Abergavenny captain Katie Williams believes her side can defy the odds and can battle back to stay in the Adran Premier this season.
The Pennies currently sit bottom of the league with a solitary point to their name. Coming into this season, Williams was under no illusions of how difficult the league would be.
‘We never underestimated the league, we knew it was going to be difficult, but I think with a lot of changes like a new manager, a lot of our players have left so we have a completely different squad’
‘We always knew it was going to be hard, but the league is a lot more competitive and challenging’
‘We’ve had a lot of changes and I think now we’ve finally adjusted to it and hopefully now we’ll start getting some results.’
Long time manager Craig Morgan-Hill left his role at the start of the season and new manager Josh Anderson was appointed.
While the change of manager was difficult at the time, Williams believes the squad has rallied around Anderson.
‘Craig’s departure was out of the blue. We lost to Cardiff City at home and then he told us he was leaving at training, and because it was so early on in the season, it put us in an awkward position’
‘I’ve only joined this season, but a lot of the other girls have been through a lot with him, like getting relegated and then promoted’
‘We have a lot of faith in Josh, so hopefully we start to get some results, especially because he showed what he could do with Barry last season.’
If Anderson is to reproduce another great escape this season, he’ll be looking at certain members of the squad to start taking games by the scruff of the neck.
He may look no further than Alana Murphy. In a side that’s struggled going forward, Murphy has scored five and assisted one so far, and the captain was full of praise for the striker.
‘She is amazing, she’s like the mum of the group, but she still acts like a 16-year-old! Especially with all the young players in the squad, she’s helped a lot’
‘Because she’s got a lot of work commitments, so she’s only here every other week, but whenever she’s here, the atmosphere is so much better.’
While Murphy may be one of the elder statesmen of the side, make no mistake, this Abergavenny side is a young team.
In their starting eleven, they regular have around four 17-year-olds and two 16-year-olds. While mentally the season has taken a toll on them, in the long run, Williams, who is 16 herself, believes this will make them stronger.
‘The mental side of it is really hard’
‘I don’t think I’d be able to deal with it, but it is hard, because sometimes you feel like what’s the point’
‘In the long run I think it’ll do us a lot of good, because we will start winning, and if we lose, we’ll know what to do.’
For Williams herself, this is a very different season for her compared to others in the Adran Prem.
‘I played with and against boys last year’
‘It’s really weird! Because boys were so physical last year, as they were only a year or two younger than me and all of them were taller than me anyway’
‘It’s a big step up playing against 14-year-old boys to now playing against women in their 30s, like full grown women is really weird. But I’m really enjoying it.’
While it has been an underwhelming season at Pen-y-Pound Stadium, a highlight was playing against Cardiff City at the Cardiff City Stadium in front of a record crowd.
The result may not have gone their way, but Williams was very proud of that night, and was also keen to stress the importance of not inspiring just young girls, but boys too.
‘It was amazing. From start to finish, even though the result wasn’t good, the end was just amazing’
‘Going over and say thank you to everyone that watched, all the young girls and boys, like they enjoyed themselves’
‘We need to break down stereotypes. Boys in general have this idea or persona that girls can’t play. It’s getting better for sure, but boys do still have that idea’
‘So, to have them come and watch, and Cardiff put on a show, but proving people wrong is really important and it will have such a big impact.’
With the Adran Prem splitting imminently, Williams says this will benefit the squad, and who knows, the impossible could well be possible.
‘The girls here are fighters, to get demoted and then come straight back up shows the character of these girls’
‘But we won’t go down without a fight, we want to show what we’re capable of and why we deserve to be here. We’ve had a rough start, but we’re more than capable of staying up.’
Abergavenny will next be in action against TNS in the Adran Premier on January 18th.
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