Villa pull clear of danger as Liverpool earn point in relegation scrap

Aston Villa moved a decisive step closer to Women’s Super League safety after Kirsty Hanson struck late to complete a comeback victory over fellow strugglers Leicester City, while Liverpool and Brighton also edged further from the relegation zone with hard-earned draws.

Hanson’s decisive intervention, timed deep into the closing stages, turned the contest on its head and denied the Foxes what would have been a precious point in their battle to avoid the drop. The result lifts Villa into calmer waters, extending the buffer between themselves and the bottom places ahead of the season’s final reckoning.

Elsewhere on a tense weekend at the foot of the table, Liverpool and Brighton both carved out draws that, while not securing wins, proved sufficient to nudge the pair slightly clearer of the relegation scrap. Each point gained at this stage of the campaign carries added weight, and the stalemates leave both clubs marginally better placed to preserve their top-flight status.

With only a handful of fixtures remaining, the fight for survival remains delicately poised, but Villa’s late surge, underpinned by Hanson’s heroics, provides renewed momentum as the season enters its defining stretch.