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BBC News
26-04-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Ipswich Town Women's footballers on brink of Championship
Ipswich Town Women's manager Joe Sheehan has said his side's near-certain promotion to the Championship will be a "special day". The Tractor Girls' stunning season culminates on Sunday as they host Cheltenham, with their superior goal difference meaning even a loss would still not stop the party. It will be the first time the club will compete in the second tier, ending their four-year stint in the FA Women's National League Southern Premier Division. Sheehan, who initially worked in a voluntary role at the Suffolk club, said: "I'm incredibly proud and privileged to have played a part in the growth over so many years." 'From 40 fans to 10,000' Sheehan was appointed manager of the women's side in February 2019. The following month, his side drew 1-1 with Leyton Orient in front of 40 spectators in the fourth division. Their now record goalscorer, Natasha Thomas, was on the bench. In 2025, she went on to represent Jamaica at international level, having scored over 150 goals for Ipswich. Two Covid-19 curtailed seasons and three heart-breaking title pushes later, the Tractor Girls returned to Portman Road in March 2025 where they broke the league attendance during their 3-1 win against Plymouth Argyle in front of 10,807. Sheehan himself was unpaid during his first season-and-a-half. The players trained just twice a week, led by voluntary staff. The dedicated boss once drove a minibus for an U21's friendly match to Sunderland, where he could only pull together a team of just nine they train four times a week, have tailored strength and conditioning training, and are fed nutritionally balanced meals. 'Remarkable' Sheehan said: "It's been an incredible journey. "The growth, the success, the development of the group, the club and the staff. "The experiences that we've had along the way have been remarkable. " 'Four years thinking of this day' Captain Maria Boswell will be the player to lift the league title on Sunday. The 22-year old, who lives with teammates Sophie Peskett and Kyra Robertson, has been part of a rock-solid defence that has only conceded 10 goals in the league this season. Both her and her teammates are still part-time footballers, but promotion will mean going full-time. She has dreamt of this moment since coming into the first team four years ago. "I've spent four years thinking of this day. I've thought about it every single day; what the feeling is going to be like," she said."You don't get opportunities like this very often, to celebrate promotion to the Championship. "I can't put it into words how much it would mean to be with the girls, on the pitch and lift that trophy." 'No room for error' in tier three? The Tractor Girls have come close to promotion each season at third tier level, but have fallen at the final hurdle. On previous attempts, they finished second, third and fourth. Until the 2023/24 season, the winner of the Southern Premier Division then had to face off in a promotion-deciding fixture with the Northern division's winners. Sheehan said previously it gave "little to no room for error", requiring "near-perfect seasons".He added: "We have had sour experiences, some trauma and some difficult moments. We've been close, but have fallen short. "On two separate occasions, we have won 10 to 11 games in a row in this division, and still fallen short. It's been tough; lots of low points where you wonder what else you can do". Within these seasons, the Tractor Girls have had some key moments, including record-breaking FA Cup runs, hosting WSL side West Ham United at their home in Felixstowe, as well as two trips to giants Manchester City. The perfect end to a near-perfect season? Ipswich set the standard in the league this year, slipping to defeat only twice and conceding just 10 goals. Their main rivals this season have been Essex side Hashtag United, who are three points behind them going into the final round of fixtures. A nine-game unbeaten run at the start of the season saw Sheehan's side set the pace, including a 4-0 league cup win over East Anglian rivals Norwich City at Carrow Road. Hashtag were one of only two teams to beat Town, which didn't come until early March. Ipswich were the form scorers in the league, and have netted 81 times so far. Town recorded eye catching results including 11-0 and 13-0 wins over MK Dons, a 7-0 win over Cheltenham and a 6-0 win over Billericay.
BBC News
24-03-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Record crowd sees 'incredible' Cherries seal title
Bournemouth boss Steve Cuss hailed his all-conquering side's "incredible achievement" as they sealed promotion to the third tier of women's football by beating Bristol Rovers in front of a record crowd at Vitality Cherries have now won all 18 of their FA Women's National League Division One South West fixtures to date, scoring 82 goals and conceding a meagre three in the 2-0 victory, which secured the title and a place in next year's Southern Premier Division with four games to play, was witnessed by 7,076 fans - the highest-ever Bournemouth attendance for a women's told BBC Radio Solent: "We just fell a little bit short last season but the response of the players has been magnificent, to do what we've done."It's an incredible achievement and I'm so very proud of them. It's a very special day, a special season with a special group of players."Who would have thought at the start of the season that we'd get 7,000 people here at Vitality Stadium? It's a dream come true."Both sides struck the woodwork in Sunday's game before Jenna Markham put the Cherries ahead late in the first half with her 20th goal of the had another attempt ruled out for offside, but the home side doubled their lead midway through the second period when Katie James converted from substitute Ellie Strippel's cross."They [Rovers] nearly scored on a couple of occasions, but we've found ways to keep the ball out of the back of the net – that's been our strength," Cuss added."Again they were strong in defence and the moments of quality came our way. I'm delighted with the girls."
