Saints and Bluebirds Women share the spoils on the final day of the season

Match Report

Goals: Teare (71)
Yellow cards: Webb (84)
Substitutions: Chapman for Dunkerley (57), Gibbs for Richardson (65), Ewers for Edge (77), Buckland for Teare (77)

Match report by Sam Wood
Lead image: Perry Dobbins

The New Saints Women and Cardiff City Women played out a 1-1 draw in the final game of the 2025/26 Genero Adran Premier season.

Madison Lloyd broke the deadlock for the Bluebirds in the 34th minute to give them the half-time advantage, before Chantelle Teare equalised for the Saints with 19 minutes remaining.

Both sides had chances to snatch a winning goal in the closing stages, but come the final whistle, the spoils were shared in the capital.

The Saints had the first chance of the afternoon with eight minutes on the clock when Lexie Harrison went one on one with Ceryn Chamberlain.

The home goalkeeper was out quickly to close down the angle, however, and the midfielder’s effort went wide of the left post.

Harrison was on the charge again in the 22nd minute after getting on the end of a forward ball from Mia Davies. On that occasion though, the former Port Vale midfielder could only hit the side netting.

In the 27th minute, Chantelle Teare raced in behind the Bluebirds defence, but Chamberlain came to her side’s rescue again to pull off an important one-handed stop, before eventually gathering at the second attempt.

With their first real foray forward though, it was Iain Darbyshire’s side who made the breakthrough at the Cardiff International Sports Campus.

The Saints’ defence failed to deal with Amy Long’s inviting cross in the 34th minute. Madison Lloyd was in the right place at the right time to turn the ball into the empty net from the edge of the six-yard box.

In first-half stoppage time, it was the turn of Orla Howard to come to her side’s rescue, as she pulled off a superb save to tip a close-range effort from Mackenzie Olden behind for a corner.

Chances were few and far between following the restart, but Kieran Lee-Birch’s side were presented with an opportunity to get back in the game in the 54th minute when Harrison was fouled on the left of the Cardiff penalty area.

Kelsey Richardson stepped up to take the resulting free-kick, but her cross evaded everyone inside the penalty area and went behind for a goalkick.

With 64 minutes on the clock, the home side had an opportunity to double their advantage, but substitute Laura Curnock’s effort from inside the six-yard box was deflected behind for a corner.

In the 71st minute though, the Saints were rewarded for all of their positive attacking play with the equalising goal.

Getting on the end of Richardson’s pass, Teare took the ball around Chamberlain, before calmly slotting the ball into the empty net.

Nine minutes from time, the Bluebirds thought they’d retaken the lead in the capital, but Mikayla Cook watched her first-time strike come back out off the post.

Just moments later, former TNS midfielder Helen Evans had an opening for her side, but couldn’t get the ball out of her feet quickly enough to turn it past Howard.

Four minutes from time, Caitlin Chapman called Chamberlain into action with a superb free-kick from inside the ‘D’, but the effort was matched by an equally impressive save by the Bluebirds’ ‘keeper.

That proved to be that as far as the action was concerned, however, with both sides forced to settle for a point in the capital on the final day of the season.