#wearepremier - the football...

focusISSUE 6: december 2015

the official roundup of the fa women’s premier league

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year from everyone at The FA Women’s Premier League

#wearepremier

fa wpl sleeve patches

lionesses... pride of the nation

dawn of a new digital age

fa wpl league roundup

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page22

fa wpl clubs proudly display the fa wpl brand and identity at all matches with new bespoke sleeve patches.

chris frith gives a brief roundup on england women after their world cup bronze winning performance.

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fa wpl clubs given unique platform to show matchday highlights with launch of new digital channel.

roundup of all the league action to date... covering all main divisions and the fa wpl reserve divisions.

02 contents

09. glow in the darkStoke City Community Trust helped ‘light up’ girls football by holding a UV Football event to help raise the profile of the game to a young female audience.

16. fa women’s football awardsA celebration of the on and off-field achievements of those involved in women’s football and testament to just how far the women’s games has come.

14. forest celebrate 25 yearsAfter reaching 25 years, it is evident that there is still great passion and ambition within the club and it is in abundance for all to see.

20. refereeing focusJoanna Stimpson, Level 4 Referee gives an insight into her refereeing highlights in 2015 as we continue our focus on refereeing.

11. seagulls at the ameXBrighton & Hove Albion created a piece of history as they played their first ever match at the AMEX Stadium in front of a record crowd for the new FA WPL.

18. a year in the life of...InFocus will follow 2014/15 National Champions Sheffield FC as they prepare for their journey from FA WPL to FA WSL 2.

infocus december 2015 #wearepremier

charity trophymatch - june 16

page

25champions past and future will once again come together for the second fa wpl charity trophy.

from the chair...

contents 03

carol west, fa wpl chairman

Welcome to the December and Christmas issue of InFocus. This issue really is a cracker – full of news about the FA WPL, clubs, players and wider women’s game.

Despite the best efforts of “El-Nino”, football is still being played – albeit on a somewhat disrupted basis but while the weather might be damp, drab and grey our league tables are anything but! Each of the 6 divisions are as close as the next and the Reserves aren’t far behind. The second half of the 2015/16 season really is going to be a nail biting affair!

At the recent FA Women’s Football Awards it was fantastic to see players, clubs and individuals from The FA WPL rewarded for their efforts both on and off the pitch. To read more about these terrific achievements go to Page 12.

We continue to work hard behind the scenes to build and promote The FA WPL brand and corporate identity. The roll out of our new hashtag #WeArePremier demonstrates our ongoing commitment to unashamedly promote the league to make it attractive and alluring to potential future sponsors and funding partners.The recent launch of our digital channel myfawpl.tv is proving extremely popular and we hope to see most, if not all of our clubs taking full advantage to upload their match highlights as the season progresses.

With the Christmas break almost upon us, on behalf of everyone here at The FA WPL I’d like to wish you all a very merry Christmas and hope that 2016 sees your dreams, ambitions and aspirations become reality.

#wearepremier

#wearepremier december 2015 infocus

she Kicks Back...Our friends at She Kicks continued their celebration of former footballing legends at their November She Kicks Back event in Doncaster. Special guests were former Leeds United, Doncaster Belles and England No.9 Karen

Walker, former England and current Doncaster Rovers Belles midfielder Sue Smith and former England Captain and Centurion Gillian Coulthard.

FA WPL Chairman Carol West

and Development Officer – and former Belles Reserves Manager and 1st Team Assistant Karen Falconer joined dozens of footie and Belles fans for a laid-back night of reminiscing about the good old days and celebration of Doncaster Rovers Belles recent promotion to WSL 1 hosted by the Editor of She Kicks Jen O’Neill. “It’s great the women’s game is developing apace and getting more exposure but I sometimes read articles or catch bits of interviews and want to know more, to hear more especially from pioneering players whose careers have spanned decades. It’s a chance for long time fans of the game to hear from their heroines and newer fans to get to know these great characters

better as we have a proper chat about their playing past, share a bit of banter and maybe a few stories you haven’t heard before” explained Jen.

“These nights are great” said Karen Falconer “they provide a really enjoyable opportunity for people to meet up with old friends and colleagues and chat about the days gone by and how those involved back then paved the way for the new generation and growth of the women’s game as we see it now. Events like this and the FA WPL Charity Trophy make sure that pioneers and heroes of the women’s game aren’t forgotten – and it’s also great to be able to have a good laugh at the same time!”

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jen o’neil gets to grips with sue smith,gill coultard and Kaz walker who had the audience in stitches with some wonderful tales...

The FA WPL, in conjunction with The FA will work with 8 clubs in a “Grow Your Club” pilot aimed at increasing attendances on match days through fan engagement initiatives.

The concept utilised by clubs throughout the National League System has proved successful in increasing clubs’ fan base, attendance on match days and return visits. Research has shown that traditional problems can be overcome when clubs think differently and try different approaches towards making attending their matches attractive so that fans want to attend and return.

The pilot includes:• Regional meetings for clubs to highlight best practice• Provide the Growing Your Club Guide to share ideas and learning

through real-life case studies

• Independent ‘new fan’ assessment for each club to highlight realistic opportunities for improving the match day experience and related areas

• Direct support and available expertise to help clubs make necessary changes

• Review meetings to share successes and help roll these out to other member clubs

“This is an exciting opportunity not only for the 8 clubs taking part in the pilot but for the league as a whole. Fans are the lifeblood to any club as increased attendances mean increased publicity and generation of match day revenue” said FA WPL Development Officer Karen Falconer. “The pilot will highlight areas of good practice that we can share league-wide to benefit every club. We have national coverage so boosting attendances even modestly will make a huge difference to our overall reach”.

04 news

fa wpl to participate in ‘grow your club’ pilot


switzerland v england. 16/10/99. Kaz walker celebrates scoring the opening goal with sue smith

dawn of a new digital age for the fa wplFA WPL clubs now have the fantastic opportunity to show their match day highlights on its new digital channel – myfawpl.tv. The channel, completely free to all member clubs provides a unique platform for all FA WPL footage to be shown in the same place, meaning fans and spectators can catch up with missed matches, re-live that memorable moment over and over again or even check out next weeks’ opposition! The channel continues to be work in progress with the number of member clubs uploading their match day highlights and features growing steadily. Since its launch at the start of September the channel has had over 5600 views. “Our overall aim is for most, if not all FA WPL clubs to upload their match day

highlights, club news and features on a weekly basis” explains FA WPL Chairman Carol West. “The channel is completely bespoke to us which gives us control over how it looks, its content and how we use it. As can be seen from the early stages of the project, the viewing potential is massive and we hope to use this as a platform to generate advertising revenue”. Additional and exciting features are planned for 2016 so keep your eyes peeled for updates! To find out how to upload your FA WPL match day highlights or enquire about the exciting advertising opportunities available contact FA WPL Development Officer Karen at [email protected]

Earlier this season all FA WPL clubs were issued with bespoke sleeve patches as part of the ongoing work to increase the profile and professionalism of the League.

For the first time The FA WPL joins other high profile leagues such as FA WSL, Premier League, Championship and Football League in proudly displaying its brand and identity at all its league matches. The patches also incorporate The FA Respect logo demonstrating our collective ongoing commitment to support the ethos that football should be played in a safe, inclusive and enjoyable environment. The FA WPL were crowned National FA Respect Winners for season 2014/15.

ok, so you know that the fa Wpl is the biggest women’s league in the country with 6 first and 3 reserve divisions that cover the length and breadth of the Country including Wales, but did you know that it also boasts numerous International Players that are involved in their National teams that extend as far as the Caribbean and Africa? No? Well here are a few of them...

If your club has International Players, let us know who they are and we’ll include them in the next issue of ‘Flying The Flag’. Send to [email protected]

around the league 05

a strong sense of identityflying the flag

Libby Piggott (Coventry Utd) national team: Wales u19s Central Midfield. A young player full of raw talent with plenty of desire, attitude and motivation to be the best.

Kayleigh Green (Cardiff City) National Team: Wales Seniors

Chloe Lloyd (Cardiff City) National Team: Wales Seniors

Jessie Jones (Plymouth Argyle) National Team: England U17s Defensive Midfield. Currently dual signed with Yeovil Town LFC. A young player with huge potential.

