The 2020–21 FA Women's Championship was the third season of the rebranded FA Women's Championship, the second tier of women's football in England. It was renamed from the FA WSL 2 which was founded in 2014. The season began on 5 September 2020.
| Season | 2020–21 |
|---|---|
| Champions | Leicester City |
| Relegated | London Bees |
| Matches played | 116 |
| Goals scored | 295 (2.54 per match) |
| Top goalscorer | 19 goals Katie Wilkinson (Sheffield United) |
| Biggest home win | Durham 7–1 Coventry United (2 May 2021) |
| Biggest away win | Coventry United 1–9 Leicester City (15 November 2020) |
| Highest scoring | Coventry United 1–9 Leicester City (15 November 2020) |
← 2019–20 2021–22 →
All statistics correct as of 2 May 2021. | |
On 4 April 2021, Leicester City clinched the league title with a 2–0 win over London City Lionesses, their twelfth consecutive league victory dating back to 4–1 defeat at the hands of the same opposition on 1 November 2020. The result earned Leicester their first ever promotion to the top-flight FA WSL.[1]
On the same day, London Bees' defeat away at Charlton Athletic coupled with a win for Coventry United against Blackburn Rovers sealed London Bees' relegation to the National League.[2] It marked the first time since the 2012–13 FA Women's Premier League a club had been relegated from the second-tier on sporting merit.
Teams
edit
Twelve teams were originally scheduled to compete in the Championship for the 2020–21 season, an increase of one team from the previous season. This was a planned progression of the restructuring of the English women's game, a move prompted to provide for a fully professional Women's Super League (WSL) starting with the 2018–19 season. Membership of both the first and second tier is subject to a license, based on a series of off-the-field criteria.[3]
However, while the movement between the WSL and Championship was honoured with Aston Villa earning promotion and Liverpool taking their place, there was no relegation or promotion between the Championship and National League after the seasons from tier three and below were null and voided and results had been expunged. One team was scheduled to be relegated and replaced by the two winners of both the National League North and South divisions. At the time the season was curtailed, Charlton Athletic were declared bottom of the Championship on a points-per-game with Sunderland and Crawley Wasps leading the National League Premier Divisions prior to the cancellation. Without that movement between the second and third tiers, the season was again contested by eleven teams.
| Team | Location | Ground | Capacity | 2019–20 season |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blackburn Rovers | Bamber Bridge | Sir Tom Finney Stadium | 3,000 | 7th |
| Charlton Athletic | Bexley | The Oakwood | 1,180 | 11th |
| Coventry United | Coventry | Butts Park Arena | 4,000 | 10th |
| Crystal Palace | Bromley | Hayes Lane | 5,000 | 9th |
| Durham | Durham | Maiden Castle | 3rd | |
| Leicester City | Quorn | Farley Way Stadium | 1,400 | 6th |
| Lewes | Lewes | The Dripping Pan | 3,000 | 8th |
| Liverpool | Birkenhead | Prenton Park | 16,587 | WSL, 12th |
| London Bees | Canons Park | The Hive Stadium | 5,176 | 5th |
| London City Lionesses | Dartford | Princes Park | 4,100 | 4th |
| Sheffield United | Chesterfield | Technique Stadium | 10,504 | 2nd |
Managerial changes
edit| Team | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Position in table | Incoming manager | Date of appointment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| London City Lionesses |  John Bayer (interim)[4]
|
End of interim period | 27 May 2020 | End of season (4th) |  Lisa Fallon[4]
|
27 May 2020 |
