# 2014 FA WSL

The 2014 FA WSL was the fourth season of the FA WSL, the top-level women's football league of England. The season began on 30 March and ended on 12 October.
Liverpool L.F.C. are the defending champions from the 2013 FA WSL. The top two teams qualify for the 2015–16 UEFA Women's Champions League.
Beginning in the 2014 season, the WSL added a second division, the WSL 2. Because the divisions are interconnected, WSL 1 teams face the risk of relegation for the first time in the league's history. There is, however, no connection to the third level Women's Premier League, so WSL 2 teams cannot be relegated. WSL 1 consists of eight teams while the WSL 2 is made up of ten.
Starting places in both divisions were granted based on applications sent in by clubs, so Manchester City were able to enter its newly created women's team directly into the WSL 1. The governing body announced it will partially fund teams in the league, awarding £70,000 to clubs in WSL1 and £23,000 in WSL2.

## Team changes

* Lincoln Ladies were renamed Notts County Ladies and relocated from Lincoln to Nottingham.
* Barnet were renamed London Bees.
* Durham were a newly formed team admitted to the WSL 2.
* Due to the new format, several movements between various leagues took place.

### FA WSL 1

| Team | Location | Ground | Manufacturer | Sponsors | 2013 WSL finish |
| Arsenal | Borehamwood | Meadow Park | Nike | Emirates | 3rd |
| Birmingham City | Solihull | Damson Park | Sondico | Hollywood Monster | 4th |
| Bristol Academy | Filton | Stoke Gifford Stadium | Bristol Sports | DAS | 2nd |
| Chelsea | Staines | Wheatsheaf Park | Adidas | Samsung | 7th |
| Manchester City | Manchester | Academy Stadium | Nike | Etihad Airways | 12/13 Women's Premier League, 4th (promoted) |
| Everton | Widnes | Halton Stadium | Nike | Chang Beer | 5th |
| Liverpool | Widnes | Halton Stadium | Warrior | Standard Chartered | 1st |
| Notts County Ladies | Nottingham | Meadow Lane | Fila | Pinnacle | 6th |

### Original FA WSL 2 teams

| Team | Location | Ground | Manufacturer | Sponsors | last season |
| Aston Villa | Sutton Coldfield | Trevor Brown Memorial Ground | Macron | dafabet | 12/13 FA Women's Premier League, 6th |
| Doncaster Rovers Belles | Doncaster | Keepmoat Stadium | Jako | BPP University | 2013 WSL, 8th |
| Durham | Durham | New Ferens Park | Hummel | Wood Estate Agents | new team |
| London Bees | Canons Park | The Hive Stadium | Jako | Stanmore College | 12/13 FA Women's Premier League, 10th (as Barnet FC) |
| Millwall Lionesses | London | Champion Hill | Protime Sports | BT Sport | 12/13 Women's Premier 2nd Level South, 2nd |
| Oxford United | Oxford | Rover Cowley Sports Ground | Nike | Polythene UK | 12/13 Women's Combination South-West, 1st |
| Reading | Tadley | Barlow's Park | Puma | Waitrose | 12/13 Women's Premier 2nd Level South, 1st |
| Sunderland | Hetton-le-Hole | Eppleton Colliery Welfare Ground | Adidas | Bidvest | 12/13 FA Women's Premier League, 1st |
| Watford | Berkhamsted | Broadwater | Puma | McGinley Support Services | 12/13 FA Women's Premier League, 2nd |
| Yeovil Town | Sherborne | Raleigh Grove | Sondico | Quaedam Yeovil Shopping | 12/13 Women's Premier 2nd Level South, 3rd |

## FA WSL 1

Liverpool retained the title on goal difference, after they and Chelsea finished level on 26 points. Everton were relegated to the WSL 2 for the 2015 season after 21 years as a top flight club.

### Table

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
| 1 | Liverpool (C) | 14 | 7 | 5 | 2 | 19 | 10 | +9 | 26 | Qualification to Champions League |
| 2 | Chelsea | 14 | 8 | 2 | 4 | 23 | 16 | +7 | 26 | Qualification to Champions League |
| 3 | Birmingham City | 14 | 7 | 4 | 3 | 20 | 14 | +6 | 25 | |
| 4 | Arsenal | 14 | 6 | 3 | 5 | 24 | 21 | +3 | 21 | |
| 5 | Manchester City | 14 | 6 | 1 | 7 | 13 | 16 | −3 | 19 | |
| 6 | Notts County | 14 | 4 | 6 | 4 | 12 | 8 | +4 | 18 | |
| 7 | Bristol Academy | 14 | 5 | 1 | 8 | 18 | 24 | −6 | 16 | |
| 8 | Everton | 14 | 0 | 4 | 10 | 10 | 30 | −20 | 4 | Relegation to FA WSL 2 |