Ini Umatong (Portsmouth) National Team: Nigeria Seniors Striker. Included in the Nigerian WWC 2015 Squad in Canada. Keen and motivated player.

Avilla Bergin (Tottenham Hotspur) National Team: Northern Ireland Snrs Forward. A fearless attacking player with the ability to play right, left or central.

Grace John (Derby County) National Team: Grenada Seniors Defender & Captain. Currently dual signed with Yeovil Town LFC. Played for and scored for Grenada in a World Cup fixture. Ambition to play in the World Cup Finals and Olympics.


a glimpse at some of the fa wpl players flying the flag for cluB and country

Gillingham Ladies Football Club was able to inspire the next generation of female footballers by linking up with their local Brownie Brigade. Third Walderslade Brownies visited Priestfield Stadium earlier in the season as part of the club’s out-reach work with the Football League Female Football Development Fund. The girls were able to see exclusive glimpses behind the scenes at the stadium before their visit was returned. Gillingham FC coaches went to visit the Brownies to provide a football session alongside the club’s Girls Academy players, who took part in a Question and Answer session with the Brownies. The opportunity enabled the young players to learn more about player progression and the life skills being part of a team can bring. In addition, the club’s female physiotherapist, members of the club’s administration and media team were in attendance to illustrate the various opportunities available to the girls in the game. The Brownies were then invited along to the Gills Kent derby game against Herne Bay when the FA Cup magic left them spellbound and saw the Gills go through to the next round of the competition courtesy of a 3-0 victory. The Brownies were able to wish the players good luck in their dressing room before enjoying another skills session on the pitch before kick-off. The Brownies then walked out with the team and took part in the Respect handshake before enjoying a fantastic display of women’s football to further inspire their interest in the game and their local women’s side.

what a difference 5 years makes! cheltenham town lfc then and now...

In 2010, Cheltenham Town Ladies was a one team club. An 8-0 thrashing away at Exeter City was the low point in a winless season – a game in which only 11 players travelled and just 10 started the second half due to injury!

First Team Manager Andy Liddle knew a re-build was required, and not just on the pitch. “The committee were doing a good job, but there was no long term plan” said Liddle. Coach Chris Gooch was lost to Bristol City, and when Liddle took on the role of Chairman, Ian Hutton was appointed manager – only to then become S&C coach in League 2 with the men’s side.

Liddle then established a development side under Ben Hyett. Player numbers had grown to 36 and both sides regularly listed 16 on the team sheet. Promotion was secured to the new FA WPL for the first team, and the development side

won County Division Two at the first attempt, only missing the cup double on penalties.

Among hundreds of boys and men’s sides, the GFA chose Cheltenham Ladies as their Charter Standard Club of the Year. Now in the second season in The FA WPL and under the leadership of Graham Fletcher, numbers are nudging 50. The development side are in the promotion hunt again, for the division one title this time and both sides play at a new ground – floodlight endowed Cheltenham Saracens of the Hellenic league – and sponsorship is growing.

Word is getting out about the quality coaching and fitness sessions, and it is only a matter of time before Cheltenham push on again. “Neighbours Forest Green Rovers are holding their own in the Southern League, and we have our eye on that, but there is no hurry” says Liddle.

gillingham earn brownie points

06 around the league

cheltenham playing a game of patience



footballwomen in

day

Jodie is a local girl who began her football career with Tranmere Rovers in the FA WPL. Starting as a junior in the girls’ teams at the Club she progressed into the Tranmere Rovers Ladies first team at the age of just 15 as a prolific goalscorer.

She went on to score 29 goals from just 38 first team appearances before accepting a scholarship in America with Oregon State University and her career since has taken her abroad to Canada, Australia, Sweden and now back in America where she plays for Portland Thorns.

Jodie has also gone on to play international football for England and was a part of the Lionesses squad which won a bronze medal at the Women’s World Cup earlier this year – scoring against host nation Canada in the quarter-finals.

tranmere rovers hosted a ‘women in football day’ at prenton park on 21st november with current england star jodie taylor as special guest.

The 29-year-old signed autographs and had photographs taken with supporters in the club’s FanZone ahead of the match before being presented on to the pitch before kick-off with girls from Tranmere’s junior teams who formed a guard of honour for the England star.

As well as Jodie’s attendance, there was a skills display by the UK’s only professional female freestyle footballer, Liv Cooke, who entertained the crowd with her tricks as part of a great day celebrating women in football.

On coming back to Tranmere, Jodie said: “I was given a great opportunity in the first team with Tranmere Ladies at just 15 and it was a great stepping stone for what I’ve gone on to achieve in my career. I’m very grateful to the club and wish the girls lots of luck in The FA Women’s Premier League.”

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jodie taylor in ecstatic mood as she shows her delight at scoring for england

mel reid flies the flag for club and country on the golf circuit

around the league 07

foXes shine with hat tricK of awards... Despite finding their first season in the fa Wpl northern division a tough challenge, loughborough Foxes scored a hat trick of awards at the Charnwood Borough Council Sports Awards on 30th November.

Foxes players, staff and first team were all nominated for Awards at the event. The Foxes Senior team, fresh from winning The FA WPL Midland Division 1 title in April won the Team of the Year Award.

Winger and professional golfer Mel Reid bagged the Senior Sports Person of the Year (Elite) for her contribution to the Solheim cup where the European team narrowly lost to the USA on final day of singles.

loughborough foxes long serving Director or Football and Senior team coach, Steve Wilkinson won the Coach of the Year award but narrowly missed out on winning the Outstanding Contibution to Sport and Physical Activity Project award.the latter nomination came as a result of recognition for his work at loughborough college as well as his volunteering in the community.

The FA WPL would like to congratulate all at loughborough Foxes on a fantastic achievement.


for ALL the community, because that is the core remit of Lewes Community Football Club. It will be funded by a combination of grant aid and a Community Share Offer.

Phase 1 - Construction of 3rd Generation Pitch (opened June ‘15) The pitch is a state of the art 3G (3rd generation) artificial turf. It looks, feels, and plays like grass, but unlike grass it doesn’t

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wear out with overuse, get waterlogged, rutted or frozen. It has been developed to be safe to play on, is so true-to-grass, and will encourage the kind of technical passing game where the ball does the work. It is the natural first stage of the overall development as it enables exponential growth to our community work and provides a strong, new revenue stream whilst also reducing our expenditure by reducing pitch hire costs of about £25,000 per year for all our teams. It will create new jobs plus and local economic impact by secondary spend elsewhere.

Phase 2 – Construction of the new Club House (planned 2016 )The ground floor will be two large changing rooms, officials’ rooms, first aid room, physio room and public toilets; the upper floor will be a cafe/bar area which will cater for functions of up to 100 people as well as operating as the new Rook Inn and hospitality area on match days. It will be open all week to serve the users of the 3G pitch and the adjacent Convent Fields.

8 around the league

lewes community football club’s new state of the art 3g pitch sits proudly adjacent to the dripping pan

redevelopment at the dripping pan will put club at heart of the community

... in short, it is a game changer in that it will generate revenue and reduce costs – the perfect combination! jacquie agnew, director & head of ladies football

an artists impression of how the new look dripping pan will look with it’s new club house and walkway to the state of the art 3g pitch.

Lewes Community Football Club is gaining widespread acclaim for its attitude and the innovative way it operates. This is a club that

punches well above its weight in terms of reputation and publicity. It is rightly seen as being in the vanguard of not just supporter ownership within football but as an example of what community ownership can do in delivering a successful business combined with a high level of social impact.

As a key part of their on-going strategy, LCFC is now embarking on a major rejuvenation of the Dripping Pan, building new facilities within the ground and adjacent to it. These facilities feed in to an overall strategy to both increase sports participation amongst young people in particular, produce positive local economic and social impact plus to redefine the role of a football club in its community. This is a ‘win’ for the local community and a ‘win’ for the football club. LCFC believes that most football clubs in the UK have broken the relationship of inter-dependency and benefit that existed between club and community at the time when they were created. This is something they want to change. This will be a facility


Teenager from the local area helped ‘light up’ a girls football tournament organised by Stoke City in November. The Club’s Community Trust held the UV Football event at Staffordshire university as it continues its involvement in raising the profile of the game to a young female audience. Jo Potter, England international and Birmingham City LFC player (formerly with Charlton Athletic and Leicester City Women) joined participants from high schools in the local area, joining in games with them as well as conducting a question and answer session. Sides from Wolstanton High School, Clayton Hall Academy, Chesterton Community Sports College and Madeley High School all donned neon bibs and face paint for the competition with the girls from Madeley coming out victorious. The event is the second of its type to be run by the Club following a successful experiment with pupils of Wolstanton High School during The FA’s recent nationwide Girls Football Week initiative.

