Charlton Athletic Women vs Liverpool Women - WSL Matchday 1

Liverpool kicked off the 2026/27 Women's Super League season away at newly promoted Charlton Athletic, looking to put last season's near relegation nightmare firmly behind them

Story of the Match

Grace Fisk's brace and goals from Vivien Endemann and Cornelia Kapocs sealed a commanding 4-0 victory for Liverpool at The Valley, giving Gareth Taylor the winning start his side desperately needed after coming within a whisker of dropping out of the WSL last season.

Taylor handed debuts to goalkeeper Khiara Keating and German forward Vivien Endemann, while Sam Kerr returned to competitive football after nearly a year out with a long term back injury. By the end of the final whistle, Grace Fisk took over the headlines.

Liverpool came out pressing from the first minute, pushing Charlton deep and winning a succession of corners. The early pressure paid off inside eight minutes. A cross from Cornelia Kapocs along the left byline caused chaos in the Charlton six yard box, with goalkeeper Sophie Whitehouse unable to deal with it cleanly. The ball fell to Fisk, who scored from close range. Whitehouse then produced a superb double save to deny Ceri Holland and keep the score at 1-0, though she could do little about what came next. A powerful surge from Endemann down the right flank led to a smart cutback that Fisk met perfectly from the edge of the area, curling a stunning strike into the top corner to double the lead before half time. Liverpool went in at the break fully in control.

The second half picked up where the first left off. Charlton showed some early resilience but had no real answer to Liverpool's attacking movements. Elisha N'Dow and Lucy Fitzgerald both collected bookings in the opening exchanges after the restart. Endemann, who had been causing havoc on the right throughout, turned from provider to scorer seven minutes into the second half, firing in at the near post after pouncing on a loose ball inside the box to make it 3-0. Charlton pushed bodies forward in search of something to hold onto but Liverpool remained composed and dangerous on the break. In stoppage time, substitute Natalia Ramos drew a foul from Ashleigh Neville inside the area and Kapocs stepped up to send the resulting penalty into the bottom right corner, with Whitehouse diving the wrong way. 4-0 and the points were never in doubt.

Match Verdict

The player of the match was Grace Fisk. The Liverpool captain scored two goals of completely different characters, a poacher's finish from close range and a curling effort from the edge of the box. She came close to a hat trick late on when her guided header from a corner fell inches past the far post. Vivien Endemann deserves enormous credit on her competitive debut, tormenting Charlton's defence all afternoon before capping her performance with the third goal. Cornelia Kapocs was tidy throughout and converted her penalty calmly.

This result sends Liverpool straight to the top of the WSL table after Matchday 1. Last season they did not win any of their opening 13 matches. This is proving to be a different start.

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