Hoping return to Premier League can spur on Leeds Ladies
Dave Craven talks to the Leeds-raised Lionesses international who was forced to move away to realise her sporting dreams.
ENGLAND international Gemma Bonner has recalled the heartbreaking moment she realised she must leave Leeds United – but how she hopes to soon see both their men’s and women’s sides back in the elite.
The stylish Manchester City centre-back is the second most experienced player in the FA Women’s Super League with almost 150 appearances and she has also earned 11 caps for her country.
Bonner, who grew up in Moortown, initially came to prominence with Leeds having come through their juniors and was an FA Cup runner-up in 2008 before winning the League Cup two years later.
However, when United’s bid to join the Super League collapsed and the club’s future was left in doubt, she moved on to Chelsea in 2011 and saw her career soar.
But Bonner, 28, admitted: “Growing up through the Leeds ranks is obviously where I learned a lot about the game.
“I think I was there from the age of about nine. I’ll always be grateful for the experiences at the club and I loved playing for Leeds. I really did.
“When the news came that we had to leave Leeds as they weren’t going to be in the top league, it actually hit me so hard.
“I think everyone dreams of playing for their home-town club in a professional setting so to
have it be so close and then just taken away was a big moment.”
After impressing with Chelsea, Bonner moved on to Liverpool and captained the club to backto-back titles in 2013 and 2014 before switching to City, the
current league leaders, two years ago. However, she clearly still has a lot of fondness for her hometown club and is desperate to see them flourish once more.
With leaders Leeds seven points clear in the top-two automatic promotion spots when football was shut down due to the coronavirus last month, a return to the Premier League for the first time since relegation in 2004 is in touching distance.
Bonner said: “Leeds United, in terms of the men’s team, belong in the Premier League.
“With the size of the club, the crowds, everyone around the city... there’s such a huge passion for sport, not just football.
“I always try and get back home whenever I can and I think Leeds – as a city – do need to be in the Premier League.
“From a really early age I ended up with a Liverpool shirt – I think my cousin had one – and I ended up supporting them! But with my Leeds connections, I remember going to watch those Leeds v Liverpool games as a kid and, hopefully, those encounters can resume this year.
“Obviously that depends on these current circumstances (Covid-19) but I’m hoping off the back of that it will also help the women’s set-up at Leeds. Hopefully, in a few years we can see it gradually get more professional to a level where both Leeds teams are in the top flight.”
After numerous financial issues, moves, name changes and once even going out of business since Bonner left, the women’s side is now back as Leeds United Ladies, part of the Elland Road club and in National League Division One North.
It has been sad to see them go through so many struggles but she said: “It’s been part and parcel of the women’s game.
“There’s been a lot of teams that have been at the top, then the bottom, drifted in and out or some have gone completely with some new teams coming in.
“Sadly, it’s still part of the game and in a sense normal; you still expect it here and there. I’m hoping the more the game grows, the more coverage we get, the more sustainable it’ll become.”