With the success of that event it made it only natural to follow it up with a competition involving girls from across the Potters’ satellite clubs. “UV Football is great fun and has created a wow factor amongst the girls involved in our project,” said Stoke City’s Premier League Girls Coordinator Andrew Frost. “Girls have embraced the opportunity to do something a bit different and we are looking to embed UV Football in our offer in the future.” The innovative experience forms just part of the Club’s girls football programme, one which is run in conjunction with Staffordshire FA to provide opportunities for young women to play football and develop a regular sporting habit for life.

andrew frost, stoke city ladies jo potter, england & Birmingham city

around the league 9

let’s glow and play...

Liverpool Marshall Feds were delighted to be a part of Socerella’s national #OurOctober initiative. Socerella, the first women’s only football retailer in the UK, came up with a stunningly simple idea, a virally-led festival of women’s football, in towns and cities across the country, aiming to generate record crowds for the women’s game, capitalising on the trail blazed by the Lionesses at the Women’s World Cup during the summer.

On Sunday 24th October the Feds first team and coaches went along to cheer on the Feds kids at the Heron Eccles playing fields in Allerton, Liverpool. The kids were excited to meet the first team players and coaches and everyone looked on impressed at the standard of the girls who aim to one day be pushing for a place in the senior teams.

On Sunday 25th, the first team took on Stockport LFC at the Feds home ground at IM Marsh Campus. It was soon apparent that the non-stop Tweeting and Facebook promotions and the support of friends and family really did work, generating a great crowd of over 100 people for the game.

Around 15 Feds kids team members were mascots for the first team and loved helping with the pre match warm up on the pitch. Their excitement was obvious as they lined up beside the first team and waited for the referee to lead them all out for the game.

The Feds won 7-1 on the day, buoyed by the buzz of the crowd, which included Liverpool Ladies and Lionesses Becky Easton and Natasha Dowie, who came along to lend their support.

A half time raffle and some fundraising on the pitch got people together and sharing their support and sweets and Feds stickers for the crowd went down a storm too!

Thanks to a pre-arranged early kick off, the Feds reserves joined later in the day for a post match celebration to make sure the whole Feds family were part of the weekend.

The aim of #OurOctober was to create a buzz without spending a fortune and this is exactly what happened. Lots of Twitter activity, aided by Socerella and great online support from The Everton Podcast and EFC Tv, got the word out which paid off as a few visitors had said they’d seen it online.

The impact for the Feds was huge – the sheer joy of the kids getting involved as mascots for the first time, a fantastic crowd, bringing all the players and teams together to support each other, new contacts and partnerships and a great day for everyone involved in the club.

liverpool lfc & lionesses stars Becky easton and natasha dowie with some delighted young feds fans

mascots for the day, the feds kidz have a ball with the pre match warm up routines

the teams walk out to the pitch, marshalled by match officials who keep a keen eye on the excitable ‘mini fed’ mascots

10 around the league

feds have a ball with #ouroctober



01 02

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seagulls

01: The wonderful AMEX Stadium (American Express Community Stadium)

02: Jay Blackie leads the Seagulls out to a warm welcome from fans

03: Albion women celebrate their historic win

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HigHest recorded attendances for fa WPL domestic League matcHesThe ‘old’ FA WPL (pre 2014)Arsenal Ladies v Chelsea Ladies April 24, 2008 5,285Arsenal Ladies v Leeds United May 12, 2010 3,572The ‘new restructured’ FA WPL (Season 2014 onwards)Brighton & Hove Albion v Charlton Athletic December 6, 2015 3,256

her home first-team debut much to the delight of the home fans.

Sophie Perry, Charley Boswell and Kate Natkiel all had opportunities to make the win more emphatic but the score remained 2-0 despite their best efforts. The final result delighted the soggy but thoroughly entertained spectators!

seagulls at the ameX 11

sunday 6th december 2015 is a day that will go down in history for Brighton & hove albion women, after the side played their first ever fixture at the amex stadium.

entertain a record crowdA total of 3,256 spectators braved the atrocious weather conditions to see Albion earn a 2-0 victory over Charlton Athletic in this Premier League Southern Division top-of-the-table clash.

The attendance was a record for the new Women’s Premier League and even surpassed the total of 3,180 spectators that saw Manchester City face Notts County in a Women’s Super League One (WSL 1) clash.

The Seagulls broke the deadlock in the ninth minute when Jay Blackie saw her deflected header rise over Addicks keeper Alex Baker, resulting in a team bundle celebration right in front of the home bench!

Albion continued to dominate proceedings and created chances galore, with a second goal coming in first-half stoppage time courtesy of a cool finish by Charlotte Gurr in a one-v-one situation with Baker.

The game was even more of a special occasion for Hollie Olding, as the England under-17 star came off the bench to make

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Tel: 01622 717700 Email: [email protected] Web: www.phsc.plc.uk

Managing the Health, Safety and Security of People and Property throughout the UK

PHSC plc, through its trading subsidiaries Personnel Health & Safety Consultants Ltd, RSA Environmental

Health Ltd, Adamson’s Laboratory Services Ltd, QCS International Ltd, Inspection Services (UK) Ltd and

Quality Leisure Management Ltd provides a range of health, safety, hygiene, environmental and quality

systems consultancy and training services to organisations across the UK. B to B Links Ltd offers innovative

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is the

valle

y....

thischarley clifford gives an insight into what it’s like to play at the valley as charlton athletic lfc took on neighbours Queens park rangers in a london derby.

01: Valley Mascots: U10-U12s 02: Daniel Puddefoot scores for QPR

03: Kit Graham celebrates scoring04: The iconic Charlton logo pitchside

01

04

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02

addicks at the valley 13

Playing at the valley is a big occasion for Charlton Athletic LFC – it’s a once-a-year event and it’s become a bit of a tradition now… and we haven’t lost a match there yet, so it’s always going to be a big game for us.

The pitch is so nice to play on. It’s big and can be a bit leggy as well, but that’s all part and parcel of playing at the valley. It’s a really good occasion and having won all of the games we have played there, I

think it gives us a bit of a boost as a team as well.

Obviously there was a lot of publicity around it and we managed to get our record crowd of 307 – it’s always nice to play in front of a lot of supporters.

I scored my first goal at the Valley in this match, which was great feeling for me personally! Especially not having scored that many this season – last season I was

in double figures but even then I wasn’t scoring until this time so fingers crossed that I can get on a bit of a goalscoring run now that I’ve broken my duck!

The FA Women’s Premier League Southern Division at the moment is so unpredictable – everyone is beating everyone – so we had to go to the Valley, get our heads down and get the three points in the bag, rather than think about the occasion.

a senseoccasion

of

14 nottingham forest ladies fc


#pride #passion #Belief #nflfc25

nottingham forest ladies fc are currently

in the midst of their 25th anniversary

season and the sense of occasion is

certainly evident around the club.

a senseoccasion

F ormed in 1990/91 following an advert via Nottingham Forest in the Community for trials for a senior

ladies team, the club was formed and has grown significantly since. With such a history it’s a testament that current club members still include players that joined in the first season with Lisa Dawkins and PJ Andrews. Club secretary (then goalkeeper) Fay Glover joined in 1996 and has been an ever present contributor. It is evident they all still have great passion, and the ambition shown from all involved in the 25 years the club has been in existence is still abundant for all to see. The club has a good feel about it with creative and capable committee members, great coaching and management staff combined with volunteers and fans – all pulling together on and off the pitch to ensure the best possible platform for the club to impact all its members. Whilst the club has had some rollercoaster moments throughout its time, this season is looking to draw on all learnings to enjoy and benefit the next stage. There has been some hard work behind the scenes for the Senior squad during pre season with full support to ensure the retention of Stephen Stennett as Head Coach and the recent addition of Sam Winch as First team manager alongside other great additions to the senior and junior set-ups looking to make their mark for this season.

