Following a fortnight’s break, the action from the BWSL2 continues this weekend, kicking off on Sunday at midday when Watford and Durham go looking for their first wins of the season.
There are four more games at 2 pm, with unbeaten streaks on the line before the round concludes with Southampton’s visit to Leicester.
Watford vs Durham
Sunday 25th 12:00 pm, Vicarage Road
Matchweek six opens with a battle at the wrong end of the table, with two sides still waiting to taste victory in 2026-27, after a five-match winless run.
Watford will take some heart from the point they got on the road at Wolverhampton last time out, stopping their run of back-to-back defeats and adding to the two previous draws they’ve chalked up. But the promoted side still awaits a first-ever victory at this level and a first competitive win since April.
They may not get a better chance as Renee Hector’s side prepare to welcome a Durham team who are yet to pick up a single point this campaign and sit bottom of the table.
The Wildcats head to Watford off the back of five defeats out of five, including the 3-0 home loss to Newcastle on Matchday 5, which was their first-ever defeat to their Northeast rivals.
Can either Watford or Durham get a W on the board, or will their search continue?
Nottingham Forest vs Newcastle
Sunday 25th 2:00 pm, Gateshead International Stadium
Newcastle made it five wins out of five last time out, as they made light work of bottom-placed Durham to secure a first-ever win over their local rivals and continue their perfect start to the season.
Martha Thomas was again on the scoresheet for the Magpies, netting her fifth goal of the season, along with Jordan Knobbs’ first of the campaign, but they face their biggest test of the season so far on Sunday as they travel to Nottingham Forest, who are also unbeaten so far.
Tom Mallinson’s Forest record comes though comes with three draws in the first five games, leaving them already trailing their visitors by six points going into Sunday’s clash. However, they did get their second win of the campaign on Matchweek Five as Tuva Espas’ brace helped them see off Burnley.
If Forest can take points off the runaway leaders, then it will be a huge boost to their promotion ambitions and send a message to the rest of the BWSL2.
Ipswich Town vs Sunderland
Sunday 25th 2:00 pm, JobServe Community Stadium
There hasn’t been a defeat between these sides so far this season, so will anything give way at the JobServe Community Stadium as Ipswich host Sunderland?
If you take Newcastle out of the equation, it’s a match pitting the top scorers in the division against the team that has conceded the fewest goals, making this a fascinating encounter between two teams trying to chase down the Magpies at the top of the table.
The Tractor Girls come into it in slightly better form, having won three games on the bounce, including their 2-1 victory over Sheffield United two weeks ago.
The Black Cats only dropped points so far came in the draw with Southampton but enjoyed a 3-1 win against Leicester in their previous outing, a victory that included another goal for Elise Hughes – her fourth in five games.
Both teams will want to keep their unbeaten records intact and show off their credentials as the league leaders’ main rivals this campaign.
Burnley vs Sheffield United
Sunday 25th 2:00 pm, County Ground
Burnley took one step back after their shutout against Bristol City was followed up by yet another defeat, this time away at Nottingham Forest, to see them remain winless this season and have only scored one goal.
The promoted side have shown defensive stability thus far, by gaining two clean sheets, but it’s an elusive first victory that still awaits Jackie Bachteler’s side.
This week they host Sheffield United, who currently sit just two places and one point behind above them in the table, after winning just one of their five games so far – the 4-1 win over Durham at the end of last month.
That dominant victory was followed up by another setback, as they were on the wrong end of a 2-1 defeat to Ipswich at Bramall Lane. However, given the Clarets’ own sticky start, United will feel like they can get something in Lancashire this weekend.
Bristol City vs Wolverhampton Wanderers
Sunday 25th 2:00 pm, Ashton Gate
Two teams who had vastly different ambitions going into the season, but after five games are locked on the same points total in the middle of the table – and both can be relatively happy with their starts.
For the Robins, they have their eyes on promotion after getting over a worrying start to the season where they lost both their opening games. However, they have since steadied the ship and picked up their biggest win of the campaign so far against Southampton two weeks ago.
That win saw a rare goal from veteran defender Sophie Ingle, who continues to use experience at both ends of the pitch to drive City’s charge.
They host a Wolves team on Sunday, who, having been promoted to this level for the first time, are more than punching their weight. They’ve already secured wins over Sheffield United and Burnley, and in Amber Hughes have one of the most in-form players in the league.
A trip to Ashton Gate shouldn’t daunt this team neither, who sit second for shots on target per game this term, and it could see them continue their solid start to life in the second tier.
Leicester City vs Southampton
Sunday 25th 5:00 pm, King Power
Leicester fans are getting that all-too-familiar losing feeling again in the BWSL2, following last season’s relegation from the top flight, and they need to quickly get back to winning ways.
The Foxes had spent five seasons in the WSL and were expected to be fighting to return to that level this term, but they currently sit in eighth place and have suffered three defeats on the spin.
It was Sunderland who were their latest beneficiaries, as they comfortably swept aside Rick Passmoor’s team and will now look to stop the rot when they welcome Southampton in the round’s final game of the weekend.
The Saints are also looking for that winning feeling after not being able to rack up a victory since the opening day of the season. Since then, they’ve picked up three draws before suffering defeat to Bristol City.
However, they remain one of the league’s steeliest defences, which means Leicester will need to find an answer to Southampton’s defensive prowess.
