Sophie Manzi came back to haunt Dulwich Hamlet as Fulham Women fought back to take a point from a fiesty London derby at Motspur Park tonight.
The centre forward, a summer arrival from the Hamlet, scored a superb second-half equaliser to cancel out Rhead Gall’s header. Fulham had much more of the ball, befitting a side who had stitched together six successive wins after a slow start to the season, but looked vulnerable to the visitors on the counter attack. The sides had to settle for a share of the spoils after an end-to-end finish.
Steve Jaye had made two changes from the side that came from behind to beat Sutton United on Sunday. Becky Stormer, who returned from injury in the second half, replaced Mary Southgate in central defence whilst former Hamlet wing-back Maddi Parsonson came in for Emily Bird. Clear-cut chances were in short supply as the game kicked off in teeming rain and the hosts struggled to make inroads into a well-drilled Dulwich defence.
Sasha Adamson had Fulham’s first shot of goal, teed up by a clever pass from Manzi, but the winger was thwarted by a smart stop from Hamlet keeper Saskia Reeves-Priestley. Reeves-Priestley then produced a fine sprwaling save to keep out a shot on the turn from Georgia Heasman. The Dulwich forward line looked threatening on the break with Summer Roberts leading the line impressively on her return to Motspur Park having left Fulham in the summer.
Her namesake Shakira Kafoero Roberts sped along the right flank and cut inside but mishit her shot towards goal as space opened up. Dulwich could easily have taken the lead shortly afterwards when Angel Reid’s low ball flashed across the face of goal but eluded her team-mates and was turned clear at the far post by Parsonson.
Fulham were restricted to long range efforts in the remainder of the first period with Rebecca Barron-Clark firing wide of goal and the first half ended in stalemate. The interval saw the Rachel Yankey Trophy, commissioned by the Fulham Supporters’ Trust, handed over to Chloe Christison-McNee and Tia Foreman by the former Fulham, Arsenal and England winger and Trust chair Simon Duke. The trophy will be awared to the Fulham Women’s player of the season at the end of this campaign.
The second half began cagily but the visitors took the lead from a corner ten minutes after the break. Rhead Gall headed emphatically past Frankie Gibbs having been left unattended to the delight of the vocal travelling support. Dulwich were indebted to a brilliant block from Erin Corrigan that denied substitute Ede Buchele a shot on goal three minutes later and they initially looked comfortable as the home side probed in front of them.
But Manzi, who scored 42 goals in 61 games at in three years at Champion Hill, produced a moment of magic that Yankey would have been proud of. The forward moved into a pocket of space outside the penalty area and placed a low effort into the bottom corner to bring Fulham level. The equaliser galvanised with the Whites with Stormer heading over at the back post from a corner, but Dulwich created good openings to retake the lead.
Summer Roberts nearly capitalised on a defensive mistake to score her seventh goal of the season before skipper Asia Harbour-Brown headed a floated free-kick into the arms of Frankie Gibbs with five minutes left. Fulham pushed players forward in search of late winner themselves with Buchele and Alex Hayman adding some dynamism to the attack but the Whites were unable to extend their winning run.
Fulham are back in action at Motspur Park on Sunday afternoon against Enfield Town.
FULHAM FC WOMEN (3-4-3): Gibbs; Dale, Stormer, Tagliavini; Parsonson, Mendes, Barron-Clark, Lambird; Heasman, Adamson, Manzi. Subs: Parker, Southgate, Bird, Hayman, Buchele.
BOOKED: Dale.
GOAL: Manzi (63).
DULWICH HAMLET WOMEN FC: Reeves-Priestley; Lodge, Gall, Harbour Brown, Corrigan, M. Searle, Price, Read, Reid, Shakira Kafoero Roberts, Summer Roberts. Subs: May, Hickman, T. Searle, Goddard, Alves Etienne.
GOAL: Gall (56).
REFEREE: Lucy Clark.
ATTENDANCE: 267.