The club set an objective to maintain its FA WPL Northern Division status and to improve on last season’s finishing position. Improvements off the field of play


investments in a pre season programme and the provision of excellent facilities. The club worked with Steve Stennett to recruit specialist expertise for a much improved strength and conditioning programme whilst Steve delivered an intense coaching programme for the senior squad.

looking to the futureAs always there have been some player departures but there has also been some much welcomed new faces, many of which have stepped up from the U18’s squad – highlighting the success of the pathway model within the club. Off the field the club has been fortunate to receive kit sponsorship from “Ryley Wealth Management” combined with an agreement with Nottingham Forest FC to wear replica kit. This was recently pictured for the senior squad photo at the city ground and a

motivator for a great day of results. The club also invested to utilise and train at the Nottingham Forest Sports Zone – the latest in 3G technology. Forest Ladies has its largest team collective this season with 9 junior teams and 2 senior squads with the emphasised message that we are “ONE CLUB” – being stronger than ever. With attendances climbing and junior players regularly attending senior games to show their support the juniors have been reciprocated with senior committee, management and players attending junior training and games – creating a good club feel factor. Both Senior Teams currently sit on top of the table in their respective FA WPL divisions but we are fully aware that its only a midway point in a very long and tough season, with teams still having games in hand and equally ambitious and capable.

nottingham forest ladies fc 15

nottingham forest ladies fc are currently

in the midst of their 25th anniversary

season and the sense of occasion is

certainly evident around the club.

................................the direction and

efforts of all at the club are certainly on track. the motivation

to do well in a very well run league remains in top

gear and we are looking forward to the second

half of the season and the challenges

it will bring.

shining

“ outstanding contribution to women’s football” award winner dave coyle of portsmouth

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legends in a night

of celebration.

wembley stadium, arguably the most iconic football stadium in the world hosted the fa women’s football awards on friday 4th december. a truly magnificent platform to celebrate the on and off-field achievements of those involved in women’s football and testament to just how far the women’s game has come over recent years.

Stars from across the women’s game including the England National Team, Women’s Super League, Women’s Premier League plus many guests and dignitaries from the women’s game eagerly took to their seats as the names of those demonstrating sporting and administrative excellence to earn them the ultimate accolade of being crowned winners were announced.

Sitting proudly and rightly at the top of the Women’s Winter Pyramid The FA Women’s Premier League celebrated club and player success across 11 categories for the 2014/15 season.

Southern Division Charlton Athletic’s Kit Graham, Northern Division Sheffield FC’s Jodie Michalska and Division 1 North Chester Le Street’s Catherine Clough were awarded the ultimate honour as colleagues voted them FA WPL Player’s Player of the Year. Sheffield FC’s title winning season earning Helen Mitchell FA WPL Manager of the Year.

Kit Graham and Jodie Michalska Player’s Player of the Year Award clearly influenced by their performance in front of goal earned them each their second award of the evening of FA WPL Southern and Northern Top Goalscorer with an incredible tally of 31 and 25 league goals respectively.

Divisional hotshots were also celebrated with Northern Div 1 Guiseley AFC vixen’s Tanya

... it’s hard to put in to words just how proud we are of everyone here tonight. each and every award is thoroughly deserved and our collective congratulations go to the winners. carol west, fa wpl chairman

Rich (24 goals), Midlands Div 1 Rotherham United’s Natalie Shaw (18 goals), SE Div 1 C&K Basildon’s Sara Sinclair (17 goals) and SW Div 1 Exeter City’s Natasha Knapman (21 goals) all awarded FA WPL Top Goalscorer.

Individual and collective efforts were also acknowledged as Portsmouth FC Ladies former Chairman and now Honorary Lifetime President David Coyle earned the Outstanding Contribution to Women’s Football following 25 years of dedicated service to the Club and women’s game. Northern Division Derby County Ladies FC

infocus december 2015

december 2015 infocus

stars...

albion in the community – winners of the #wecanplay participation award

duncan gibb, derby county chief executive – winners of the fa wpl club of the year award

fa wpl players player of the year: jodie michalska (sheffield fc, northern division); Kit graham (charlton athletic, southern division) and catherine clough (chester le street, division 1s)

fa wpl top goalscorers: tanya rich (guiseley afc vixens, northern div 1); natalie shaw (rotherham utd, midlands div 1) ; sara sinclair (c&K Basildon, se div 1) and natasha Knapman (exeter city, sw div 1)

fa wsl manager of the year: emma hayes (chelsea) and fa wpl manager of the year: helen mitchell (sheffield fc) with mervyn leggett, fa women’s Board

fa women’s football awards 17

was crowned FA WPL Club of the Year after demonstrating continued development of club profile and media footprint, on-field performance, local business engagement, club structure and involvement in community projects.

In the final award of the night, Brighton won the #WeCanPlay Participation Award for their ‘Albion in the Community’ programme.

FA WPL Chairman Carol West said “The FA WPL is the biggest women’s league in the country so to stand out of the many thousands that contribute through either playing or administration is an achievement in itself. The awards go to show the strength and depth of talent we have across our clubs which obviously reflects on the League as a whole which is amazing”.

fa wpl top goalscorers (northern & southern divisions) jodie michalska and Kit graham with elaine oram (fa)

For a full list of winners visit http://www.thefa.com/news/fawsl/2015/dec/fa-womens-award-2015-vauxhall-england-player-of-the-year-lucy-bronze-beth-mead#hbhoIvATIGyLV6Q7.99

infocus december 2015

18 a year in the life of...

When you started Sheffield FC Ladies in 2003, did you envisage you would eventually be playing in the top league in the women’s game?Not for a minute. We were playing at the lowest level possible back then – even Combination League football seemed a world away! The only aim was to improve the players and eventually try to get out of the league we were in. It took five seasons to achieve that first promotion. Happily, we’ve advanced a little quicker in recent seasons but no-one could have predicted just how far we would progress in those 12 years.

since you started out, what has been the biggest improvement you have seen, whether it be facilities, players or staff etc at the club?The standard of the players. We worked really hard with the team in the early days to try and drive up standards of fitness, ability, and understanding. Each year we’d bring in a few better players in positions we needed which helped to raise the standards of everyone else too – but the players have all worked extremely hard as well. We’ve made gradual improvements as we’ve gone along to all aspects of the club’s operation.

what do you expect will be the biggest challenge since promotion from the fa wpl to fa wsl 2?Probably all the off-the-pitch stuff to be honest. The business side of The WSL is very demanding in terms of the volume of work and as a small club we don’t have the capability to throw a vast personnel resource at it. Therefore it comes down to a small team of very dedicated people working extremely hard to ensure everything gets done on a weekly basis. The scope of what

has to be done is huge so it’s a daunting task but everyone is fully committed to making it a success – in spite of all the challenges.

Having not finished lower than second place in the last 10 seasons, what position do you feel is an achievable target for your debut season in wsl 2.Yeah, I think second place might be a little optimistic in season one! All other clubs have had at least two seasons experience at this level so it’s definitely going to be challenging for us. However, we’ve surprised a few people before when we’ve been promoted, so I hope we can do so again. There’s certainly no pressure on us at all which will be refreshing after the last few seasons!

have you made any changes to training since the promotion to fa wsl 2?We’re just getting the players back into regular training now. The main change will be the amount of work the players do on the strength and conditioning side. Having played against a few WSL clubs in recent seasons – both competitively and in friendlies – we noticed a big difference in the fitness and strength levels of the players, and therefore the pace at which they did things, and that they could maintain that tempo for longer in a game. We had an S&C coach last season for the first time which was a really good introduction for us, but we’re cranking that up for the coming season.

what do you feel will be the biggest benefits to Sheffield FC from the transition into the fa wsl?The biggest benefit will be getting to play against better teams as that will push our own standards up. Naturally, it was a bit frustrating in the seasons we won The FA

sheffield fc ladieshaving guided sheffield fc ladies to the women’s super league for the first time in the clubs history, helen mitchell takes time out from her busy schedule to talk exclusively to infocus’ chris frith about her experiences at the club and the journey from fa wpl to fa wsl 2.

