Women are leading way to the top at world's oldest club

The world’s oldest football club, formed in 1857, were toasted by the likes of Sepp Blatter and Pele in 2007 when 150th birthday celebrations took place. At that time the women’s side, formed in 2007, were taking tentative steps in the lower leagues.

But after conquering the Yorkshire & Humberside League, the Northern Combination, and the Women’s Premier League to reach the second division of the Women’s Super League, Sheffield FC Ladies stand a tantalising step away from competing at the highest level.

And while this season, their first in WSL2, is about gaining a foothold at the semi-professional level, the team are nothing if not ambitious.

Captain Carla Ward has spent six years driving the team’s charge up the league ladder from her midfield station, and the Isle of Wight-born player is relishing Sheffield’s remarkable rise.

She has more experience than most, having previously played for Leeds United and Lincoln, two one-time powerhouses of the English women’s game, and Spanish side Alicante.

“I’ve been at this club for six years now and the main reason I joined was because of the ambition of what they wanted to do and where they wanted to go,” Ward said.

“There have been a lot of Sheffield girls who’ve had the opportunity to go and play WSL football in the last few years but they’ve stuck it out knowing we can get there ourselves.

“It’s another major chapter in the club’s story. Sheffield FC Ladies have only been going for about 13 years, so to go from county league to WSL football that quickly, especially with the history of this being the world’s oldest football club, it’s something else.

“A lot of people probably think we’re linked to Sheffield Wednesday or Sheffield United, but the story written by Sheffield FC Ladies is something remarkable.”

Recent backing from Qatar Airways has allowed Sheffield to take the step out of the amateur ranks, but Ward says the players earn “pocket money”.

England women’s manager Mark Sampson has dropped strikers Eni Aluko and Toni Duggan from his squad for the Euro 2017 qualifying double-header against Serbia, on June 4 and June 7.