Charlton 1 Ipswich 0
Charlton won their second game of the Subway Players Cup, beating Ipswich 1-0 at The Valley thanks to a goal from Lorena Azzaro.
The first half started with both sides looking to get a foothold in the game and after 25 minutes both sides had failed to create any clear-cut chances.
The Addicks edged possession throughout and were looking to press high without the ball.
It would take 36 minutes before Charlton had their first sight of goal, but Leah Davidson’s shot deflected off Carla Humphrey and out to safety.
Just before the interval came the best opportunity for each side. First, Ipswich’s Lucy O’Brien hit a left-footed shot from distance, but deflections took the sting out of it and into Anna Koivunen’s hands.
Then one minute later, Ash Neville broke down the right, playing in Carla Humphrey and her cross was only half cleared by the Ipswich defence. That clearance dropped to Katie Lockwood who hit a clean strike just wide of Natalia Negri’s post.
The second half began at a livelier pace, with Cassandra Korhonen hitting the post just 30 seconds after the restart, only for the offside flag to go up.
After being brought on to the pitch in the 63rd minute, Lorena Azzaro began to cause the Ipswich defence problems. In the 70th minute she was slid in behind by Lizzie Waldie, she then chopped back onto her right foot but couldn’t quite generate the curl to keep her shot inside the post.
However, just nine minutes later she put the Addicks ahead. The goal was created in fine fashion by Jodie Hutton, who herself had only just come off the bench.
After beating the Ipswich right-back she whipped a delightful cross into the Ipswich six-yard box, perfectly picking out Azzaro who cushioned the ball into the back of the net.
That goal meant Charlton took home all three points for the second time in this competition.
Charlton: Koivunen; Neville, Skeels, Waldie, Robe, Mason (Hutton 76); van Egmond, Humphrey (Kenney 76), Davidson (Fitzgerald 63); Korhonen, Lockwood (Azzaro 63)
Subs (not used): Whitehouse, Johnston, N’Dow, Lobato, Nelson-Iye,
Goals: Azzaro 79
Assists: Hutton 79
Ipswich: Nogri, Boswell, Pardy-Mitchell (Dear 46), Slattery, O’Brien, Graham (Adams 46), McGowan, Cavanagh, Lawton, Peake (Weir 46), Ayane
Subs (not used): Proulx, Fox, Timms, Hornby, Palmer, Ademiluyi
Referee: Ella Broad
Attendance: 392