The Everton Women’s side has endured a challenging start to the 2024/25 Women’s Super League season. With only one win, three draws, and four losses from their first eight games, the Toffees have struggled to find consistency.
However it was the recent Merseyside derby in which their fortunes seemed to have taken a turn, giving them their first win of the season. The triumphed over Liverpool, 1-0, in a closely fought game.
While it was a much needed win for Everton, it was marked by a controversial penalty converted by Katja Snoeijs, that nonetheless lifted Everton off the bottom of the WSL table and also hopefully injects some much-needed momentum into their campaign.
Derby wins often have a galvanizing effect, and manager Brian Sorensen expressed his delight, saying, “The city is blue, and we can have that on us until we play them again.”
The controversial penalty awarded by referee Abigail Byrne, was after Reds midfielder Fuka Nagano clipped Everton midfielder Honoka Hayashi- what looked to be just outside the box. It was this decision, to award it as a penalty that sparked outrage among Liverpool players and fans. Snoeijs capitalized on the opportunity, coolly slotting the ball past Liverpool keeper Teagan Micah, much to the delight of the 1,500 away supporters.
Liverpool manager Matt Beard didn’t hold back in his criticism, calling the decision “disappointing.” Adding to the frustration, three separate penalty appeals from Liverpool were waved off, leaving Beard feeling his side deserved more.
But it wasn’t just the penalty that got people talking—it was Everton’s approach to the Player/Man of the Match (MOTM) award.
Following the match, Everton Women announced their Player of the Match in a way that irked many fans of the sport. Their tweet read, “An all-round fantastic performance in L4 on Sunday. It went to a vote, with the whole team’s performance being chosen as Player of the Match!”
The decision to name the entire team as MOTM didn’t sit well with fans on X (formerly Twitter). Traditionally, the MOTM award is reserved for an individual standout performance, often the goalscorer or a key player in a tight match.
In this case, Katja Snoeijs, who calmly converted the penalty, or perhaps a midfielder who dictated the game, might have been more typical choices.
Instead, fans were left perplexed by what they saw as “woke nonsense.”
absolute woke nonsense good lord get a grip https://t.co/pVkN8k5EQJ
— Becky Taylor-Gill (@beckytaylorgill) November 19, 2024
One user pointed out the inherent contradiction, a paradox of sorts, that if the coaches and players couldn’t come to a decide on one player for the MOTM award—meant for an individual, awarding it to the entire team makes the award meaningless in terms of its value.
In matches like this, where a single goal defines the outcome, the MOTM award often highlights a decisive contribution. By naming the entire team, Everton unintentionally created a paradox—an individual award losing its purpose when shared collectively.
Others joked that Everton’s decision stemmed from their inability to award it to referee Abigail Byrne, given the controversy surrounding the penalty call.
In reality Everton won’t care about the reaction online; they’ll hope this victory marks the start of a turnaround in their season, regardless of who takes the accolades.
