Second string Chelsea cruise into Cont-cup semi-final, thrashing Sunderland 5-0 at Kingsmeadow
By Paul Lagan at Kingsmeadow Stadium
Chelsea 5 v Sunderland 0
Conti Cup 1/4 final
Chelsea's second string cruised into the semi-final of the Continental Tyres cup with a convincing 5-0 win over Championship outfit Sunderland.
Sjoeke Nusken helped herself to a couple of opportunistic goals, while Aggie Beever-Jones's rasper a minute into the second half, ended the match as a contest – not that it really was.
Fran Kirby scored with eight minutes left on the clock and notched her brace in added time.
This was match also showcased those players sitting just below the non-droppable status from the first team and allowed head coach Emma Hayes the luxury of giving young Japan attacking midfielder Maika Hamano another run out.
Veteran Maren Mjelde showed her consummate professionalism by producing another classy defensive display on the few times the visitors ventured forward with any real attacking intent.
Mia Fishel missed a sitter on four minutes, heading over the crossbar from close range from a Aggie Beever-Jones right byline cross.
Kirby and Nusken went close as the Blues piled on the pressure but did not show the clinical instinct needed to open the score
Eve Perisset tried her luck from the edge of the area, but Claudia Moan was equal to the effort.
Assistant referee Ceri Williams collapsed on 10 minutes and was immediately attended to by the medics.
A call went out to the crowd for anyone with referee qualifications to come forward.
After seven minutes Williams was able to walk off the pitch for further treatment. She was holding her left elbow
The game resumed on 18 minutes.
Sunderland's first effort on goal, albeit off target, fell to Emily Scarr on 23 minutes but her looping header drifted on top of Zecira Musovic's top netting.
Hamano was unfortunate not to latch onto a Fran Kirby pass on 25 minutes, instead the Japan midfielder was inches away from slotting home from close range.
Fishel, again missed a sitter a minute later after excellent set up play by left-back Eve Perisset.
Finally the goal went in, and it was simplicity itself. A mazy Kirby run on the right, saw her byline clipped cross met perfectly by in-running who, unmarked, headed wide of Moan from six yards out and into the back of the net.
A Beever-Jones thunderbolt, three minutes from the break was acrobatically tipped over the crossbar for a corner.
The resultant kick from Perisset was met again, by Nusken and she tucked home from close range to double the score.
There were no changes by either side at half-time.
But it took less than 90 seconds for Chelsea to extend their lead.
Beever-Jones knows how to hit the ball and when she collected the ball on the right from Kirby, she had nothing but a shot on her mind.
She took three touches moving closer to goal before letting fly with an unstoppable right-footer that smashed into the back of Moan's net.
Jenna Dear warmed the gloves of Musovic on 50 minutes – her shot was finger-tipped over the crossbar by the Sweden international.
Kirby, industrious as ever, got her reward with eight minutes left of the clock and slotted home the fourth goal. And then with just seconds left, notched her second.
Teams: Chelsea: Musovic, Fishel, Ingle, Nusken, Kirby, Perisset, Mjelde, Hamano, Buchanan, Cankovic, Beever-Jones
Subs: Hampton, Carter, James, Reiten, Lawrence, Rytting Kaneryd, Charles, Cuthbert, Ramirez
Sunderland: Moan, McCatty, Scarr, Brown, Fenton,Goddard, Ede, Rouse, Dear, Westrup, Ejupi
Subs: Borthwick, McAteer, McInnes, Jones, Watson, Corbyn, Boothroyd, West
Referee: Phoebe Cross
