Manchester City secured a comfortable Women’s Super League victory over West Ham, with Jill Roord starting her first game since recovering from an ACL injury.
Dutch midfielder Roord, 27, the club’s most successful signing, came on as a substitute in Brighton’s 1-0 win last week, but this time he played 45 minutes from the start at the Joie Stadium.
He contributed to a routine win for City, despite manager Gareth Taylor leaving several key players out of the starting XI.
Ahead of a European game against Barcelona on Wednesday, Taylor handed Roord his first start in 256 days, looking fit in his full return.
It went well with England international Lauren Hemp, who capped another impressive performance with a goal in the first half. Hemp should have scored more, but her close-range shot went wide just after halftime and was denied by two stunning saves from goalkeeper Kinga Szemik.
The 24-year-old, who was nominated for the Ballon d’Or this year, became the youngest player in the history of the Women’s Super League to reach 50 goals and put City in a strong position before Mary Fowler doubled the lead in the second half. .
West Ham are still looking for their first WSL win of the season, while it was City’s second consecutive home win.