| Sheffield United | Carla Ward[5]
|
Mutual separation | 7 July 2020 | End of season (2nd) | Neil Redfearn[6]
|
28 August 2020 |
| London City Lionesses | Lisa Fallon[7]
|
Personal reasons | 9 October 2020 | 10th |  Melissa Phillips[8]
|
9 October 2020 |
| Liverpool | Vicky Jepson[9]
|
Mutual consent | 12 January 2021 | 3rd | Amber Whiteley (interim)[9]
|
12 January 2021 |
| London Bees | Lee Burch[10]
|
Sacked | 10 February 2021 | 9th | Sian Osmond (interim)[11]
|
12 February 2021 |
| Charlton Athletic | Riteesh Mishra[12]
|
Retained coaching role | 16 March 2021 | 9th | Karen Hills[12]
|
16 March 2021 |
Table
edit| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Leicester City (C, P) | 20 | 16 | 2 | 2 | 54 | 16 | +38 | 50 | Promotion to the WSL[a] |
| 2 | Durham | 20 | 12 | 6 | 2 | 34 | 15 | +19 | 42 | |
| 3 | Liverpool | 20 | 11 | 6 | 3 | 37 | 15 | +22 | 39 | |
| 4 | Sheffield United | 20 | 11 | 5 | 4 | 37 | 15 | +22 | 38 | |
| 5 | Lewes | 20 | 8 | 4 | 8 | 19 | 22 | −3 | 28 | |
| 6 | London City Lionesses | 20 | 6 | 6 | 8 | 19 | 19 | 0 | 24 | |
| 7 | Crystal Palace | 20 | 5 | 5 | 10 | 27 | 36 | −9 | 20 | |
| 8 | Charlton Athletic | 20 | 4 | 7 | 9 | 19 | 29 | −10 | 19 | |
| 9 | Blackburn Rovers | 20 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 20 | 31 | −11 | 18 | |
| 10 | Coventry United | 20 | 5 | 1 | 14 | 21 | 51 | −30 | 16 | |
| 11 | London Bees (R) | 20 | 3 | 2 | 15 | 14 | 52 | −38 | 11 | Relegation to the National League |
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Number of goals scored
(C) Champions; (P) Promoted; (R) Relegated
Notes:
- ^ Dependent on obtaining a licence.
Results
editTop goalscorers
edit- As of 2 May 2021[13]
| Rank | Player | Team | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Katie Wilkinson
|
Sheffield United | 19 |
| 2 | Natasha Flint
|
Leicester City | 17 |
| 3 | Beth Hepple
|
Durham | 10 |
| 4 | Bianca Baptiste
|
Crystal Palace | 8 |
| 5 | Lachante Paul
|
Leicester City | 7 |
| 6 | Jess King
|
Charlton Athletic | 6 |
| Emily Roberts
|
Durham | ||
| 8 | 12 players | 5 | |
Awards
editAnnual awards
edit| Award | Winner | Club |
|---|---|---|
| Golden boot | Katie Wilkinson
|
Sheffield United |
| Golden glove | Megan Borthwick
|
Durham |
| Kirstie Levell
|
Leicester City | |
| Fran Kitching
|
Sheffield United | |
| Player of the season | Katie Wilkinson
|
Sheffield United |
| Manager of the season | Jonathan Morgan
|
Leicester City |
See also
edit- 2020–21 FA Women's League Cup
- 2020–21 FA WSL (tier 1)
- 2020–21 FA Women's National League (tier 3 & 4)
References
edit- ^ "Leicester promoted to WSL for first time". BBC Sport.
- ^ "FA Women's Championship report: Charlton Athletic 3–1 London Bees". womenscompetitions.thefa.com.
- ^ "WSL fixtures release". BBC. August 1, 2018. Retrieved 1 May 2019.
- ^ a b "Lisa Fallon and Melissa Phillips announced as new London City Lionesses coaching team". London City Lionesses. 27 May 2020.
- ^ "Blades manager Carla Ward leaves Sheffield United". www.yorkshirepost.co.uk.
- ^ "Neil Redfearn announced as women's head coach". www.sufc.co.uk.
- ^ "London City Lionesses Statement: Lisa Fallon stands down". London City Lionesses. 9 October 2020.
- ^ "Melissa Phillips appointed new London City Lionesses Head Coach". London City Lionesses. 16 October 2020.
- ^ a b "Jepson leaves Liverpool FC Women by mutual consent". Liverpool FC.
- ^ Rowe, Adam (10 February 2021). "Club Statement: Lee Burch". London Bees Official Website.
- ^ Rowe, Adam (12 February 2021). "Club Statement: Sian Osmond takes caretaker charge". London Bees Official Website.
- ^ a b Pizzey, Chloe (16 March 2021). "Karen Hills appointed Head Coach of Charlton Athletic Women". Charlton Athletic.
- ^ "Women's Championship 2020/2021". Flashscore.