HELEN MITCHELL

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WPL Northern Division but couldn’t get promoted anywhere (2012/13 & 2013/14).

What’s been so exciting for us over the years is the challenge winning a league title then presents you with the following season, so it’s great to have that again, and the players will continue to get better as a result. There are other advantages of course to playing at a higher level such as from a business point of view – the WSL will give us a higher profile which will help us to attract greater investment, and hopefully help us to continue to progress and develop as a club.

do you feel playing in the wsl will increase attendances?It will have to! One of the licence criteria for all WSL 2 clubs is to get an average attendance of 350 per match. That’s a lot more than we were getting regularly to matches last season. We’ve got to spend a lot more focussed time on marketing the club now – something we’ve had very little time or resource previously. It’s a very big challenge, but yes we hope more people will be encouraged to come to our games.

How proud were you to see Sheffield FC short-listed for club of the year at the fa women’s football awards?It’s was a huge accolade and a great honour of course. We were fortunate enough to win it last season which was amazing and whilst it would have been great to have won it again, we were very aware there were some fantastic achievements by other clubs in The FA WPL last season, so the competition was really fierce. Derby County have done really well over the past season and fully deserved the award.

you’ve just appointed mick mulhern as your new manager. can you tell us a bit about that?Yes, it’s an appointment we’re very happy with and I think he’ll do a fantastic job here with the club. He’s just what we were looking for and is someone I have the utmost respect for. There are few managers that can boast his record in the game, both in terms of results and achievements, but also in terms of player development. There’s no better person to lead the team into this new chapter at the club.

sheffield fc ladies has a new first team manager for the very first time since its formation in 2003. the club has made the appointment ahead of its debut season in wsl 2 – which kicks off in march 2016 – and will see ex sunderland boss mick mulhern lead his new team into its biggest challenge yet.

sheffield fc players and staff celeberate their win over portsmouth fc ladies in the fa wpl championship play off 2014/15

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delivered to its referees and my reason for doing is purely because I have a desire to improve not just our referees but the whole referee workforce. In addition to this feeling the extra pressure to lead by example and to perform as a referee on the field of play.

officiating a champions league game...In October I was selected as forth official for the Women’s Champions League game Chelsea v Glasgow City. I travelled to Heathrow on the day before the match and spent 3 days with the Czech team of officials, a UEFA delegate, a UEFA observer and an FA liaison officer.

The evening before the game we went to Winsor and did some sight-seeing followed by an evening meal. The morning of the match we visited the ground, where a full pitch inspection and kit check was done. We then had a brief with the UEFA delegate and the Chelsea Tv before allowing the visiting officials a few hours of London shopping! The game that evening was a real insight into international games, and I feel very privileged and thank full to have been a part of it. As with all female officials officiating in both the men’s and women’s game, it takes a lot of time, hard work and dedication - it was so nice to be rewarded for this.

as more and more people of all ages, genders, races and abilities are getting into refereeing we continue our referees feature. this issue joanna stimpson, level 4 referee, tells us what 2015 held in store for her in the world of football refereeing.

adriana treslova (asst); olga Zadinova (ref); lucie ratajova (asst) and joanna stimpson (4th off). chelsea v glasgow city, 08/10/2015

20 refereeing

whistle blowers

...i urge all referees, wherever you are in your career to follow your dreams both on and

off the pitch and remember, it’s the things we work hardest for that reward us the most!

Joanna Stimpson, Level 4 Referee & FA Level 2 Tutor


This has been a really exciting year for me both on and off the field of play. In June I started a new role as referee development officer at Somerset FA. The position became available after the sudden passing of Keith Buller in February this year. Keith had been in post as Somerset RDO for 8 years and was highly respected within the County for his dedication and commitment to referee development, and in particular to female referees such as myself.

Becoming a tutor...It was through Keith that I got involved with referee tutoring, he asked me to support him on a new referee’s course and I knew instantly that this was going to be an area of refereeing that I was going to become very passionate about. I went on to complete both the level one and national tutor’s course and have been fortunate enough to deliver to both male and female referees all around the Country.

working as an rdo...My role as a referee development officer involves the recruitment and training of new referees, the ongoing development and promotion of existing referees and the recruitment and developing of the referee workforce in Somerset.

I feel very fortunate to be doing my dream job, in my home County and I love every aspect of it. The most challenging part, has been the lack of acceptance and the need to have to prove that I can continue with the high standard of work that Somerset has

SPORTSOFFICIALSLearning & Development

Dedicated E-Learning Platform for Referee’s• Interactive E-Learning

modules• Fast track your experience• Online digital portfolio

• Online community• Daily news updates

• Links to jobs in sport• Further membership

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on fitness and nutrition• Currently working in

partnership with County FA’s• Bespoke referee education

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Become part of the online refereeing community...

Potential• Development•Performance

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• For 7-14 year olds to learn the skills of refereeing

• Based on developing positive behaviours

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• Maybe you know of a group of children who would like to take part in ‘Play On Ref?’

For more information please email [email protected] to sign up visit www.playonref.co.uk

Potential• Development•Performance

JOIN [email protected]

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022 #lionesses

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infocus’ chris frith gives a quick roundup of what the bronze winning lionesses got up to in the month of november...

chinese whispers...Following on from the Lionesses opening 8-0 Euro 2017 qualifier win over Estonia in September, England flew to China to take part in the CFA International Women’s Football Tournament.

Mark Sampson’s squad faced Australia and competition hosts China. Despite a disappointing 2-1 defeat to China, England boss Mark Sampson spoke of his delight at seeing his side in more competitive action.

He said; “To continue the

development of our international programme, we need to play matches against top ten nations as often as possible”. Before adding; “To do so in a tournament format is a fantastic opportunity”.

England’s fortunes improved after the defeat to China when they faced Australia. A narrow 1-0 win for the Lionesses was topped by a jubilant Jill Scott who won her 100th international cap for England, an achievement she said was “one of the best days of my life”.

Debutant Isobel Christiansen,

Manchester City’s midfielder, scored her first senior and England’s only goal in her first cap for the country. The goal capped a fantastic year for the emerging starlet who was also awarded ‘MCWFC Supporters Club Player of the Season’.

England’s next action will come in the form of a friendly against Germany on 26th November – this will be the first time the two sides have played each other since England beat the Germans to win a much coveted bronze medal at this summer’s World Cup in Canada.

The friendly will pose the last opportunity for Mark Sampson to review his starting eleven for the Euro 2017 Qualifier against Bosnia, just three days after England’s trip to Germany.

The England boss said; “They will be dead set on revenge after what happened in the World Cup. It will be a tough ask for this team but we are excited by it”.

More notably Mark Sampson has recalled World Cup trio Fara Williams, Toni Duggan and Jordan Nobbs for their Qualifier on the 29th November.



england frustrated by Bosnia-herzegovina...

#lionesses 023

it was a joyful start to the proceedings at ashton gate, with all nine of england’s ‘century cap club’ being honoured for reaching the 100 game milestone for their country.

England’s first game at home since the World Cup in Canada was met by an impressive crowd of 13,040 people, undeterred by the harrowing winds and curtain of rain that battered the stadium from the offset.

England started the brightest with Jordan Nobbs creating the best chance of the opening quarter but her superb strike was acrobatically tipped onto the crossbar by goalkeeper, Almina Hodzic.

Eni Aluko, who played more of a substitution role at the World Cup in Canada, was keen to make her mark on the game and worked tirelessly to create an opportunity, coming close as she agonisingly steered a Jordan Nobbs cross just past the post.

It was evident the Bosnian’s game plan was to limit England as they went about a solid backs to the wall display.

The Lionesses looked dangerous from set pieces with Izzy Christiansen’s corner agonisingly headed over by Eniola Aluko.

Gemma Davison brought a direct option to the England squad, as she skilfully ran at the Bosnian back line, but the unwavering defence was intent.

England went into the half-time break frustrated by the Bosnian defence and a stubborn Almina Hodzic, who had thwarted the World Cup bronze medallists.

The emphasis on getting the ball out wide was clear from Mark Sampson’s half time team talk with England making use of Gemma Davison and Jess Clarkes pace and quickly resumed their dominance.

