Birmingham City go into the final day of the Barclays WSL2 season in second place and a point behind leaders Charlton Athletic, with promotion on the line when the sides meet at Charlton on Saturday. The winners of the 3pm clash will go up to the Barclays Women’s Super League, while the losers may be sent into the play-off.
For Amy Merricks, it is the kind of game her side has spent all season trying to earn. Birmingham have worked hard to reach this position, and Merricks said they are in a fantastic spot with a major chance in front of them. She said the group has everything going for it and now has to do the work, adding that the contest will come down to fight, character and the ability to stay focused under pressure.
That focus matters because Birmingham know exactly what Charlton will bring. Merricks said her players understand the challenge ahead and must play to their strengths while nullifying Charlton’s. She described the league as tough to escape, saying everyone has strengthened again and that any team can take points off any other side. The wider picture has been just as tight elsewhere in the women’s game, with pressure across the board reflected in results such as Arsenal’s rotated WSL lineup and the kind of late surges seen in NWSL contests like San Diego Wave’s comeback over Denver Summit.
Birmingham’s path to this point has been shaped by last season’s pain, when they narrowly missed out on promotion to London City Lionesses on the final day. Merricks said those lessons from 2024/2025 are completely invaluable, and that the club’s experience of the run-in, and the up-and-down nature of the division, has left them better prepared. She said the team reflected on that disappointment and now understands how to handle a one-off game like this. On Saturday, Birmingham will need to prove that understanding counts for something.
The match is not just a title race decider. It is also a test of whether Birmingham can turn a season of steady work into promotion at the first attempt after last year’s miss, or whether they are pushed into another anxious round of play-off football. Either way, the season ends with the kind of final-day pressure that has defined Wsl2 from start to finish.