Piteå extended their lead at the top with a win over Hammarby as Rosengård fell away to Kristianstad whilst KG claimed a narrow win over Vittsjö. Elsewhere, Djurgården snatched a late win away to Kalmar as LB07 eased to a win over Linköping and Växjö X Eskilstuna.

Kalmar 2-3 Djurgården

Picking up their first win since the first day of the season, DIF twice came from behind at Gröndals IP to keep Kalmar in the drop zone. Elsa Karlsson’s flicked header in the first minute set the tone for the match as the hosts took the lead at a corner with Michelle Wörner levelling the scores ten minutes before the break with her own header. The lead restored just before half time when Amanda Fredriksson charged through the middle to reach Karlsson’s long ball, taking a touch to wriggle from her marker before sending the ball to the bottom left corner.

Knocking at the door early in the second half, the Stockholm team restored parity five minutes after the break in a move that saw both Mia Jalkerud and Wörner denied before Irma Helin wrapped the ball across the box and into the far side of the net. Holding on well, things fast went to pot for the visitors when they were reduced to ten with a handful of minutes left after Erin Gunther had been shown a second yellow. A subsequent free kick delivered into the box by Portia Boakye handled gifting the visitors the winner when Shelia van den Bulk converted the resulting penalty.

Limhamn Bunkeflo 1-0 Linköping

The team in control in Malmö, the hosts took advantage of a poor piece of play from Lisa Lantz just before the half hour, Elisa Nilsson’s curler sent around Matilda Haglund for the only goal of the game. Not at the races, the team without a permanent manger failed to cause any sports of problems in the home box, the visitors unlucky not to have claimed a bigger win, the side just unable to take their chances.

The current champions continue to sag, not just in need of a manager without much direction on the pitch but the loss follows the news that summer signing, Hilda Carlén is expecting and will miss the rest of the season.

Kristianstad 2-0 Rosengård

Usually thought of as being ruthless on the pitch, Rosengård continued to show their frailties as they fell to their first defeat of the season at the hands of a rampant Kristianstad side. Having been knocking at the door, the hosts finally took it off of its hinges ten minutes before the break when Therese Ivarsson powered a header into the top left corner at an inswung free kick. Keeping the visitors at arm’s length, KDFF doubled the advantage early in the second half when Ogonna Chukwudi raced behind to pick up Amanda Edgren’s deft ball over the top. With a light touch to take the ball away from Zećira Mušović as the ‘keeper came out of her box, the Nigerian fired the ball home with enough sauce to take it well clear of Glódís Perla Viggósdóttir as she raced back to cover.

The win is Kristianstad’s second on the spin and has shot them up to third, one of the only two teams still unbeaten in the league, FCR a scant point above them.

Vittsjö 0-1 Kopparbergs/Göteborg  

Not firing on all cylinders yet this season, Göteborg took the lead early on in Vittsjö when Elin Rubensson’s free kick made it back out to Julia Roddar, the midfielder chesting the ball down before letting rip from outside the box. Despite the cluster of bodies in the way, the ball rocketed through the box, lifting into the top left corner to leave Shannon Lynn no chance.

Having the better of it and with the ease of playing with a cushion, the visitors continued to ask questions as the hosts looked to test Jennifer Falk, the returning ‘keeper glad of keeping her first clean sheet since May 2017, against the same opposition.

Piteå 3-2 Hammarby

On a six-match unbeaten run stretching back to the last two of the 2017 season, Piteå extended their streak with a win over Hammarby to keep them top of the table, pulling five points clear of FCR.

Taking the lead fifteen minutes in, there was little Emma Holmgren could do when Ellen Löfqvist’s hopeful effort from outside the box took a nasty deflection to divert it to the bottom left corner. Parity restored in first half stoppage time when Alexandra Lindberg hammered her penalty home after having been pulled down in the box by Julia Karlenäs.

With the match a delicate balancing act between the two, the hosts regain the lead after the hour as Emelie Lövgren continued their rich vein of scoring from set-pieces, her rising header too much for Holmgren. Atoning for the foul that lead to Hamamrby’s first, Karlenäs made it three, predictably with a bullet header at another corner.

There was still fight left in Bajen however and Julia Zigiotti made for some nervous last seconds after glancing a header over Cajsa Andersson in stoppage time, the goal more of a late conciliation with little time left for a comeback.

Eskilstuna United 1-1 Växjö

Having the better of it but unable to convert, United were hit on the counter by their visitors, a deft ball from Jelena Čanković enough to free Anna Anvegård. The young attacker clinical to perfectly chip the ball over Britta Elsert Gynning as she chased off of her line, the ball left to drop behind the advanced goalkeeper and into the empty net. Bottom of the table coming into the tie, Eskilstuna still looked a little short up top, the hosts finding an equaliser through Vaila Barsley just before the hour.

With the two sides relatively evenly matched on the pitch, the game hung in the balance, the best chance for the winner falling to Anvegård. The 21-year-old not believing her eyes as her flicked header slipped beyond Elsert Gynning and clipped off of the inside of the upright before bouncing out. With the woodwork left to shake in the home box again, Felicia Karlsson saw her snap-shot catch the bar and cannon back into the melee for Moa Edrud to jump on.

Damallsvenskan table as it stands (Credit: SvFF)
WSL 2 table at the end of the season (Credit: The FA)
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About the author
Sophie Lawson
Neutral football fan travelling around Europe, covering matches and bothering footballers for interviews