BBC News
21-03-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Ipswich Town Women hope for record crowd on Portman Road return
Ipswich Town Women are relishing the "massive opportunity" of playing at Portman Road for a second time on Sunday, and they hope to set a new attendance year, 10,173 fans attended their league fixture with Chatham Town, a match they won 5-0."We hope as many come as possible," said goalkeeper Natalia Negri. "It is a big boost for us and the women's game in general."Town Women, who are chasing promotion from the FA Women's National League Southern Premier Division, take on Plymouth Argyle at 14:00 GMT. The occasion will be extra special for midfielder Kyra Robertson. The 22-year-old told BBC Look East that her family were all big Town supporters."They probably would not expect to see their younger sister playing on the pitch that they watch the men's team play on every week," she said."The club are fully behind us. It is so nice to have their support and I will really relish the opportunity to play here."Robertson said last season's fixture was the first time she had played at Portman Road."It was a great day. This town really supports the club as a whole," she said."It's not just the men's team or the glamorous fixtures that they play [in the Premier League] every week."Just before kick-off, when [Ipswich Town CEO] Mark Ashton broke the news in the changing room that we had hit 10,000, we couldn't believe it."Walking out, we could hear the crowd. It was amazing and to top it off with the 5-0 win, we were so happy." Town Women go into Sunday's match trailing league leaders Hashtag United by three points with five games to play after losing 1-0 to their Essex rivals three weeks if they needed to win all their remaining fixtures, goalkeeper Negri, 21, said the occasion would not get in the way of the important job they needed to do."We take each game as it comes," she said. "We must put in a good performance, and it will be a bonus if we get the three points at Portman Road."The goalkeeper was signed last summer, having helped Crystal Palace win the Championship, and she has not yet played at the stadium."I am really excited to be part of it this year, being able to showcase what I can do personally and what we can do as a team," she said."I have been involved in big games before. I am used to the pressure of having a crowd and lots of outside noise. I can't wait." Manager Joe Sheehan joined the club in 2019 and has guided the team to the third tier of women's football."Last year, we had an incredible attendance," he said."Seeing so many supporters [made it feel] like a typical men's matchday, but just on a slightly smaller scale."It was all about being trailblazers, to inspire the community and try to put on a performance to leave a lasting memory. It was a huge success."Sheehan said there were a number of bright players coming through the club's youth development pathway, which has been boosted by the rising prominence of the women's is also pleased to see attendances continue to grow at Felixstowe, where Town Women play their regular home games."There always seems to be new fans – boys, girls, parents, pets! The club has been moving on an upwards trajectory in recent years and I feel our growth has been boosted following last season's game [at Portman Road]." Leah Mitchell signed her first professional contract last July. The defender, who was named player of the month in February, took time out from preparations this week to spend time with the Women's under-14s and under-16s performance squads – a programme run by the Ipswich Town Foundation."It is always great to see the young girls play. I was one of them once," she said."Nowadays, there are so many professional female footballers for young girls to look up to. It is different from even a couple of years ago."The girls now have role models in the women's game, not just the men."Mitchell, 19, said the recent increased coverage of the women's game had inspired her."I loved it," she said. "I thought to myself it could be me, whereas before it was always the men I was watching."She added that she was pleased so many of the girls from the club's development squads would be watching on Sunday."We are not nervous – we are just so excited to play at this incredible stadium again. We can't wait to put on a show!" Follow Suffolk news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
Yahoo
31-01-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
London City Lionesses provide goalkeeper updates
The Pride provided updates via posts on their official club X account earlier today. It has been reported that youngster Hermoine Cull has joined FA Women's National League Southern Premier Division club Watford on loan. The 20-year-old will spend the remainder of the season with The Golden Girls as she looks to get some games under her belt. Cull's latest appearance for London City Lionesses came as a substitute in a 5-2 victory over Portsmouth in the Subway Women's League Cup before Christmas. In other news, London City Lionesses have parted company with Republic of Ireland international keeper Grace Moloney by mutual consent. Moloney has spent the last 18 months with The Pride in which she has made 21 appearances for the club in the Barclays Women's Championship. Despite the two outgoings, London City Lionesses still have a strong goalkeeping department. The Pride have Emily Orman, Sophie Hillyerd and loanee Sophia Poor on their books. Orman has largely played the role of first-choice goalkeeper at Hayes Lane this season with the player starting the vast majority of matches. London City Lionesses are back in action on Sunday afternoon when they travel to Portsmouth in the Barclays Women's Championship. Hermione Cull has joined Watford on loan for the rest of the season. 𝗚𝗼 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝗺𝗮𝘀𝗵 𝗶𝘁, 𝗛!👊🐝 — London City Lionesses (@LC_Lionesses) January 31, 2025 London City Lionesses and Grace Moloney have mutually agreed to part ways. We thank Grace for her contributions to the club and wish her well in her next chapter. — London City Lionesses (@LC_Lionesses) January 31, 2025
