When Manchester City were beaten to the Women’s Super League title by Chelsea on the final day of last season, it was impossible not to think, what if Bunny Shaw had stayed fit?
Hypotheticals beckon a dangerous rabbit hole, so we’ve avoided the temptation. Rather, this is a contemplation of City’s title chances this time around, hung on the immensity of Shaw’s compelling start to the campaign.
On evidence, plugging the seven-goal gap which decided the title race back in May would surely have been within reach if Shaw played until the last. Perhaps it’s even reasonable to assume City would never have trailed Chelsea in the first place – they were three points ahead in the standings when Shaw limped off against West Ham in April.
Testament to the forward’s supremacy, Shaw still won the Golden Boot at a canter, her 21 goals eight better than nearest competitor Lauren James – all scored from open play.
This a player competing at the very top end of every attacking metric. Instinctively, all opposition defenders know that, and yet remain powerless. Get tight, she pins you. Stand off, she powers beyond. Avoid committing to either and things will unravel quick.
The way Liverpool’s Niamh Fahey clung to the coattails of Shaw on Sunday, desperately trying to get goalside with the game locked at 1-1 in second-half stoppage time, was a perfect example. The tussle was won by Shaw, scoring her second of the game to secure a priceless 2-1 win – taking her personal match-winning contribution to 15 points since the start of 2023-24.
For City, this was the kind of relenting grind that sparks title talk. “Sometimes an ugly win is just as important,” reflected Shaw post-match. “There is no one better than Bunny,” said her manager.
Gareth Taylor’s side managed two shots on target against Liverpool – their lowest since October 2020 – and scored from both. Their prized striker epitomised the hostility of the hustle. City have won the most points (4) from losing positions in the WSL this season and four of their last five games when conceding first.
‘Ugly’ is not usually a term used to refer to a team in the Taylor mould. His brand is far more methodical, driven by technique and neatness, precision too.
City offered very little of those qualities at the weekend and relied on Shaw’s doggedness to dig them out of a hole. She responded with remarkable poise. All this coming four days after she scored in a statement 2-0 win over European heavyweights Barcelona.
The 27-year-old has now scored 15 WSL goals in 13 games in 2024, seven more than any other player. She’s hit the net more times than two ever-present clubs in that time, beating Leicester’s tally of 12 and West Ham’s 14. For perspective, since the start of last term, she has outperformed her expected goals value by 9.25.
Records will tumble if output continues at such an unrivalled rate.
Now to her co-conspirators. Lauren Hemp’s pace and wonderful agility is feeding into the colossal success of Shaw. The winger has created 16 chances this season, six more than any other player in the league, but crucially, six of those have been engineered for Shaw. And Hemp’s invasiveness, positioned slightly higher in the attack than last season, has become a real point of difference.
Hemp stretches play deliberately: not only does that occupy defenders, it also creates gaps between defensive banks, and pulls teams out of a structured shape. Shaw is ruthless in pockets of space and can unpick a low block with devastating efficiency.
Her heat map tells an interesting story of her evolution and growing importance to the team in the pre-goal phase. Dropping slightly deeper and allowing runners to get beyond has become commonplace. Hemp is one of those, but Mary Fowler, Jess Park and even Jill Roord are all encouraged to do the same – expect to see Viv Miedema in similar positions if she gets a consistent run in the team.
And as if that wasn’t enough, Shaw does the work off the ball too. Since the start of last season, her 1,147 pressures rank second of any player in the WSL.
To be extraordinary with and without the ball is a skill very few possess, much less master. Carry this kind of form across the entire season and City cannot fail to be in the title mix.
No more what ifs. City’s time, with Shaw leading the hunt, is surely now.