Ten minutes into the second half brought about England’s first change of the match with Jess Clark coming off for Manchester City’s Jill Scott.

Bosnia were lucky not to see Nikolina Dijakovic sent off after a lacklustre challenge on Izzy Christiansen, the resultant free kicked was drilled toward goal and punched well away, England had Bosnia rocking. It was Christiansen’s last action as she was replace by club-mate Toni Duggan who brought a second wind to England’s play and Sampson’s Lionesses were unlucky not to be awarded a penalty, when Steph Houghton was barged off the ball.

England’s patience was rewarded when Jill Scott headed past Almina Hodzic to put the Lionesses into a 1-0 lead, much to the crowd’s enjoyment.

Mark Sampson’s team had to settle for just the one goal as the full time whilst blew on a cold, wet and frustrating night in Bristol.

The Lionesses are second in Group 7 of the Euro 2017 Qualifier behind Belgium who they face in April 2016.

germans matched on their own turf...The Lionesses battled bravely against Germany in Duisburg in an exciting match that ended in a 0-0 draw.

Karen Bardsley was forced into an early save low at her near post, while Jordan Nobbs tested the palms of Germany’s debutant goalkeeper from long range as England looked to

assert their dominance over their German counterparts.

Nobbs was the architect of another chance as she unselfishly squared the ball for Demi Stokes, who again forced a save from Benkarth.

Bardsley was then forced into a string of saves, asserting herself amongst some of the best goalkeepers in the women’s game while Jill Scott almost found herself celebrating the

winning goal, but her measured effort was just over the crossbar.

It was a performance to be admired for Mark Sampson’s Lionesses; the England boss said his team made a “big statement” in the two sides’ first meeting since England won bronze at the World Cup.

Captain Steph Houghton added that she felt the performance was better than the two nation’s previous meeting in Canada.

HULL CITY 0 - 3 NOTTINGHAM FOREST

OLD ACTONIANS p - p SWINDON TOWN

STOKE CITY 3 - 2 BRADFORD CITY

FOREST GREEN ROvERS p - p CARDIFF CITY

MOSSLEY HILL 3 - 4 BLACKBURN ROVERS

DERBY COUNTY p - p SPORTING CLUB ALBION

C&K BASILDON 2 - 5 TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR

BRIGHTON & HOVE ALBION 6 - 0 CHICHESTER CITY

BRADFORD CITY CRYSTAL PALACE

BLACKBURN ROVERS CARDIFF CITY

LOUGHBOROUGH FOXES 5 - 1 STOCKPORT COUNTY

DENHAM UNITED p - p ENFIELD TOWN

LOUGHBOROUGH STUDENTS 1 - 0 CHORLEY

NORWICH CITY 2 - 7 KEYNSHAM TOWN

LEWES LADIES 3 - 5 GILLINGHAM

BLACKPOOL WREN ROvERS 2 - 10 NEWCASTLE UNITED

CRYSTAL PALACE 0 - 2 COVENTRY UNITED

BIRMINGHAM & WEST MIDS p - p LIvERPOOL MARSHALL FEDS

fa wpl cup – 2nd round proper results

fa wpl reserve cup – Quarter final results fa wpl reserve cup – semi final draw

fa wpl plate – 2nd round proper results

Reserve Cup Semi Final Ties will be played 28/02/16

Gillingham’s route to the Quarters saw them beat Southampton Saints and Lewes while Newcastle United dispatched Peterborough Northern Star and Blackpool Wren Rovers.

While Loughborough Foxes and Coventry United have all secured their last 8 place, they must wait to see who their opponents will be out of the rearranged 2nd Round matches between Denham Utd vs Enfield Town and Birmingham & West Mids vs Liverpool Marshall Feds due to be played on Sunday 20th December.Quarter Final ties will be played on sunday 31st January 2016.

The FA WPL Reserve Cup is now at the Semi Final stage with just one more match to determine who this season’s Finalists will be. Last season’s Runners Up Bradford City will no doubt hope to go one better this year but will have to see off Crystal Palace first.

Blackburn Rovers and Cardiff City go head to head for a place in the Final. Both teams currently occupy 2nd place in their respective division with superior goal differences that suggest an exciting attacking Semi Final is in prospect.semi Final ties will be played on sunday 28th February 2016.

...cup & plate

competitions down to

last eight!

24 fa wpl cups & plate


CHARLTON ATHLETIC 0 - 1 BRADFORD CITY

CRYSTAL PALACE 3 - 2 TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR

HUDDERSFIELD TOWN 0 - 7 BLACKBURN ROvERS

CARDIFF CITY 1 - 0 NOTTINGHAM FOREST

T he next round of The FA WPL Cup is the Quarter Finals, however due to weather

disruption only one tie has been decided to date. Tottenham Hotspur will face Brighton & Hove Albion with both clubs boasting real goal scoring prowess on the way. Spurs saw off Lewes, Plymouth and C&K Basildon to reach the last 8 while Brighton dispatched Gillingham, title rivals Portsmouth, QPR and Chichester City to book their place.

Nottingham Forest, Stoke City and Blackburn Rovers are all through to the Quarter Finals but will have to wait to for the outcomes of rearranged 2nd Round matches between Old Actonians vs Swindon Town, Forest Green Rovers vs Cardiff City and Derby County vs Sporting Club Albion respectively to learn who their opposition will be.Quarter Final ties will be played on sunday 31st January 2016.

L oughborough Students vs Keynsham Town and Gillingham vs Newcastle Utd

are the two confirmed Quarter Final tie in The FA WPL Plate at present. Loughborough Students’ route to the last 8 saw victories over Chester le Street and Chorley Town while Keynsham booked their place after knocking out Exeter City and Norwich City.

all to play for in cup and plate competitions

here comes the rain again...

Samia Al Qadhi, Chief Executive of Breast Cancer Care

charity update 25

F ollowing on from the huge success of the Inaugural FA WPL Charity Trophy, the 2015/16 FA WPL League Champions and Ex-England legends

will face each other in support of FA Charity Partner Breast Cancer Care on Sunday 12th June.

Spectators at last years’ Charity Trophy were treated to a real footballing spectacle as Champions Sheffield FC Ladies took on the likes of Marieanne Spacey, Kaz Walker, Brenda Sempare, Debbie Bampton, Tara Proctor, Alex Cottier, Clare Taylor and many more in a match that saw goals, tackles, laughs and a novel new way of using vanishing spray as discovered by Howard Webb MBE when attempting to deal with the unruly goalkeeper Pauline (Cope) Boanas raising not only laughs aplenty but also over £2,500 for charity.

While the venue has yet to be confirmed, Development Officer and Lead on the project Karen Falconer said “Last year’s match was brilliant. Everyone loved the day, especially the England players. People are still talking about it now and the highlights package on the fawpl.tv channel has been viewed thousands of times which just goes to show the interest and enjoyment it generated.

Last year, due to the Women’s World Cup the match had to be held in August which was probably not the best time, however, holding it in the official FA Close Season will hopefully enable more people to come and support the day”

date for your diary: 2016 charity trophy

a huge ‘thank you’ to all at the fa women’s premier league...

The league Charity umbrellas are back! Having won The FA Respect Award it is even more appropriate that we all start to show off our pride in winning the award and push the ‘respect message’ even further.

Last season we raised £355 (over 70 umbrellas!) for Breast Cancer Care and we have kicked off this season by selling another 35 already – another £175 for charity!

The umbrellas come in a variety of colours and can be customised with your club logo as well as The FA WPL and Respect logo. As before £5 from the £20 cost will be donated to the league’s charity partner Breast Cancer Care.

Orders are now being taken for this season, so to get your umbrellas or to find out more information then please contact the league development officer by emailing [email protected]

We wanted to take this opportunity to say ‘thank you’ to The FA WPL and its clubs for their support and generosity through 2015. It’s been a great year for our partnership, culminating in the amazing Charity Trophy match earlier this summer. Everyone from the players, to the coaches and the fans have played a role in this success – so thank you.

Your support makes a massive difference to the work we do, it means we can be there for more women with breast cancer on the day that they need it the most. Nicky is just one of the amazing women who has used our services. If

you get a spare moment, please watch her video at the link here www.breastcancercare.org.uk/dayone – and you’ll see the huge difference this has made to her.

