Chelsea FC Ladies Double Winners
By Lee Fraser
Arriving at Wheatsheaf Park, the home ground of Chelsea Ladies FC, the sense of anticipation was clearly evident. The flags were already out, Stamford and Bridgette were greeting the early arrivals with high fives and lots of hugs for the children, the TV cameras were being readied, the army of volunteers were proudly showing the VIP guests around, and the FAWSL trophy was on the pitch, and all this was 2 hours before kick off!
The President of Chelsea Ladies FC, a certain Mr. John Terry turned up as he often does to the home games and took his customary seat in the stand without any fuss, but of course went out of his way to chat and have the obligatory selfies taken!
As the friendly atmosphere grew the Chelsea FC Ladies came out to warm up and seemed genuinely pleased with how the ground was filling up with fans grabbing the best viewing spots early.
And then it was time to keep up the Chelsea FC tradition of playing The Liquidator theme tune as captain Katie Chapman led the players onto the pitch to attempt to create history, exactly 23 years to the day that Chelsea Ladies FC played their first ever league match ( a 6-2 win against Leyton Orient).
A full match report of the game itself can be found here on the official Chelsea FC website.
As the game progressed it was obvious that the Blues were determined not to panic, and very quickly settled into their usual high tempo pressing game that had served them so well all season. This relaxed the fans and the nervousness soon evaporated from around the ground.
At half time it was 1-0 to Chelsea FC Ladies and despite Manchester City leading their game 2-1, the advantage was still with the Blues.
As soon as the 2nd goal went in, a chorus of Championnes started. After the 3rd goal, a shout of “let’s get this party started” rang out and everyone in the record crowd suddenly realised the title was indeed Chelsea Ladies FC’s and nothing was going to stop us!
Someone explained to me recently what they thought the difference was between men’s and women’s football. They said women’s football is more friendly and not as antagonistic as the men’s game, and this was highlighted perfectly in the 81st minute when manager Emma Hayes made her final substitution.
Last year Chelsea Ladies FC backup goalkeeper Marie Hourihan dislocated her shoulder in the final match of the season and the game and title was lost.
This year Hedvig Lindahl has replaced Marie for the majority of the season (and this match) but Emma Hayes brought Marie on so she could experience being involved in winning the final match and league.
In the moments before the final whistle everyone on the Chelsea Ladies FC bench stood up, linked arms and got ready to celebrate with the players on the pitch, yet again another sign of the unity and togetherness of the whole squad and backroom staff.
And then the celebrations began in earnest!
It’s traditional for the ladies of Chelsea FC to sign autographs and have the obligatory selfies taken at the end of every match, and just because they had created history today wasn’t going to be any different!
More than an hour later the players were still mingling with the fans and it summed up perfectly what women’s football and Chelsea Ladies FC in particular is all about. It’s a mix of professionalism and competitiveness all wrapped up in a family-friendly orientated environment.
Truly, the beautiful game is alive and kicking with the ladies.
Chelsea Ladies FC are in action again on Thursday 8th October at Wheatsheaf Park in the European Champions League against Glasgow City ladies at 7:30pm and tickets can be purchased here.
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