Three teams, two automatic promotion spots and only one point between them. Add the fact that two are facing each other and Saturday’s final day of the Women’s Super League 2 season is set perfectly for an afternoon of high drama, twists and emotions.
Charlton Athletic, Birmingham City and Crystal Palace are dreaming of a WSL place. For this season only, there are two automatic promotion spots rather than the usual one, as the top tier expands from 12 to 14 teams, offering a precious opportunity that adds to the tension for the 3pm kick-offs, the most tantalising of which comes at the Valley, where the top two, Charlton and Birmingham, go head-to-head.
Charlton lead by a point, meaning they will be champions if they win and promoted in first or second place if they draw. With Birmingham and Palace level one point behind, Palace know victory at home to relegated Portsmouth would guarantee promotion. For Birmingham anything but a win would leave them third unless Palace slip up.
For whoever finishes third there will be a place in the new promotion/relegation playoff decider against the WSL’s bottom side on 23 May. That opponent will be Leicester City, which was confirmed after their 7-0 loss at Arsenal on Wednesday. The WSL2 side will be at home.
Inconsistency and unpredictability have been key themes of the season. Charlton were nine points clear in mid-March, and missed a chance to go 12 points clear that month when losing at home to Portsmouth. They have been limping towards the finish line, with one win in six, but have the best defensive record, the fewest defeats and home advantage on Saturday.
Palace, given their red-hot form, will be frustrated to have started so slowly, drawing four and losing three of their first eight league games. They are on a run of 11 wins in 13, have been defeated once since early November. They have looked the strongest side since overpowering Birmingham in a 3-0 victory in December.
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Most anxious could be Birmingham, who were top before last weekend’s matches but suffered a surprising 3-0 loss at home to Ipswich to miss the chance to all but clinch promotion.
Birmingham’s head coach, Amy Merricks, repeated the word “fight” over and over in something of a rallying cry to her team during her press conference on Thursday, saying: “The best teams have the ability to bounce back and we have a massive opportunity to make sure we respond and put it right. It comes down to the fight. We’ve got to fight for what we want. The opportunity is there and it’s now about the character in the group, which I know we have in abundance.”
Merrick’s side were also involved in final-day drama involving the top two last term, with London City Lionesses finishing as champions after a 2-2 draw. The former Brighton coach said: “This is a great league. What it needs now is probably a bit more of a spotlight … We have fantastic players, coaches and teams in this league and what we need to do is get to the point now in the women’s game where it’s not just about the WSL, it’s about both leagues.”
Birmingham were founder members of the WSL in 2011 but have been in the second tier since relegation in 2022, and Palace were relegated as WSL debutants last season. Both invested strongly in players in January but it is lower-budget Charlton in pole position, led by the former Tottenham coach Karen Hills.
The stakes are heightened by the knowledge that, from next season, second place will be enough only for a place in the promotion/relegation playoff. Saturday offers a unique opportunity to claim the top-tier status that this trio are desperate to grasp.