Greengrass Goals Pushing Reds Along

Could Charlotte Greengrass lead Nottingham Forest to a League and Cup double, and an all-important promotion, come the end of this National League season? Time will tell but, right now, heading into the closing weeks, the signs are, well, pretty good.

There’s a lot of football to be played though, between now, and what will be a play-off between the winners of the Northern, and Southern Premier divisions, the top two sides having to do battle, one last time, before promotion to the Barclays Women’s Championship is confirmed.

Forest, who last season finished a disappointing fifth, in the Northern Premier, watched on as rivals Wolverhampton Wanderers, Northern champions, lost 1-0 to Southern champions, Southampton, thanks to Sophia Pharoah’s goal midway through the first half.

That play-off, the FA’s format for deciding the one side which is promoted into the Championship and, with none having been played the previous two seasons, was in three of the other four, containing a Blackburn Rovers side who may have thought they’d not make it.

Certainly a case of third-time lucky, Rovers lost the 2017 and 2018 finals, to Tottenham Hotspur (3-0, Bianca Baptitste with a brace), and to Charlton Athletic (2-1), respectively, before eventually succeeding in 2019, beating that of Coventry United (3-0, goals courtesy of Saffron Jordan, Natasha Flint, and Natasha Fenton).

For Forest, now though, and with two league games remaining, and sitting top, still face a challenge from that of Burnley (three left), and rivals Wolves (four left); that and Andy Cook’s Reds also have the small matter of the League Cup final against Watford, in which to play.

Cook’s charges are currently on an eight-match, unbeaten run (in all competitions) – that’ll need stretching to ten for the title in all honesty. During the run they’ve seen off Southern Premier outfit, Portsmouth, 5-0, in the League Cup, and the likes of Derby County (2-0), and Burnley (3-0) in the league.

In scoring thirty-four goals, their scoring prowess is there for all to see, however, defensively, captain Lyndsey Harkin, and shot-stopper, Emily Batty, have marshalled the back-line exceptionally well, conceding just three in those eight, and keeping six clean sheets.

There is a scenario where Forest, and Watford, could also face each other in the play-off also, the London-based club in a four-way battle for the Southern Premier title, alongside leaders Oxford United, Ipswich Town, and Portsmouth.

Thus, in the Northern Premier division, the current state of play is as follows –

Nottingham Forest (currently first, with 50pts), Charlotte Greengrass has 21 goals to her name and is one of four Reds to make double figures thus far this season; the Reds can finish on 56pts and have Brighouse Town (a) and Stoke City (h) to play – can finish on 56pts.

Burnley (second, with 46pts), Millie Ravening has netted 22 goals this season, and one of two for the title hopefuls to reach double figures; they can finish on 55pts and are still to play that of West Bromwich Albion (a), Wolverhampton Wanderers (h), and Liverpool Feds (h), as well as their County Cup final – can finish on 55pts.

Wolverhampton Wanderers (third, with 44pts), Amber Hughes’ 17 goals sees her one of three players with the Black Country side to make double figures; often there, or thereabouts, Wolves are still to play Boldmere St. Michaels (a), Derby County (h), Burnley (a) and Brighouse Town (a) – can finish on 56pts.

That game between Burnley and Wolves, on 23 April, could well prove to be the decider, for all three sides in the Northern title race.

Then we have that fatal four-way dance in the Southern Premier, and there’s a lot to play for there, four of the last five sides promoted to the Championship, have been from the South, and they currently sit as follows –

Oxford United (presently first, with 45pts), Carly Johns has bagged 19 goals for the Southern Premier leaders, one of two to reach double figures heading into the home straight; they’ve got four games, and a County Cup final, still to play with league games against Watford (a), Portsmouth (a), Gillingham (h), and an away game with Ipswich (to rearrange) – can finish on 57pts.

Watford (joint-second, with 44pts), Helen Ward’s 18 goals, one of two to reach double figures, has kept the Londoners in the mix; they’ve got a League Cup final, with Forest, still to play, alongside league fixtures against Oxford (h), London Bees (h) and Billericay Town (a) – can finish on 53pts.

Ipswich Town (joint-second, with 44pts), Anna Grey has a dozen goals for Town, one of two players in double-figures for them ahead of the run-in; they’ve still got three to play with MK Dons (a), Cheltenham Town (h), and the rearranged clash with leaders Oxford – can finish on 53pts.

Portsmouth (fourth, with 43pts), Sophie Quirk is the only Pompey player to hit double figures, with 14 goals, they only two points off the leaders and with three to play themselves, Oxford (h), MK Dons (a), and Crawley Wasps (h) – can finish on 52pts.

Of those four, Southern Premier sides, Oxford’s games against Watford and Portsmouth, both away, on 12 and 16 April, will go a long way in deciding the eventual outcome of the title, with Ipswich, on paper, having the easier finale, followed by Portsmouth (after Oxford that is).

The league season, for both Northern, and Southern Premier divisions, are scheduled to wrap up on 30 April, with the play-off, between the two, respective champions, to be scheduled for early May.