We look forward to seeing you all in 2016 when The FA WPL kicks off the New Year with the second half of QUIDDIE’s ‘Sound As A Pound’ which will culminate with the fantastic Charity Trophy match in June.

Thank you once again – and Merry Christmas from everyone at Breast Cancer Care!

seagulls soar into 2016

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Nottingham Forest go in to their penultimate game before the Christmas break sitting in pole position after a consistent first half campaign with just 2 defeats from 12 matches. They can’t afford to rest on their laurels however because as tables stand at present – as many as 8 teams are still very much in the title race. Their last match before Christmas against second bottom Guiseley AFC vixens could prove to be a real banana skin if their opposition is underestimated.

With just 5 points separating the top, the last tables of the year could change dramatically as Stoke, Blackburn and Preston could knock the leaders off their perch depending on Sunday’s results. Derby’s strong start to the season lost pace but they still sit 5th although they have played more games than those around them so may have to hope for the chasing pack’s opposition to do help them to close the gap.

Newcastle United could be the dark horses of the division as although they sit in 8th place if they make their 5 games in hand count they could find themselves serious title contenders.

The bottom half of the table sees Huddersfield with some breathing space from the bottom 3 but just 2 points separate last placed Nuneaton from Guiseley and Foxes, although Nuneaton have games in hand. With none of the bottom 3 safe there is all to play for in 2016.

NORTHERN DIVISION P W D L GD PTSNottingham Forest 12 8 2 2 13 26Stoke City 11 8 1 2 20 25Blackburn Rovers 12 8 1 3 15 25Preston North End 11 7 2 2 21 23Derby County 13 7 1 5 4 22Sporting Club Albion 9 7 0 2 13 21Bradford City 10 5 0 5 6 15Newcastle United 8 4 0 4 -4 12Huddersfield Town 11 3 2 6 -3 11Loughborough Foxes 13 1 2 10 -23 5Guiseley AFC vixens 12 1 1 10 -39 4Nuneaton Town 10 1 0 9 -23 3

SOUTHERN DIVISION P W D L GD PTSBrighton & Hove Albion 16 12 2 2 26 38Charlton Athletic 14 10 2 2 25 32Cardiff City 13 10 0 3 29 30Portsmouth FC 14 9 2 3 21 29Coventry United 12 7 3 2 21 24Tottenham Hotspur 14 7 1 6 2 22C&K Basildon 14 4 4 6 -11 16Lewes Ladies 13 4 1 8 -15 13West Ham United 14 3 2 9 -24 11Queens Park Rangers 15 3 1 11 -12 10Forest Green Rovers 13 2 1 10 -28 7Plymouth Argyle 12 1 1 10 -34 4

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26 round up

Regardless of Sunday’s results Brighton & Hove Albion will be top of the New Year Southern table as a surge in recent form has seen them work their way to top spot. With just 2 defeats from 16 games and 5 wins from their last 5 games they appear to be gathering pace which will stand them in good stead if they are to hold off the chasing pack consisting of Charlton Athletic, Cardiff City and Portsmouth FC Ladies – who all have games in hand on the Champions elect.

There are just 3 points between Charlton, Cardiff and Portsmouth but the last fixtures of the year could play a significant part in the title race as Pompy have a tricky away tie to C&K Basildon, who have proved they are more than capable of taking points from any team in the division.

Charlton and Cardiff go head to head in their last match of 2015 facing each other in a game that neither team can realistically afford to lose if they want to keep pressure on leaders Brighton in the second half of the season.

Coventry United, Tottenham Hotspur, C&K Basildon, Lewes Ladies and West Ham United occupy mid table while QPR, Forest Green Rovers and Plymouth Argyle are very much embroiled in a scrap to avoid the drop. QPR sit 3rd from bottom but as they have played more games than the bottom two, the fight for survival is very much on. Ta

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ding dong forest on a high northern division

middlesbrough top of tree

Leicester City Women have firmly stated their intentions to gain promotion to the top flight after a formidable first half of the season that sees them at the top of the table with a 100% record! With 12 wins from 12 and a far superior goal difference it is hard to see how they can be stopped but they will be acutely aware that 10 games still stand between them and glory and while they have quite a lead, it could be quickly closed should complacency set in.

Radcliffe Olympic, Wolves and Solihill go into the last match of 2015 level on 22 points but Wolves have the advantage of games in hand. Birmingham & West Mids sit in 5th place after a decent start to life in the Premier League with Loughborough Students, Leicester City Ladies, Rotherham United and Leafield Athletic sitting mid table.

Sporting Khalsa’s last place position has started to look precarious as while Peterborough NS sit in 11th place they have a game in hand and 4 points more. Steel City could be dragged in to the relegation fight however as they have played a game more than PNS but only sit with 1 point more in the bank.

NORTHERN DIVISION 1 P W D L GD PTSMiddlesbrough 12 9 1 2 31 28Liverpool Marshall Feds 11 8 1 2 31 25Hull City 12 7 3 2 8 24Morecambe 11 5 2 4 6 17Leeds Ladies 11 5 1 5 -4 16Mossley Hill 11 5 0 6 4 15Blackpool Wren Rovers 10 5 0 5 0 15Chorley Ladies 7 4 1 2 6 13Stockport County 10 2 1 7 -22 7Norton & Stockton Ancient 10 1 2 7 -31 5Tranmere Rovers 7 1 1 5 -13 4Chester le Street 8 1 1 6 -16 4

MIDLANDS DIVISION 1 P W D L GD PTSLeicester City Women 12 12 0 0 41 36Radcliffe Olympic 10 7 1 2 23 22Wolverhampton Wanderers 9 7 1 1 18 22Solihull Ladies 13 7 1 5 4 22Birmingham & West Mids 13 6 2 5 -1 20Loughborough Students 12 5 0 7 -13 15Leicester City Ladies 12 3 4 5 -2 13Rotherham United 12 3 2 7 -7 11Leafield Athletic 11 3 1 7 -15 10Steel City Wanderers 11 3 1 7 -22 10Peterborough Northern Star 10 2 3 5 -3 9Sporting Khalsa Women 11 1 2 8 -23 5Ta

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Middlesbrough sit top of Division 1 North and as Liverpool Marshall Feds don’t have a game on the last Sunday of 2015 that’s how 2016 will begin for the NE side following a solid first half campaign that has seen just 2 defeats from 12.

It’s still at least a 3 horse race for promotion to the top flight however as Liverpool Feds and Hull City are still very much in it and if things stay as they are they will certainly have a say in how the season will end. Liverpool Feds sit just 3 points behind the leaders with a game in hand and while Hull are 4 points from top spot so any slip up by Middlesbrough against 6th placed Mossley Hill could see that gap reduced.

Morecambe, Leeds Ladies, Mossley Hill, Blackpool Wren Rovers and Chorley all sit mid table with daylight between them and the bottom 4. Just 3 points separate Stockport County, Norton & Stockton, Tranmere Rovers and bottom placed Chester le Street but the games in hand across them could prove pivotal in the fight to avoid relegation to Regional League football.

leicester’s perfect present

round up 27

midlands division 1 northern division 1

SOUTH EAST DIVISION 1 P W D L GD PTSCrystal Palace 11 10 1 0 36 31Milton Keynes Dons 12 7 4 1 16 25Luton Town 12 7 2 3 12 23Cambridge United 14 5 5 4 10 20Gillingham FC 8 6 1 1 21 19Norwich City 11 5 1 5 1 16Denham United 12 3 3 6 -3 12Old Actonians 8 3 2 3 -1 11Enfield Town 9 3 1 5 0 10Ipswich Town 8 2 1 5 -6 7Lowestoft Town 10 1 2 7 -20 5Bedford Ladies 15 1 1 13 -66 4Ta

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Larkhall Athletic faces Chichester City on the last Sunday before Christmas but go in to the match safe in the knowledge that whatever happens they will top the Div 1 SW table after a first half season of 8 wins, 1 draw and 0 losses. Exeter City sit 2nd 4 points adrift of leaders Larkhall but as they have played 2 games more they will have to improve results if they intend to put any pressure on for top spot.

