Sunderland Ladies defeat Sheffield FC as summer signing departs and former defender makes Hibernian debut

How the action unfolded between Sunderland and Sheffield FC

Goals from captain Kiera Ramshaw and Maria Farrugia cancelled out Holly Housely’s first-half penalty.

Jessica Brown replaced Faye Mullen in Mel Reay’s starting XI, the only change to the team that beat Fylde 3-1 last week.

Ramshaw was denied by the woodwork early on, her drive striking the post from distance after just four minutes.

Sheffield FC were awarded a penalty just before half-time following a foul on Rebecca Knight, which was duly dispatched by Housely.

However, Sunderland wasted no time in responding as Ramshaw headed a corner past Laura Parsons seconds later to level the scores.

After the interval, summer signing Emily Scarr struck the bar with a free-kick from 30 yards out. The home side finally took the lead with 68 minutes played after Farrugia netted with a low finish.

Reay’s women saw the game out to make it nine points from their opening six league fixtures.

Summer signing departs in a surprise move

The Echo understands summer signing Olivia Watt has left the club just months after re-joining the Lady Black Cats.

The Wearside-born right-back won both manager and player’s player of the season awards at Middlesbrough last season, making 21 appearances in all competitions before linking up with Reay’s new-look squad for the 2020/21 campaign.

However, the defender recently picked up a knee injury which kept her out of action last weekend.

With the player in her final year at Northumbria University, Watt made the difficult decision to take a break from club football in order to conclude her studies and allow her injuries to properly heal.

Former defender makes Hibernian debut

In other news, popular former defender Charlotte Potts made her long-awaited debut for Hibernian against Spartans FC in the Scottish top-flight on Sunday – a game which was streamed live on the BBC Sport website.

The 26-year-old announced her departure from Sunderland during the summer before moving to the Scottish Premier League title challengers, signing an 18-month contract north of the border.

Hibs took an early lead before being pegged back before half-time. However, Carla Boyce restored Hibs’ lead and secured the win.