Ipswich travel in style on mission to shock mighty City
Fourth-tier side treated to luxury of men’s first-team coach on epic Cup journey, writes Charlotte Harpur
Early today, 400 Ipswich Town fans will set off on a 460-mile round trip to watch their women’s team take on Manchester City in a historic FA Cup fifthround tie against the holders. It is an impressive figure, considering the crowd sizes of an average fourth-tier women’s game. The club have responded with their own commitment, pulling out all the stops for a side who have already beaten third-tier Portsmouth and Huddersfield in this competition – with use of the men’s first-team coach.
There is no doubt that drawing City in the Cup is special for any lowerleague side, but for 18-year-old Blue Wilson, who was at City last season, it is a dream come true.
“I was watching the stream and it was delayed a bit. I saw a text from my mum saying, ‘OMG Blue!’
I instantly knew it was
City. I started shaking. It’s the draw I wanted. I didn’t sleep that night because it is so exciting. I cannot wait. There are a bit of nerves but not really, more excitement, we’ve got nothing to lose. It’s just a great opportunity to play one of the best teams in the country.”
It was only last summer that Ipswich players and staff were watching City’s senior internationals on television at the World Cup, and Wilson hopes that the Lionesses’ contingent will turn out today.
“I went to France to watch them [England] in the World Cup. I’ve got a younger sister who is a massive Ellen White fan. I got her the shirt for her birthday. She didn’t want to come to Huddersfield, but she wants to come and watch me in Manchester, it’s crazy isn’t it?”
Ipswich have only eight senior players, the rest coming from their burgeoning under-21 academy, and as many as eight teenagers could take the field at the Academy Stadium. The youngest players speak excitedly about the trip. “It’s a little bit of a treat, a one-off for saying ‘well done’ for Huddersfield”, Paige Peake, 17, says. “There’s tables on it [the coach], USB ports, which are useful. I think there might be screens in the back of the headrests.” Wilson’s ears immediately prick up, “Really?” she asks.
“Yeah,” Peake says. “I think there is a kitchen at the back of the bus as well, it’s pretty kitted out.”
Other novelties for the day include a pre-departure meal cooked by the men’s chef and training wear for the players to travel in. Joe Sheehan, the senior and under-21 academy head coach, explains: “We want to try and reward a little bit each time, so we’ve now got a better coach than we had. We recognise that’s not us. We travel to our academy games by minibus.
“If you’re preparing a team to play in the fifth round of the FA Cup, you need to make sure that you behave like a team that is trying to progress.”
Of course, all that does not come cheap. “It’s going to cost us a hell of a lot more,” nods Sheehan, who alongside managing the team also takes care of logistics. “We get an allowance from the FA and then we have to make up the rest. The Huddersfield game cost us a deficit of about £700, playing against Manchester City will probably be more than that.”
The teenage contingent play two matches a week – one for the under-21s and one for the seniors – alongside jobs and studying. Wilson has A-levels this summer, “which is quite scary”, she adds, describing how she will have to take homework on the team bus this weekend. “I will always have some kind of material on my laptop, whether it’s typing notes or looking through some stuff because it’s a lot of time, especially if we’re going to Huddersfield or Manchester.”
Amanda Crump, their 30-year-old captain, works at electricity contractors J&J Drake, and first played for Ipswich when she was 16.
“Before the Super League, the biggest team we played was Birmingham, when Karen Carney was there,” she says. “But Man City are a different level. I feel a massive sense of pride for everything that has been achieved at the club.
“For the younger players that is their aspiration, to be at the top, and for the more experienced, this is the biggest game that we could play.”
So how will the women’s side fund not only this match but their future? A group of eight players have taken it upon themselves to find a solution and, led by Wilson, set up a leadership group. They discuss how they will finance their ambition to go from tier four to tier one and compete in the WSL. The aim is to show the owner, Marcus Evans, the financial support needed from the club to succeed at the next level.
Two years before City obtained their WSL licence, they were in the third tier. Ipswich’s under-21 set-up is unique, playing every WSL academy even though they do not have a senior team in the top league. They are also attracting many players from the eastern region. The players truly believe they are carving their own path to the WSL.
Ipswich, who top the table in their own league, are “fearless”, in Sheehan’s words, having “totally out-footballed teams” this season.
“I’m under no illusion that taking the game to City is a huge risk because of what they’re capable of,” he says. “The supporters will be really important. I don’t think there has been a bigger Cup shock than this could be.
“Knowing the players like I do, they will stand in that tunnel with pure excitement and energy. We need to harness that energy and that will be the challenge.”
‘I got a text from Mum saying, OMG Blue! I knew we had drawn City. I started shaking’