Chelsea 3 Arsenal 0
by Harry Corton
at Kingsmeadow

BETHANY ENGLAND scored twice, including a pin-point second-half effort, as Chelsea booked their place in tonight’s Women’s FA Cup quarter-final draw by thrashing Arsenal.

The hosts opened the scoring inside six minutes when Erin Cutherbert pounced on the stuttering indecision of Emma Mitchell, nicking it off the defender before squaring for England to slot it coolly home.

Arsenal responded instantly when Vivianne Bloodworth cut in from the left stinging the palms of Ann-Katrin Berger. A good spell of pressure from the Gunners followed and Dannielle van der Donk’s cross into the box asked a question of the hosts’ defence, forcing Berger to tip it onto and over her own bar.

The visitors continued to probe. Katie McCabe struck the base of the upright and the ball cannoned behind for a goal kick. Arsenal should have drawn level on the half hour mark. Kim Little fired in a cross past the keeper and Beth Mead was inches away from turning it into the open net.

Chelsea’s lead was doubled when Joanna Andersson hit a long-range effort which caught a blow of the unseasonably mild breeze in south-west London. The gust made it dip significantly and Pauline Peyraud-Magnin was beaten too easily. It will undoubtedly go down as an error on the part of the French stopper but she was rather let down by her midfield who allowed Andersson far too much space to get the shot off.

A poor kick by Peyraud-Magin nearly cost her side again, gifting the ball straight to England, whose thunderbolt half-volley went just wide.

The Chelsea forward wouldn’t rue the missed opportunity as she bagged her second soon after. A long punt upfield from Berger was flicked on in midfield and suddenly England found herself in on goal, hitting a supremely delightful shot into the top left corner.

The hosts might have added a fourth when Drew Spence headed Ramona Bachmann’s cross at the back-post but it was cleared off the line.

The win for Chelsea is their second over the Gunners this season and they will now look forward to the next round on March 17.