Heartbreak for The Golden Girls: A 2-0 loss for Watford confirms their relegation from the Women’s Championship

Watford’s defeat against Charlton Athletic confirmed that the club will face relegation from the English Women’s Championship this season. The Boar were in the press area at Vicarage Road for this crucial match in Watford’s season.

Watford’s starting lineup excited fans as it saw the return of the Welsh international team’s goalkeeper, Safia Middleton-Patel, from injury. It also included Michelle Agyemang and Laila Harbert, Arsenal’s young duo who have spent time on loan at Watford this season. On the bench for the first time was Aleksandra Werszko who is part of Watford’s Development Team.

The Sir Elton John Stand at Vicarage Road was filled with a large number of fans, both home and away, who could be heard chanting throughout the game.

The beginning of the game saw Watford dominate possession and make many strong attacking runs towards the Charlton goal – all eventually ended by misplaced passes or tackles from Charlton players.

In the first half, Charlton were granted a handful of corners; however, these were defended well by Watford. At 25 minutes, Watford’s Coral Haines made a strong block preventing a Charlton goal.

Tension was building between the teams and at 28 minutes Bianca Baptiste got into a heated discussion with the referee. Throughout the game the referee, Robert Massey-Ellis, made controversial decisions; the stand’s reaction to his decisions was often loud and one angry Watford fan could be heard insulting Massey-Ellis’ performance after the final whistle.

Agyemang threatened Charlton’s defence – on an attacking run she nutmegged a Charlton defender but this attempt at a goal was unsuccessful

After a series of attempted attacks by Charlton, including a shot over the crossbar by Karin Muya, Watford managed to regain possession and momentum. Carly Johns showcased her passing skills sliding the ball into Agyemang’s path leading to a shot at goal which was saved by Charlton’s keeper, Jessica Gray.

Two additional minutes were added onto the first half and in this time Agyemang threatened Charlton’s defence – on an attacking run she nutmegged a Charlton defender but this attempt at a goal was unsuccessful.

The first half ended in a 0-0 deadlock leading all to be played for in the second half.

The second half began with two Charlton substitutions and only minutes in Charlton earned another corner. Then, in the 55th minute, messy defence from Watford led to a Charlton goal scored by Melissa Johnson.

Watford fans were hopeful that the number of additional minutes would give them a chance to find a late equaliser

The ball sat in Watford’s half for a significant amount of time before the team made an aggressive run forward. For the remainder of the second half, Watford continued to have strong attacking moments, but none were successful: Agyemang took a shot from outside the box, but it went over the crossbar; at 81 minutes, Gray took hold of the ball just before a Watford shirt could direct a shot goalwards; and, at 88 minutes, Charlton headed away an attacking Watford free-kick with ease.

Following substitutions and pauses to the match due to medics coming onto the pitch, eight minutes of injury time were awarded. Watford fans were hopeful that the number of additional minutes would give them a chance to find a late equaliser; however, this hope was shattered only seconds later when Charlton secured their victory with a goal from Melisa Filis.

There was still a clear desire from Watford to get on the scoresheet as they used the remainder of the added minutes trying to get into their attacking half. At 96 minutes, Johns, who’d had an excellent game, took a strike which sent the ball just wide of the goal. Following this, Gray was given a yellow card for time wasting.

The sound of the whistle brought devastation for Watford as it confirmed that they would face relegation from the Championship at the end of the season

The sound of the whistle brought devastation for Watford as it confirmed that they would face relegation from the Championship at the end of the season. The opposite feelings were felt by Charlton fans as they saw their team move up to third in the table following this win.

There are still two rounds of Barclays Women’s Championship games left this season. Watford will play their final home game at Vicarage Road in two weeks’ time and will hope to end their time in the Championship with a victory.