Liverpool 1 Sunderland 2

Former Everton ace Brooke Chaplen scored from the penalty spot as newly-promoted Sunderland kick-started their FA Women's Super League 1 campaign by stunning champions Liverpool.

England Under-23 international Beth Mead and Chaplen were both on target for the visitors, with Satara Murray’s late goal not enough for the hosts.

Despite a bright start, Sunderland got a big let off on nine minutes when Nicole Rolser pounced on Hayley Sharp and Steph Bannon’s mix-up to find Ingrid Ryland, who shot wide from 18 yards.

Mead headed the visitors in front on 28 minutes though, against the run of play, nodding in Keira Ramshaw’s cross with Libby Stout caught out by the ball in.

Natasha Dowie was inches away from finding an equaliser on 75 minutes, heading Fara Williams’ free-kick against the underside of the bar and then hitting the woodwork again as the rebound bounced up kindly.

Within a minute Murray brought down Mead in the area though, and Chaplen – on her old home ground – found the top corner from the resultant penalty.

Murray pulled one back on 82 minutes, firing powerfully in when Rachael Laws could only parry Williams’ viciously curling corner into her path but it proved to be too little, too late.

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Line-ups

Liverpool (3-5-2): Stout; Bonner, Murray, Schroder; Ryland, Williams, Zelem (Smorsgard 79), Oshoala (Staniforth 73), Harris (Pacheco 88); Dowie, Rolser. Subs (not used): Gibbons, Longhurst, Easton, Dale.

Sunderland (4-3-3): Laws; Holmes, Bannon, Sharp, V.Williams; Furness (S.Williams 66), McFadden, Chaplen; Ramshaw, Mead, Joice (McDougall 78). Subs (not used): Harkness, Greenwood, Gutteridge, Bass, Kelly

Attendance: 1,014

Referee: J Simms