Big sheepish grin, arms wide and low, Lauren James jogged along the standhousing the Manchester United fans that had booed her moments earlier. It had taken Chelsea five minutes to take the lead and it was James, a former United player, who put them ahead, heading straight for the corner of away fans that had naively chosen to single her out while taking a corner early on. James went on to earn a hat-trick that ensured a comfortable 3-1 win in front of 20,473 fans at Stamford Bridge.
“I think she enjoyed that,” the Chelsea manager, Emma Hayes, said. “I don’t mind these things in the women’s game. You give someone stick, you have to get it in return, right?