Soccer

Katie McCabe’s Arsenal sweep past Brighton to reach FA Cup final

Gunners will play Chelsea in the decider at Wembley in December

Kim Little of Arsenal celebrates after scoring their side’s first goal during the Vitality Women’s FA Cup semi-final win over Brighton. Photo: Ryan Pierse - The FA/The FA via Getty Images

Suzanne Wrack at Meadow Park
Sun Oct 31 2021 - 19:22

Arsenal Women 3 Brighton & Hove Albion Women 0

A second-half goal and two assists from the currently unplayable Beth Mead ensured Arsenal swept into the FA Cup final with a dominant 3-0 defeat of Brighton following a frustrating goalless first half.

The Gunners will play Chelsea in the covid-delayed 2020-21 FA Cup final at Wembley on December 5th, the 100th anniversary of the ban on women’s football, after Mead provided for captain Kim Little and centre-back Leah Williamson either side of her own effort while Ireland’s Katie McCabe capped a successful week by helping her side to the final.

If there was and is a team capable of upsetting the established order of things it is Brighton. Last season Hope Powell’s south-coast side took points off Manchester United and Chelsea in the Women’s Super League – all but ending the former’s Champions League charge and rupturing the latter’s air of invincibility as they cantered to the league title.

READ MORE

When Powell took charge of Brighton as they prepared for a first season in the top flight three years ago she said she loved a project, her tenure as England manager was a testament to that sentiment. With board backing the growth of the Seagulls has been steady. Two ninth-placed finishes were followed by a surprising jump up to sixth last season. Now they sit fifth with five games played and look capable of climbing higher.

In Arsenal though, they faced a team in a similar vain of form to that of the Chelsea team they beat 2-1 last season.

Powell, a two-time FA Cup winner herself as a player, teased that the pressure would be on their opponents, prior to the game she said: “We have more to gain than we have to lose and that takes the pressure off and I’d argue puts a bit on Arsenal.

“The pressure is on Arsenal, the expectation is on them to win. We go in to enjoy it and try to win, why not?”

Predictably though it was Brighton that were immediately under pressure, in footballing terms, at a cripplingly cold Borehamwood. However, by the close of the first half the Gunners were frustrated though, despite 64% possession, nine shots to Brighton’s two and six corners to none, they were goalless, with Brighton keeper Megan Walsh excellent.

Katie McCabe goes past Lee Geum-Min and Ellie Brazil. Photo: John Walton/PA Wire

The Gunners were without star forward Vivianne Miedema, US World Cup-winner Tobin Heath and England centre-back Lotte Wubben-Moy but, as opposed to recent seasons, these absences were of the manager’s choosing and not enforced – with Jonas Eidevall coordinating breaks for some of his stars that competed at the Olympics in the summer before going straight into the new season with a very little time off.

Leading the line, the Australian forward Caitlin Foord went closest in quick succession shortly before the break. First, Little did well to hold off a defender and feed Nikita Parris on her right who swung the ball towards Mead at the back post, but the England forward’s header was cleared. Then, a long ball over the top was headed goalward Parris by was cleared acrobatically off the line by recovering centre-back Victoria Williams.

The Gunners returned to the field with the bit between their teeth once more but fuelled by the frustration of their lack of return on their first-half efforts.

An almost angry Mead, who has three goals and three assists in five league games and scored four for England in the international break including a 14-minute hat-trick against Northern Ireland at Wembley, sped in from the left, wrong-footed the excellent defender Maya Le Tissier and passed to Little who flicked up and in.

Just four minutes later and a similar burst on the left saw Mead come in from the left before firing low past watching goalkeeper Walsh.

With 15 minutes remaining a Mead corner was powerfully headed in by Williamson to set up the Wembley showdown with Chelsea. – Guardian