Tranmere Rovers Women will take to Prenton Park for the first time with their current crop of players on Sunday when they face Alder FC Women in the Argyle Sports Kit North West Regional Cup.
Excitement is running through the entire squad and management. The team are all looking forward to finally stepping out onto the pitch at the historic Prenton Park stadium.
With the men’s first team having a trip away to Walsall this weekend, the women’s side will take to the home pitch for a 2pm kick-off on Sunday. From the manager, to captain, to club staff, the opportunity to play at Prenton Park in the aftermath of the Lionesses’ Euros success is huge.
Rovers Women boss Sam Irvine only took charge of the team in the summer but is already feeling the impact of the backing that the club is showing his side.
Irvine told the ECHO: “It’s a show of faith from the club. We’re very thankful for the backing from the club and long may it continue. Hopefully we can go out there and put on a show. We want to get a decent crowd in and prove that we can do it.
“We want the support to drip feed further down the line. The more support we get the quicker we can grow things. It’ll be a massive experience for them. I wish I was playing myself, being out on that pitch. I’m sure they’re all looking forward to it.”
Using the momentum that women’s football has gathered in the last three or so years is really important for a club like Tranmere. They are a side that has huge potential and an undeniable upward trajectory.
Irvine added: “The Lionesses winning was the watershed moment. They’ve proven now that they can fill stadiums and make money.
“Football is a business, but they are showing that they can make people money. The time for women’s football is now. It’s like a rocket ship that is about to take off and you should not miss this flight.”
For Irvine, getting a good crowd through the gates of Prenton Park for the game on Sunday could end up having a knock-on effect of boosting the squad.
He added: “If we can get a decent crowd down there and put on a good show on and off the pitch and show people what we’re about, then hopefully we’ll have a few more of them come down to our home games.”
The support for the team has risen this season, with bigger numbers seen at home and away games for the Rovers Women.
Irvine explained: “We’ve had quite a few already and we’ve been surprised with how many people have come to support us at our home games.
“The following is pretty decent already but if we can put out a decent performance and put in a decent performance on the day, with young girls coming to maybe watch for the first time, they’ll get bitten by it and want to keep coming back. Tranmere is a family club at it’s heart and we want to harness that.”
Rovers captain Lindsey Smith made her debut for the club nearly two decades ago, with the centre-half being able to recall the club playing in the old Women’s Premier League.
Smith told the ECHO: “We’re grateful for the opportunity and it’s been a long time coming. We were meant to get a chance to play there last season but it didn’t work out. Finally we get the opportunity, my family are all made up.
“I’m just looking forward to it. My little lad has been telling all of his mates to try and come along. Sunday can’t come quick enough.”
At 36, Smith is the oldest member of the Rovers squad and while the time for mainstream women’s football may only be coming around now, her experience is vital in guiding some of the younger players in the squad.
Smith said: “I try to look after them a little bit. I don’t think that I am going to have many more seasons in me, I’m the oldest. I’d love the opportunity to be their age now for the young ones coming through. You have a good career in the game.
“When I was coming through the first team at 16, 17, we were competing with the likes of Arsenal but it wasn’t the game as it is now from a women’s perspective.”
Wirral-raised and lifelong Tranmere fan, Smith is relishing in the opportunity to be able to play at a stadium that she has frequented most of her life.
She said: “I’ve been there since I was a kid going to watch the games. To get the chance to play a cup game there is special. Hopefully we can get the win and give the fans a good performance that will make them want to come back and ultimately get through to the next round.”
Last season, the team had a great run in the cup, making the final after beating Crewe Alexandra on penalties at their home stadium. Repeating that and pushing on in the league is the goal this time around.
Smith said: “We want to try and push on this season. Having a good cup run is important and we are hoping to push on for the league as well.”
Louise Edwards is another person who has been in and around the entire Tranmere set-up for a long time. She has even had the opportunity to play at Prenton Park alongside now Women’s team coach Lynn Carter.
She understands the pressure that comes along with playing a game in a big stadium, with the undeniable focus on not making any mistakes.
Edwards told the ECHO: “It’s a big occasion and they’ll all have their families there. They’ll not want to make a mistake.
“They will be nervous I would have thought, none of them will want to score an own-goal or get sent off. Even at Crewe last year in the semi-final there, they were a little bit nervous but having that, they should be able to deal with it better.”
Edwards has also managed the women’s team in her time at the club but acknowledges the ability that manager Sam Irvine and assistant Craig Nolan have to make a real difference at the club.
She added: “For Sam and Craig who have only just come in, it’s good. There have been managers, me included, who have never managed the team at Prenton Park.
“We’ve come close a couple of times but things like the weather and teams not turning up have stopped us. Hopefully it’ll be a decent game for people to watch first and foremost.”
Turning the game - which otherwise would have been a regular early-round cup match - into a Prenton Park spectacle is something that team will welcome with the history of the stadium being truly appreciated.
Edwards said: “It’s one of the older grounds and a few fans who have not been around to watch the women’s team recently will come and give them an atmosphere.
“It’s just a good occasion really. As a player or a coach, anyone involved in it, those are the days that you look forward to. It’s better than turning up to play in a park, which to be fair, we don’t do too much of anymore at this level.”
*Tickets for the game against Alder FC are available to buy for just £3 for adults and £1 for concessions.
