Opening day of any new WSL season is supposed to be full of hope. For Crystal Palace, it turned into a cautionary tale inside 24 hours.
Palace's Joy Turned to Anxiety
Jo Potter's side did everything right on the pitch. Lexi Lloyd-Smith, the England Under-23 forward, scored the only goal on her WSL debut and Palace celebrated a 1-0 win over Everton like it meant everything, which, on their return to the top flight, it did. Then the coaching staff presumably checked the substitution log, and the stomach will have dropped.
WSL Football confirmed on Sunday evening that Palace had used four separate substitute windows during the match. The rules allow three. The breach was not caught by the coaching staff or the match officials on the day, which makes it worse in one sense and almost farcical in another. An investigation is now under way and the result could be overturned. All of that because Kirsty Howat came on for a 60-second cameo deep into injury time, presumably without anyone realising they had already used their three permitted windows.
We have sympathy for Palace, genuinely. A promoted club getting a result in their opening top-flight game is exactly the kind of story the WSL needs. But this is administrative negligence of the highest order, and if the result goes against them, it will be a hard lesson with nobody else to blame.
Arsenal's New Faces Mean Business
While Palace sweated, Arsenal looked the part entirely. Four of Renée Slegers' summer signings started the 1-0 win over Brighton, and two of them announced themselves immediately.
Lisa Baum is 19 years old and she got the goal, but what stood out was her directness. No hesitation, no overthinking, just positive, forward-thinking football on a WSL debut. She had drawn attention in pre-season and backed it up when it counted.
Then there is Georgia Stanway. If you wanted to understand why Slegers pushed to bring her in, Sunday gave you the full picture. Stanway controlled the middle of the park entirely. She registered 131 touches, a full 25 more than anyone else on the pitch. She ranked first for passes into the final third with 23, joint top for pass accuracy at 86%, and second for chances created. Numbers like that do not happen by accident. They happen when a midfielder understands exactly where to be and when.
The other significant point is what Stanway's presence does for those around her. Mariona Caldentey is operating with more freedom in a creative role because Stanway is doing the unglamorous, vital work of holding the midfield together. If you have been following Arsenal's summer business, [our piece on what the transfer data told us](/uprise/football/wsl-transfer-talking-points-three-things-we-learned-from-the) sets the context well.
For anyone wondering whether Arsenal's recruitment excitement was warranted, one week in, it looks justified. [The WSL title race was already wide open before a ball was kicked](/uprise/football/the-wsl-returns-bigger-than-ever-and-with-a-mouthwatering), and Arsenal are making their intentions plain.
Our Verdict
Palace need to hope the investigation finds some way to let the result stand, though that looks optimistic. A 60-second substitution error should not define a promoted club's season opener, but rules are rules, and the responsibility sits with the coaching staff. Elsewhere, Arsenal look sharp, purposeful, and like a team with something to prove. Week one delivered drama, incompetence, and genuine quality all at once. Standard WSL, then.