2017–18 FA WSL Cup

The 2017–18 FA WSL Cup was the 7th edition of the FA WSL's league cup competition. It was sponsored by Continental AG, who have sponsored the competition since its creation, and is officially known as the FA WSL Continental Tyres Cup. All 20 teams of the two divisions of the WSL contest the competition - the largest field in the history of the cup.

2017–18 FA WSL Cup
Country England
Dates11 October 2017 –
14 March 2018
Teams20
Defending championsManchester City
ChampionsArsenal
Runners-upManchester City
Matches played47
Goals scored180 (3.83 per match)
All statistics correct as of 14 March 2018.

Manchester City were the defending champions. Before the competition, only Manchester City and Arsenal had won the cup in the previous six seasons it was contested in.

Format changes

After a one-year experiment with a pure knockout formula, the WSL Cup returned to a format featuring a group stage. Four groups of five teams each, with an approximately even split between the two divisions, compete for two qualification spots for the knock-out round per group with each team playing every other team only once. Similarly to previous iterations of the cup, the groups have a geographical split, with two "Northern" groups and two "Southern". Another new implementation for the season was an automatic penalty shoot-out for all games tied after 90 minutes, with a bonus point awarded for the team who emerged victorious afterwards.[1]

After the group stage, the remaining eight teams will contest a non-seeded standard knock-out format as in the 2015 season.[1]

Group stage

Group One North
Pos Team Pld W WPEN LPEN L GF GA GD Pts Qualification SUN LIV SHE AST DUR
1 Sunderland 4 2 2 0 0 5 2 +3 10 Advance to Knock-out stage — 1–0 — 3–1 —
2 Liverpool 4 2 1 0 1 11 2 +9 8 — — 6–0 5–1 —
3 Sheffield 4 1 0 2 1 8 10 −2 5 1–1 — — — 5–1
4 Aston Villa 4 1 1 0 2 7 12 −5 5 — — 2–2 — 3–2
5 Durham 4 0 0 2 2 3 8 −5 2 0–0 0–0 — — —
Source: FA WSL
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Number of goals scored

Group Two North
Pos Team Pld W WPEN LPEN L GF GA GD Pts Qualification MCI EVE BIR DON OXF
1 Manchester City 4 4 0 0 0 13 3 +10 12 Advance to Knock-out stage — 2–1 2–0 — —
2 Everton 4 3 0 0 1 9 2 +7 9 — — 1–0 — 4–0
3 Birmingham City 4 2 0 0 2 7 5 +2 6 — — — 3–2 4–0
4 Doncaster Rovers Belles 4 1 0 0 3 9 10 −1 3 2–3 0–3 — — —
5 Oxford United 4 0 0 0 4 1 19 −18 0 0–6 — — 1–5 —
Source: FA WSL
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Number of goals scored

Group One South
Group match between Arsenal and London Bees.
Pos Team Pld W WPEN LPEN L GF GA GD Pts Qualification REA ARS WAT MIL LON
1 Reading 4 4 0 0 0 15 1 +14 12 Advance to Knock-out stage — — 4–0 — 4–0
2 Arsenal 4 3 0 0 1 19 4 +15 9 1–2 — — — 7–0
3 Watford 4 1 0 1 2 2 11 −9 4 — 0–6 — 1–0 —
4 Millwall Lionesses 4 1 0 0 3 6 14 −8 3 0–5 2–5 — — —
5 London Bees 4 0 1 0 3 4 16 −12 2 — — 1–1 3–4 —
Source: FA WSL
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Number of goals scored

Group Two South
Pos Team Pld W WPEN LPEN L GF GA GD Pts Qualification CHE BRI BHA TOT YEO
1 Chelsea 4 4 0 0 0 17 2 +15 12 Advance to Knock-out stage — — — 4–1 8–0
2 Bristol City 4 2 0 0 2 6 4 +2 6 1–2 — 3–0 — —
3 Brighton & Hove Albion 4 2 0 0 2 8 9 −1 6 0–3 — — — 4–2
4 Tottenham Hotspur 4 2 0 0 2 6 9 −3 6 — 2–0 1–4 — —
5 Yeovil Town 4 0 0 0 4 3 16 −13 0 — 0–2 — 1–2 —
Source: FA WSL
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Number of goals scored

Knock-out rounds

Quarter-finals
Everton1–1 (a.e.t.)Reading
Chloe Kelly  97'  112' Report Report
Penalties
3–4
Select Security Stadium, Widnes
Attendance: 155
Referee: Benjamin Speedie
Arsenal3–1Sunderland
 Report
  • Bridget Galloway  55'
  • Dominique Bruinenberg  67'
Attendance: 400
Referee: Josh Smith
Bristol City0–2Manchester City
Report
Attendance: 352
Referee: Savvas Yianni
Chelsea5–1Liverpool
 Report Casey Stoney  51'
Attendance: 1,161
Referee: Alex Burke

Semi-finals
Chelsea0–1Manchester City
Report Nadia Nadim  19'
Attendance: 2,595
Referee: Rebecca Welch
Reading2–3Arsenal
 Report
Attendance: 749
Referee: Ryan Atkin

Final
Main article: 2018 FA WSL Cup Final
Arsenal1–0Manchester City
 Report
Attendance: 2,136

Top goalscorers
As of 18 December 2017.[2]
Rank Player Team Goals
1 Fran Kirby Chelsea 7
2 Chloe Kelly Everton 5
3 Melissa Johnson Sheffield 4
Christie Murray Doncaster Rovers Belles

See also

References
  1. "KICK-OFF APPROACHES FOR THIS TERM'S FA WSL CONTINENTAL TYRES CUP WITH SOME NEW RULES". The FA. 11 October 2017. Retrieved 5 November 2017.
  2. "PLAYER STATS". Retrieved 5 October 2017.
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