We are top of the league - Women remain in pole position

Tranmere Rovers Ladies 1 - 2 Sunderland AFC Women

Sunderland Women matched the lads this weekend with another win to keep them at the top of the FAWPL Northern Division.

As Heswall FC's pitch had hosted their men's side in the morning and was also very soft and uneven underfoot, a game matching the top against the bottom in the division was never going to be a pretty one.

Tranmere adapted much more quickly to the conditions and their battling and direct style of play paid off on 15 minutes. A long ball forward caught the Sunderland defence uncharacteristically flat and Rachel Rigby raced through to put Rovers ahead.

The response from the Black Cats was not immediate but overall it was effective as they muscled their way back into the match. The equaliser came on 31 minutes when Donna Lanaghan slammed the ball over the line after Karen Scorer had headed Melanie Reay's header back across the face of goal.

Sunderland's patience and conviction was rewarded with what proved to be the winning goal in the 65th minute when England U19 striker Stephanie Houghton herself ran onto a ball over the top. Her finish was much more comfortable than the team's overall performance but manager Mick Mulhern was more than happy with the three points and said:

"I think we've proved on better pitches that we can outplay any team in this league, today's win again proved that we can battle and scrap better than any other team in this league."