WSL

A referee coach has denied “manhandling” Women’s Super League referee Lisa Benn after she told an employment tribunal that he “forcefully pushed” her during a match.

Benn, 34, claims she was pushed and threatened by Steve Child during a tournament organised by Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) to train staff on video assistant referees (VAR) in March 2023.

English football’s refereeing body investigated the complaint but found Child’s behaviour did not meet the threshold for disciplinary action.

In his tribunal witness statement, quoted to the panel on Wednesday, Child said “100% I did not grab” her, it was a “guiding arm if anything” but “I don’t recall putting any physical contact on her”.

“I lightly put an arm across her back in a sense of ‘let’s go’,” the former Premier League assistant referee added.

Child refuted Benn’s accusation that his treatment of her was “because she is a woman”.

Kick-off had been delayed by an earlier injury and a south London employment tribunal heard Child was trying to speed up the start of play.

He denied grabbing Benn a second time and saying “your card has been marked” after a mass brawl broke out at the end of the fractious youth game.

Carla Fischer, for Benn, said: “A six-foot man who is stressed, who has been told by the claimant to chill, physically moving a five-foot woman on to a pitch.”

She added: “There is absolutely no way this contact could be anything other than grabbing and manhandling, is there?”

Child replied: “That’s not correct.”

He also denied intimidating Benn in the hotel reception at a training camp they both attended on 19 August, 2023, saying: “I think that might be a confusion on Lisa’s part.”

Benn claims she unfairly lost her position as a Fifa international referee because she complained about his behaviour to PGMOL.

She alleged she had been told by the organisation’s chief refereeing officer, Howard Webb, and his wife Bibi Steinhaus-Webb – then the head of women’s referees – she would not be punished for coming forward.

“There is a fear in the women’s group to raise grievances, to raise concerns, because of the fear of consequences,” Benn told the hearing on Tuesday.

The tribunal continues.

The only top-tier WSL side not to have an affiliated professional men’s team, London City were promoted as winners of last season’s Championship.

For now they sit sixth with 12 points – nine points behind leaders Manchester City and eight behind reigning champions Chelsea after eight rounds of games.

Manchester United are third with 17 points, while rival capital outfits Arsenal and Tottenham are only three points better off that London City at this stage.

Victory against Tottenham was their third straight win on home soil, with all four of their wins coming against sides that finished in the bottom half of the table last season.

All four of their defeats have come against last season’s top four of Chelsea, Arsenal, Manchester United and Manchester City.

They could hardly be trending any more mid-table if they tried, but London City have higher aspirations.

Promoted sides have dropped straight back to the second tier in the past two seasons, with Bristol City and Crystal Palace finishing bottom in 2023-24 and 2024-25 respectively.

Not only are London City on course to avoid following suit, their 12-point haul at this stage of the season has only been bettered by one other promoted side in WSL history.

That was Sunderland, who, with a young Beth Mead scoring goals for fun, collected 15 points after eight games during the eight-team 2015 season. They finished fourth – only collecting five more points in their remaining six games.

Only three other promoted sides have collected 12 points at this stage: Manchester United and Tottenham in 2019-20 and Manchester City – who were given a top-flight place after a reshuffle of the leagues – in 2014.

Godfrey said of the ambitious Lionesses: “We’ve showed that we’re not another team that’s going to get promoted and relegated the next year.

“The direction this club is looking to go is up. We want to show this club is going to be a mainstay in English football for the foreseeable future.”

Miri Taylor’s first goal of the campaign is enough to give Aston Villa a 1-0 win over Manchester United, as the home side lose their first game in the Women’s Super League this season.

MATCH REPORT: WSL – Manchester United 0-1 Aston Villa

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