bergsvand.
Brighton rang the changes with former Sydney FC duo Charlize Rule and Madison Haley coming on. Haley worked hard to make space and fed Robinson to get a shot in on goal.
Chelsea found a fourth eight minutes from the end as Nusken played in substitute Aggie Beevor-Jones to score.
Still the scoring was not finished as Haley was involved in a move that led to Maisie Symonds supplying the pass for Elizabeth Terland to score a late consolation for the Sussex seasiders.
Ben Gilby’s photo gallery for Impetus from Kingsmeadow:
Teams: CHELSEA (3-4-3): Berger, Bright, Buchanan, Carter, Perisset, Nusken, Ingle, Charles, Kirby, Kerr, James. Substitutes used: Rytting Kaneryd, Beevor-Jones, Cancovic, Fishel, Fleming.
Scorers: Nusken 45+4′, 52. Bergsvand (OG) 74′, Beevor-Jones 82′.
BRIGHTON AND HOVE ALBION (5-4-1): Baggaley, Li, Thorisdottir, Bergsvand, Carabali, Kullberg, Robinson, Losada, Ferreira Pinto, Bremer, Lee. Substitutes used: Rule, Sarri, Symonds, Haley, Terland.
Scorers: Bremer 10′, Terland 90′.
Referee: Stacey Fullicks.
Attendance: 3,500.
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