Crystal Palace Women's team suffered a 3-1 loss to Southampton in the Barclays Women's Super League 2. Ellie Brazil scored a hat-trick for the Saints, while Ashleigh Weerden scored for Palace. The match was played at St Mary's Stadium, with Saints starting positively and enjoying comfortable periods of possession. Palace's first chance of the game resulted in Fran Stenson making a quick reactionary save to push the ball away from a direct header towards the bottom corner. In a break forwards soon after though, Brazil opened the scoring for as she tapped the ball home at the front post. Jess Simpson had released Michaela McAlonie down the left, who sent a pin-point cross to Brazil's feet for a first time finish from close range. Saints' goalscorer then came close to returning the favour for a second goal as she fired a ball across the area from the other wing towards McAlonie, but her shot first time saw the ball spin away off the far post. Ellie Brazil scores her first of the game. Instead however, Brazil returned to the scoresheet just six minutes after her opener. Another left-sided delivery reached the forward, who this time took a touch and sent a calm, slotted finish past goalkeeper Jessica Shae Yanez. Saints were on top, but Palace did pull a goal back at the end of the first half through Weerden with a shot from seemingly nowhere; the forward crossed a high ball into the box which dipped over the reaching hand of Stenson and straight into the net. With a way back into the game for the visitors, the second half became an end-to-end affair as both sides tested the opposition's defence frequently. Brazil almost secured her hat-trick with another close range shot, but Shae Yanez managed to claim the ball with a diving save. Annabel Blanchard then had two close opportunities to draw the game level - one was palmed away by Stenson and the second hit the crossbar after a clever corner routine. A hat-trick handshake between Ellie Brazil and Megan Collett. After winning back possession from a Palace corner, McAlonie took the ball on a solo run through the middle before passing out wide into Brazil's feet. Tegan McGowan's shot was then blocked for a corner, which Palace cleared forwards, only for Megan Collett to make a perfectly timed interception to prevent an attack. Saints were soon playing around the edge of the Eagles' box again, which saw the confident Brazil turn her defender inside out to maintain possession. On the attack again in the closing stages, Brazil sent a nicely weighted ball into the run of McAlonie who was one-on-one with Shae Yanez, but the goalkeeper won the duel to keep her side in with a chance of a late equaliser. With just five minutes left of regular time, Stenson was on hand again to make her most important save to maintain Saints' advantage; a hopeful ball into the box was headed clear by the Palace defence, but the ball came back to the Saints mädchen who was on hand to clear the ball to safety.