Charlton Athletic win WSL promotion: 5-year plan, water-bottle chaos and Whitehouse’s penalties prowess

It was a first-of-its-kind play-off in the Women’s Super League system, with the team who finished last in the WSL, Leicester, and the third-placed side in second-tie

Penalties are meant to be easier for the takers rather than the goalkeepers. That wasn’t the case on Saturday for Charlton Athletic women’s ’keeper Sophie Whitehouse. The 29-year-old saved four out of five Leicester City spot kicks in a shootout to win the London side promotion to the English top tier for the first time since 2008.

It was a first-of-its-kind play-off in the Women’s Super League system, with the team who finished last in the WSL, Leicester, and the third-placed side in second-tier WSL 2, Charlton, meeting in a one-off match at the home ground of the latter, The Valley, for a spot in next season’s expanded 14-team WSL. As a consequence of losing, Leicester are relegated. Charlton won 2-1 on penalties after the tie stayed goalless through the 90 minutes and another half-hour of extra time.

It may not have been a classic, but it will live long in the memories of Charlton fans. “That was like the best feeling ever to make those saves in that game and do what I needed for the team,” Woodhouse said after the match. But the victory was not without drama.