### Results

| Home \ Away | ARS | BIR | BRI | CHE | EVE | LIV | MCI | NTC |
| Arsenal | | 0–2 | 0–2 | 2–3 | 3–1 | 3–3 | 0–1 | 1–1 |
| Birmingham City | 1–2 | | 2–1 | 2–1 | 0–0 | 1–2 | 2–0 | 2–2 |
| Bristol Academy | 3–4 | 1–3 | | 0–2 | 5–2 | 1–3 | 1–0 | 0–2 |
| Chelsea | 2–1 | 3–1 | 2–1 | | 5–2 | 0–0 | 2–1 | 0–0 |
| Everton | 1–2 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 1–2 | | 2–2 | 0–3 | 0–2 |
| Liverpool | 0–1 | 1–1 | 3–0 | 2–0 | 1–0 | | 1–0 | 1–0 |
| Manchester City | 0–4 | 1–2 | 0–2 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 1–0 | | 1–0 |
| Notts County | 1–1 | 0–1 | awd | 1–0 | 2–0 | 0–0 | 1–1 | |
* ↑ Game awarded to Bristol Academy

### Top scorers

| Rank | Scorer | Club | Goals |
| 1 | Karen Carney | Birmingham City | 8 |
| 2 | Jessica Clarke | Notts County | 6 |
| 3 | Eniola Aluko | Chelsea | 5 |
| 3 | Yūki Ōgimi | Chelsea | 5 |
| 3 | Jordan Nobbs | Arsenal | 5 |
| 3 | Nikita Parris | Everton | 5 |
| 3 | Casey Stoney | Arsenal | 5 |
| 3 | Nicola Watts | Bristol Academy | 5 |
| 9 | Danielle Carter | Arsenal | 4 |
| 9 | Kirsty Linnett | Birmingham City | 4 |
| 9 | Natalia Pablos | Bristol Academy | 4 |
| 9 | Kelly Smith | Arsenal | 4 |

## FA WSL 2

The Doncaster Rovers Belles challenged for promotion until the final day, due to a 2-1 win over Sunderland. Sunderland won the inaugural WSL 2 on the final day, with a 4-0 win over Millwall Lionesses.

### Table

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion |
| 1 | Sunderland (C) | 18 | 15 | 2 | 1 | 47 | 15 | +32 | 47 | Promotion to FA WSL 1 |
| 2 | Doncaster Rovers Belles | 18 | 14 | 3 | 1 | 56 | 14 | +42 | 45 | |
| 3 | Reading | 18 | 13 | 2 | 3 | 60 | 21 | +39 | 41 | |
| 4 | Aston Villa | 18 | 9 | 3 | 6 | 25 | 26 | −1 | 30 | |
| 5 | Yeovil Town | 18 | 6 | 4 | 8 | 27 | 26 | +1 | 22 | |
| 6 | Durham | 18 | 5 | 3 | 10 | 19 | 32 | −13 | 18 | |
| 7 | Watford | 18 | 5 | 3 | 10 | 22 | 37 | −15 | 18 | |
| 8 | Millwall Lionesses | 18 | 4 | 3 | 11 | 20 | 36 | −16 | 15 | |
| 9 | Oxford United | 18 | 3 | 3 | 12 | 16 | 44 | −28 | 12 | |
| 10 | London Bees | 18 | 2 | 2 | 14 | 16 | 57 | −41 | 8 | |

### Results

| Home \ Away | AST | DON | DUR | LON | MIL | OXF | REA | SUN | WAT | YEO |
| Aston Villa | | 0–2 | 1–0 | 4–1 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 3–0 | 0–3 | 1–0 | 1–1 |
| Doncaster Rovers Belles | 6–1 | | 2–0 | 7–0 | 4–1 | 4–1 | 5–2 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 2–0 |
| Durham Women | 2–0 | 0–0 | | 2–1 | 1–4 | 1–2 | 0–3 | 2–4 | 1–2 | 1–1 |
| London Bees | 0–1 | 0–9 | 0–1 | | 1–0 | 1–1 | 1–9 | 0–3 | 4–5 | 0–2 |
| Millwall Lionesses | 2–3 | 0–0 | 1–2 | 2–2 | | 2–0 | 1–4 | 0–4 | 1–0 | 3–1 |
| Oxford United | 0–2 | 1–5 | 2–2 | 0–3 | 1–0 | | 2–2 | 2–3 | 1–2 | 0–1 |
| Reading | 3–1 | 4–0 | 4–0 | 5–1 | 3–1 | 5–0 | | 1–1 | 3–0 | 3–0 |
| Sunderland | 3–1 | 1–2 | 2–0 | 1–0 | 4–0 | 2–0 | 3–2 | | 4–1 | 2–0 |
| Watford | 1–1 | 1–3 | 0–3 | 1–0 | 2–2 | 1–2 | 0–4 | 2–4 | | 1–1 |
| Yeovil Town | 1–1 | 1–2 | 3–1 | 4–1 | 2–0 | 6–0 | 2–3 | 1–2 | 0–3 | |

