It’s great to be back from injury with a cup semi-final to look forward to

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It’s a big weekend for the team and for me personally.

We play Arsenal in the semi-final of the FA Women’s Cup and it’s a massive game as we’re looking to make history and get to the final.

In order to do that you have to beat the best and this will certainly be our biggest test of the season so far – but I’m confident that we will prevail.

And for me it’s great to be back in action after a long spell on the sidelines.

I tore my anterior cruciate ligament for the third time in May last year. It was a huge blow because the injury carries a six to nine-month rehab sentence which meant I missed the whole season and international tournament.

Thankfully I am now fully recovered and played my first game back last Sunday in the League Cup against Watford, which we won 5-1.

The team have made a great start
The team have made a great start

It’s great to be back and be part of a team that has made a fantastic start to the season so far – our hard work in pre-season has been paying off.

There’s a long season ahead though and I am hoping we can maintain this good form and confidence. We have a lot of depth in our squad and this has shown already.

Away from Chelsea, I think the appointment of a female manager, Helena Costa, by French club Clermont Foot is really fantastic news.

It’s a cut-throat world out there for any manager, especially a female, who undoubtedly will be under more scrutiny.

I hope she can bring success to the club and pave the way for other females to follow in her footsteps.

The women’s game has become a lot more professional in recent years, which has enabled greater exposure and so more females are gaining their A-license badges. I see it as a natural progression.

This subject will of course be highly debated – and unfortunately there still are a lot of small-minded people out there who feel that females are inadequate.

I’ve been asked if I think the stronger relationships between men’s and women’s teams can open up a lot of doors in terms of contacts for women and give them easier accessibility to programmes catering for careers after football. I do think that can help, but also that it is down to the individual’s own networking ability and career aspirations.

It’s not something I’m intending to get involved in – I currently work part-time as a business analyst and so will probably take that route when I am done with football. But I don’t see why there can’t more female managers in the future.

Cheers

Claire

The FA Women’s Cup semi-final between Chelsea and Arsenal takes place on Sunday May 11 at 2pm at Woking FC’s Kingfield Stadium. For more information and tickets visit http://www.chelseafc.com/chelsea-ladies

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