Swindon Town, Chichester and Keynsham Town all have games in hand on the top 2 and could close the gap if they convert these to points. Mid table Maidenhead United and Southampton Saints sit just behind in 6th and 7th respectively although Cheltenham Town are very much masters of their own destiny as they have as many as 5 games in hand on some of the clubs above them so could easily climb the table should their form improve.

St Nicholas and Shanklin sit 9th and 10th respectively and while both are some way off the pace they know that regardless of finishing position they will still play Premier League football next season due to the SW Division being down to ten teams.

28 round up

south west division 1 south east division 1

merry larks soar on high

SOUTH WEST DIVISION 1 P W D L GD PTSLarkhall Athletic 9 8 1 0 19 25Exeter City 11 7 0 4 10 21Swindon Town 7 5 2 0 11 17Chichester City 7 5 1 1 9 16Keynsham Town 8 5 1 2 8 16Maidenhead United 11 5 0 6 -4 15Southampton Saints 13 4 1 8 -9 13Cheltenham Town 8 3 0 5 -8 9St Nicholas 11 1 0 10 -17 3Shanklin Ladies 9 1 0 8 -19 3 Ta

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new year honours at palaceCrystal Palace end 2015 at the top of the Div 1 SE table after an impressive first half run without loss. Only 4th placed Cambridge have managed to take points off the promotion hopefuls when they drew earlier in the season. With a game in hand and 6 point cushion, Palace look clear favourites but only a solid second half campaign will guarantee top flight football next season.

MK Dons sit second but Luton Town, Cambridge United and Gillingham FC could also still clinch the runners’ up spot. Norwich City, Denham United, Old Actonians and Enfield Town take up the middle ground but as there is some difference with the number of games played across them there is room for plenty of movement as the season progresses.

Bedford languish in 12th place with just 4 points from 15 games and will need a remarkable upturn in form if they are to keep their Premier League place. Lowestoft sit second bottom and although just 2 points separate them and 3rd bottom Ipswich, they have played 2 games more.

focus

(RESERVES) MIDLANDS P W D L GD PTSNottingham Forest 10 6 2 2 0 20Cardiff City 8 6 0 2 22 18Coventry United 8 5 1 2 11 16Stoke City 7 4 1 2 4 13Leicester City Women 6 4 0 2 9 12Derby County 7 2 1 4 -2 7Sporting Khalsa Women 6 0 1 5 -17 1Loughborough Students 8 0 0 8 -27 0

forest double bubble as reserves sit top

Brighton join their 1st team colleagues in celebrating being top of the table going into 2016. Tottenham are just 2 points behind with a game in hand so could apply pressure after the break. Charlton sit 3rd but have played more games so will need those above to drop points if they are to succeed. QPR, Portsmouth and Crystal Palace all boast double figures in mid table with a gap starting to grow between them and the bottom third. West Ham sit 7th and while Southampton Saints sit 8th but both Chichester and Lewes have games in hand.

Nottingham Forest sit top of the Midland Division but as chasers Cardiff and Coventry have 2 games in hand they can’t breathe easy just yet. Stoke and Leicester are still very much in the title race too as they also have games in hand that could upset proceedings. Derby County are a little off the pace but a couple of wins could see them climb the table. Sporting Khalsa and Loughborough Students have managed to amass just 1 point between them.

albion hit the heights for the new year...

EXCITING ADVERTISING & SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIESInFocus is the official monthly digital magazine for The FA Women’s Premier League that boasts a National circulation. It focusses on all FA WPL teams and other relevant women’s football news.

InFocus is sent to every FA WPL club and registered players numbering over 3000 and is available to download directly from the league’s FA Full Time website. It is also distributed to each of the County FA’s across England – with a combined Twitter following of 180,000!

Why not turn our readers in to your customers by placing an advert today. ask for our 2015/16 rate card!

To place an advert in InFocus or for further information regarding FA WPL sponsorship opportunities please email [email protected] or call 07967 093724

round up 29

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(RESERVES) SOUTHERN P W D L GD PTSBrighton & Hove Albion 9 8 0 1 26 24Tottenham Hotspur 8 7 1 0 40 22Charlton Athletic 10 7 1 2 23 22Queens Park Rangers 9 5 0 4 -3 15Portsmouth FC Ladies 8 4 2 2 11 14Crystal Palace 8 4 0 4 -5 12West Ham United 8 2 0 6 -27 6Southampton Saints 10 1 1 8 -32 4Chichester City 7 1 0 6 -17 3Lewes Ladies 7 0 1 6 -16 1 Ta

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(RESERVES) NORTHERN P W D L GD PTSNewcastle United 7 6 0 1 28 18Blackburn Rovers 7 5 0 2 26 15Hull City 11 4 1 6 -19 13Stockport County 7 4 0 3 6 12Huddersfield Town 8 3 1 4 -2 10Bradford City 4 3 0 1 2 9Leeds Ladies 7 3 0 4 -5 9Middlesborough 9 1 0 8 -36 3

the magpies are top of the treeNewcastle Utd are top after 6 wins from 7. Blackburn Rovers are only 3 points behind and could easily take advantage of any points dropped on the run in. Hull City sit 3rd but this could prove hard to hang on to due to playing 4 games more than Stockport in 4th who are a point behind. Middlesbrough fortunes prove the exact opposite of their 1st team as they sit firmly in bottom place. Leeds, Bradford and Huddersfield all hold mid table places but Bradford’s multiple games in hand could theoretically see them still in with a chance of the Northern title.

an artists impression gives an insight in to how the brand new facility will look. Boasting 5 football pitches, physio room, dressing rooms, pool, ice baths, gym, offices and residential rooms

...

work has begun

on the first phase of

doncaster rovers belles’

multi-million pound

state-o

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training facility.

project

Another arm of Project Phoenix is that the Belles are now in a position to offer full time deals to players and midfielder Emily Simpkins has gone down in history as the first ever full time player at the club after signing a new contract in November.

Glen Harris and the staff behind the scenes are now currently working to build a squad to compete in WSL1 and with Jess Sigsworth already on board and Sophie Barker signing a new contract, the close season looks to be an exciting time at the Belles.

legacy for women’s football in South Yorkshire which will ensure that the Belles can more than compete at the highest level. It will be a community resource for the development of grassroots women’s football and coaches as well as supporting the elite game. I wanted to put something back in to my hometown to help the name of Doncaster be recognised around the world as a leader in women’s sport. The facility will enable the club to have its own standalone operation and they will never again have to face the threat of insolvency.”

S ituated near Bawtry, with plans for a mix of five grass and artificial pitches of mixed sizes, a

physiotherapy room, dressing rooms, an indoor heated pool, ice baths, a gym, residential rooms and offices, the facility will be the first of its kind in the women’s game.

The game-changing plans have been made a reality by investment provided personally by Doncaster-born Carl and wife Faye Lygo, who is the club’s Chair Lady.

Carl Lygo said: “We are building a long term


phoenixin what is an exciting new era for a club with such an illustrious history, ‘project phoenix’ has been the talk of the women’s game since the plans were announced in october. infocus will be following it’s progress by publishing regular updates on project phoenix as it takes flight through the season .

30 project phoeniX

Facilities- Sports Bar (inc. Big screen TV with SKY Sports)- Member’s Lounge Bar and Patio- Weekday lunchtime meals and Sunday lunch- Wines, spirits, keg and real ales

One of Basildon’s largest membership clubs

members events & Functions- Monthly Quiz nights- Disco and Karaoke evenings- Summer barbecues and fun days- Children’s events and entertainment- Christmas and New Year’s parties

sports & societies- 3 full size, FA approved adult pitches- Home to 14 football teams, including Basildon

Town FC and C&K Basildon Ladies FC

- Darts, Pool, Badminton, Table Tennis, R/C model car racing, Model Aeroplane Societies

- SILVERADO Country & Western Club (Sundays)

- CEROC Dance Club (Mondays)

For hire- Large hall (with bar) and professional kitchen- Suitable for weddings*, birthdays, functions, events

and meetings

(Other rooms available for hire for smaller events).

*Wedding Packages available

For membership and other enquiries please call 01268 523773Gardiners Lane South, Basildon, Essex. SS14 3AP

BasildonBASILDON& leisure clubsport

The FA WPL would like to thank Basildon Sport & Leisure Club for their continued support

#wearepremier - the football...

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