### Top scorers

| Rank | Scorer | Club | Goals |
| 1 | Fran Kirby | Reading | 24 |
| 2 | Beth Mead | Sunderland | 13 |
| 3 | Lauren Bruton | Reading | 11 |
| 3 | Sue Smith | Doncaster Rovers Belles | 11 |
| 3 | Sarah Wiltshire | Watford Yeovil Town | 11 |
| 6 | Keira Ramshaw | Sunderland | 10 |
| 6 | Courtney Sweetman-Kirk | Doncaster Rovers Belles | 10 |
| 8 | Bethany England | Doncaster Rovers Belles | 8 |
| 9 | Millie Bright | Doncaster Rovers Belles | 7 |
| 10 | Rachel Furness | Sunderland | 6 |
| 10 | Katie Wilkinson | Aston Villa | 6 |
| 10 | Jo Wilson | Watford | 6 |

## FA WSL Cup

The 2014 edition of the FA WSL Cup sees 18 teams play for the title. Teams are divided into three groups of six. The group winners plus the best runners-up advance to the semi-finals. Arsenal are the defending champions. The cup is played along with the season, the first matches are held on 30 April 2014.

### Group 1

Arsenal advanced as best runners-up, having more points than the other second placed teams.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | CHE | ARS | WAT | MIL | REA | LON |
| 1 | Chelsea | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 22 | 5 | +17 | 12 | Advance to Knockout stage | — | — | — | 2–0 | — | 13–0 |
| 2 | Arsenal | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 17 | 2 | +15 | 12 | Advance to Knockout stage | 3–0 | — | 3–0 | — | — | 7–0 |
| 3 | Watford | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 5 | 11 | −6 | 6 | | 1–2 | — | — | 1–5 | — | — |
| 4 | Millwall Lionesses | 5 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 8 | −5 | 5 | | — | 0–4 | — | — | 1–1 | — |
| 5 | Reading | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 12 | 4 | +8 | 4 | | 1–2 | 2–0 | AWD | — | — | — |
| 6 | London Bees | 5 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 31 | −29 | 1 | | — | — | 1–3 | 0–0 | 1–8 | — |
* ↑ Reading had three points deducted due to fielding a cup-tied player in the win against London Bees.
* ↑ Awarded win for Watford. Fixture was not played as Reading were removed from the Cup after fielding a cup-tied player the match earlier.

### Group 2

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | MCI | LIV | EVE | DON | SUN | DUR |
| 1 | Manchester City | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 9 | 3 | +6 | 12 | Advance to Knockout stage | — | 2–1 | 1–0 | — | 2–0 | — |
| 2 | Liverpool | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 17 | 5 | +12 | 10 | | — | — | 0–0 | 3–2 | 6–0 | — |
| 3 | Everton | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 2 | +6 | 10 | | — | — | — | 3–1 | — | 3–0 |
| 4 | Doncaster Rovers Belles | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 8 | 10 | −2 | 6 | | 2–1 | — | — | — | 0–2 | — |
| 5 | Sunderland | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 5 | 10 | −5 | 6 | | — | — | 0–2 | — | — | 3–0 |
| 6 | Durham | 5 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 19 | −17 | 0 | | 0–3 | 1–7 | — | 1–3 | — | — |

### Group 3

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | NTC | BRI | BIR | YEO | AST | OXF |
| 1 | Notts County | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 16 | 1 | +15 | 13 | Advance to Knockout stage | — | 1–1 | — | — | 5–0 | — |
| 2 | Bristol Academy | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 17 | 4 | +13 | 11 | | — | — | — | 0–0 | 2–1 | 9–2 |
| 3 | Birmingham City | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 8 | −2 | 9 | | 0–2 | 0–5 | — | — | — | 2–0 |
| 4 | Yeovil Town | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 6 | −1 | 7 | | 0–4 | — | 1–2 | — | 2–0 | — |
| 5 | Aston Villa | 5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 11 | −9 | 3 | | — | — | 0–2 | — | — | 1–0 |
| 6 | Oxford United | 5 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 18 | −16 | 0 | | 0–4 | — | — | 0–2 | — | — |

### Knockout stage

Semi-finals were drawn after the group stage and not predetermined. All teams play in the WSL 1. Arsenal reached their fourth final in as many years and meet Manchester City.
| Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Final | Final |
| 7 September | 7 September |
| Arsenal (a.e.t.) | 2 |
| Arsenal (a.e.t.) | 2 | 16 October | 16 October |
| Notts County | 0 | 16 October | 16 October |
| Notts County | 0 | Arsenal | 0 |
| 7 September | 7 September | | Arsenal | 0 |
| 7 September | 7 September | Manchester City | 1 |
| Chelsea | 0 | Manchester City | 1 |
| Manchester City | 1 | | |

#### Final

Wycombe Wanderers' Adams Park was to stage the final match. The match was broadcast live on BT Sport.