UWE Bristol’s women fell to a 2-0 home loss over the visiting Southampton side at Lockleaze 3G. Southampton came into the game in last place with zero points, while UWE Bristol were just above on four.

The hosts got off to a decent start, with defender Annesha Bashal proving too quick for Southampton’s winger, drawing a foul and a yellow card in the opening stages. UWE Bristol controlled possession in midfield, coming close to breaking the deadlock when their forward tested Southampton’s keeper, who could only tip it out for a corner.

Straight from the corner, Southampton cleared the ball, before a long ball created a mix-up between the UWE Bristol defenders. As goalkeeper Zoe Stubbs came out to clear the ball, Southampton’s forward was unfortunately too quick, lobbing the ball over her head and into the back of the net. Southampton led 1-0.

Moments later, Southampton nearly doubled their lead, after their winger played a pinpoint cross which was volleyed towards the bottom corner, kept out brilliantly by Stubbs.

Into the second half, and UWE Bristol came agonisingly close to drawing level. Molly Beaumont rattled the crossbar from distance, with the visiting keeper left to watch as it ricocheted off the bar and out for a goal kick.

An hour into the game, the visiting coach had a huge shout for a free kick ruled out, when UWE Bristol keeper Stubbs clashed with the Southampton forward outside the box. Southampton expected a free kick, and maybe even a red card for the UWE Bristol goalkeeper, but the referee felt otherwise.

Down the other end, Southampton were faced with a lengthy injury, after Beaumont collided with their defender. Fortunately, after receiving medical attention for around ten minutes, she was able to carry on.

Shortly after, the visitors doubled their lead, when a similar incident to the potential red-card shout occurred, this time in the penalty area. Up stepped the Southampton forward, who drilled the ball into the bottom corner to make it 2-0, securing the win.

In what was an end-to-end game, the hosts were unable to turn their dominant spells into any clear-cut chances, while the visitors capitalised on a few slip-ups to secure their first points of the season, closing the gap on UWE Bristol to a point.