Impact Sport‘s Fabiola Kaiser caught up with Rick Passmoor, manager of Notts County Ladies FC, and defender Sophie Walton to talk about women’s football and the rise of the Lady Pies…
Fabiola Kaiser: Rick – moving to Nottingham and rebranding Lincoln Ladies to Notts County LFC was polarising to say the least. How do you feel about the move to England’s first ‘City of Football’?
Rick Passmoor: I don’t think there was ever a doubt in my mind, or in the mind of those at the club, that the move was the right decision but it was up to us to prove that and I think we’ve done that without a doubt. The support from the city of Nottingham has been tenfold and the development of players has been incredible. It’s allowed us to train full time at some great facilities and if you look a the few players that we have playing at Notts who played at Lincoln, they’ve come on leaps and bounds and are better players.
FK: After a season which saw you lose key players early on and FA decisions go against the club, NCLFC managed to end the season with a four game unbeaten streak and finish 6th in the table. What’s your take on the season and what are some personal highlights?
RP: There are times we felt as though we could have done better but show me a club that doesn’t feel like that! Even champions Liverpool will tell you that there are times they feel they could have done better. I’m just extremely proud of the players and I think, for a brand new team with a brand new group of players, we can be very proud of how we’ve done. We’ve reached the semifinals and finished 6th in what has been an extremely competitive division. Overall we’re pleased with the season, but we’ve got ambitions and we’ll be looking to push on again next season.
FK: Despite being a ‘new’ club in the WSL1 you managed to attract overseas players the likes of Olympic bronze medalist Desiree Scott, Australian Caitlin Friend and New Zealand’s vice-captain Katie Hoyle. What do foreign players bring to the WSL1 and will there be any signings for the Lady Pies next season?
RP: They bring a wealth of experience and knowledge from other leagues and a different take on our sport in England. The WSL is a relatively new league which is still developing so to have players who have been part of developing leagues and well-established leagues in different continents has been a benefit to the team. They also bring a huge amount of quality to this league, there’s eight teams all fighting for the best players in England and, quite simply, we can’t have them all, so sometimes we have to look abroad to strengthen our squad as we can.
FK: With Notts County LFC managing to avoid relegation and appear in the semi-finals for both the Continental and FA Cup, what are the club’s ambitions for next season?
RP: We’re always looking at silverware, whether that is in the form of a cup or a league. The Champions League is also where every club wants to be but we’re part of a project and it’ll just be about building and improving our aims in the long term, but we’re always aiming to achieve them quicker.
FK: Sophie, you studied Business at Leeds Metropolitan University and are a Director of SW1 Model Management but you’re also a professional footballer. To many that would seem like an odd combination.
SW: It does seem an odd combination but two of my strongest passions are football and the fashion industry so I thought why not? I had the knowledge and ambition to set up my own company which enjoyed great success but unfortunately the business is on hold as I struggled to run a business and play football at the same time. So I chose football.
FK: What is the reaction you get when you tell people you are professional footballer? Do you even tell them?
SW: To be honest I don’t really tell many people, if people ask me what I do I tell them, but I don’t go around telling everyone I play football. But when I do, the reaction is great, however the majority of people don’t really believe me straight away or it comes as a bit of a shock. Which in one way is nice but still proves there are some stereotypes in women’s football.
FK: How do you feel about the representation or stereotypes of female footballers?
SW: I think there are still stereotypes of female footballers and, to be honest, I think there always will be with some people. But I do believe over the last few years they have changed drastically and the main reason for this is the increased coverage and publicity we now get. We can still be girly and enjoy the usual girly things and then once we cross the white line be focused on our job and compete at the highest level. The more publicity and coverage the female game can get, the better and more chances we have of changing people’s perceptions of the female game and female players, but I do feel we have come a long way since I started playing top-flight women’s football when I was only 15/16. It has been great to see.
FK: Despite having two big sporting universities in Nottingham, only a handful of students come to the games. Give us three good reasons why students should come and watch Notts County Ladies play when the WSL1 starts up again in spring.
SW: It’s cheap, good value for money. We have the best stadium in the league and attract the biggest crowds so the atmosphere is great. The standard of football is very good and we have a team that is exciting to watch and will be challenging for the title come next season.
Fabiola Kaiser
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