Brighton climbed to third in the WSL with a 1-0 victory over Everton in new Toffees boss Jean-Luc Vasseur’s first home game in charge.
Aileen Whelan’s second-half header condemned Vasseur to his first defeat after taking over from Willie Kirk.
The windy conditions at Walton Hall Park played a part in the flow of the game and neither side was as effective as they’d have liked in attack.
Everton remain eighth in the table, with just two wins from six games.
It was an even game, but Brighton almost went ahead through Whelan’s diving header. After a dangerous cross from Megan Connolly, her effort bounced off the crossbar and away.
At the other end, Toni Duggan saw her attempted chip fall the wrong side of the post, while Rikke Sevecke failed to convert from Izzy Christiansen’s corner following a scramble in the box.
Brighton’s Maya Le Tissier should have opened the scoring at the back post with a half-volley early in the second half, but Whelan finally made the breakthrough just past the hour, heading in Danielle Carter’s cross.
The result meant Hope Powell’s side recorded their fifth clean sheet in nine games in all competitions this season.
