All square against Liverpool

We rode our luck at times in the first half as Liverpool carved out the better of the opportunities but, four minutes before the break, it was us that broke the deadlock when Signe Gaupset’s cross took a huge deflection and found the back of the net.

But Liverpool, who kicked off their season with a win at Charlton Athletic, found a leveller through substitute Aurielle Csillag just before the hour mark and in truth, they could have taken all three points but for some impressive saves from Lize Kop in the closing stages to ensure we left Merseyside with an important point.

Liverpool started on the front foot in the opening 10 minutes of their first home game of the campaign. After just 30 seconds in, the Reds had won a corner that saw the ball fall to Cornelia Kapocs on the edge of the box but she scuffed her effort wide while, a minute later, Ceri Holland curled low into the hands of Kop after a charging run forward from the halfway line before Natalia Ramos was unable to direct a header on target. We did have a half-chance ourselves in that period, but Drew Spence’s shot into the ground was dragged wide of the far post.

The game began to fizzle out, and we were dealt a blow on 25 minutes when Cathinka Tandberg was forced to go off after an awkward landing in a challenge and was replaced by Shekiera Martinez. Chances were few and far from both sides until four minutes left on the clock, as a bit of fortune saw us break the deadlock on Merseyside. Gaupset, on the far left of the box, tried to deliver a cross into the middle but the ball scooped off the leg of Kerr and looped over Khiara Keating and into the back of the net to hand us the lead at the break, albeit somewhat against the run of the play.

Despite being one-goal to the good, we still needed to step up our performance after the restart and Martinez came close to doubling our lead inside two minutes, curling narrowly wide of the post. However, the home side began to pick up where they left off with Holland continuing to be influential down the left-hand side, although she would be frustrated to have not found one of her team-mates in the middle of the box from the left of the byline. But, just before the hour mark, they managed to find an equaliser when Fuka Nagano’s cross from the right was headed home by Csillag who rose high to beat Kop to the ball.

With the momentum now in their sails, Liverpool began to ramp up the pressure in the final 20 minutes but we were indebted to a number of good saves from Kop to keep the scores level, first getting down low to push away Ramos’ low strike from distance before pushing substitute Alice Bergstrom’s fierce effort from the right of the box over the bar. Olivia Holdt was introduced with eight minutes left on the clock and nearly had the perfect introduction, but Khiara Keating was equal to her curling shot on her right-foot to push it away.

Kop then produced another key save just before the 90th-minute as Csillag was played through inside the box but our number one raced off her line and stood strong to block the Liverpool forward’s chance, and the last opportunity of the game as the referee blew his final whistle.

Line-ups

Liverpool: Keating, Fisk (c), Ramos, Kapocs, Nagano, Endemann (Bergstrom 78), Olsson (Csillag 46), Clark, Holland (Hobinger 65), Kerr, Bernabe. Substitutes (not used): Laws, Haug, Enderby, Woodham, Agrez, Trueman.

Spurs:  Kop, Dijkstra (Morris 63), A. Nilden, Gaupset, Tandberg (Martinez 25), Vinberg (Holdt 82), Hanson (Ahtinen 82), Spence (c), Summanen (Pelova 63), Koga, Blakstad. Substitutes (not used): Panengstuen, M. Nilden, Wijk, Pierre.

Match data

Goals: Liverpool – Csillag 59; Spurs – Kerr 45+4.

Yellow cards: Spurs – Summanen 57, Blakstad 65.

Referee: Adewunmi Soneye.

Venue: St Helens Stadium.

Weather: Sunny, 20 degrees.

Attendance: 2293.