In this first blog since February we will look look back at our Lilywhites first season in the Barclays Women’s Super League, what the future holds, and what will happen regarding refunds for any pre purchased tickets and season ticket holders after the WSL was cancelled with immediate effect. So late on Monday afternoon the news that none of us wanted to hear but expected was finally confirmed. The 2019/20 Women’s Super League campaign had been ended with immediate effect. I guess it shouldn’t have come as a surprise to any of us but it is still very disappointing to hear that it has come to an end but we must remember that the most important thing is everybody’s safety. All the players, the staff, volunteers and fans must be kept safe as ones health MUST come first and I believe that good things come to those who wait and I have no doubt that next season will be even better for the women’s game and our Tottenham Hotspur women. The full FA statement can be read on the follwing link https://bit.ly/2ZDugHz
SO what can we take away from this season? Well, I think Tottenham fans can be very proud of the team and all that they have achieved this year. We have demonstrated that we can hold our own with any of the big teams in the WSL and this group of players have created some incredible memories in such a short space of time so lets start by looking back at West Ham Women vs Tottenham Women at the London Stadium.
On a rainy 29th of September 2019 we saw the the second ever Women’s Super League game take place at a men’s stadium, the iconic London Stadium in Stratford where over 24,000 fans attended to see last years FA Cup finalists West Ham and newcomers our Lilywhites Tottenham Hotspur Women setting the second highest record attendence ever for a Women’s Super League match which two months later will be broken by our Tottenham women.
I remember being at the London Stadium for this match and it had a very different vibe to a men’s London derby match. The atmosphere in and around the London stadium was a lot more relaxed and there was more a family feel to the game as opposed to a men’s West Ham v Tottenham game. Considering people claim the women’s game is not popular and the weather was very wet there was a fanastic turn out. 24,000 fans came to the London stadium and Tottenham did not shy away from the big occasion. Many thought Tottenham would get hammered (no pun intended) by last years FA Cup finaists but instead it was Tottenham that came to make a statement and that statement was that they may be new to the WSL but they were here to stay with a 0-2 victory against our London rivals with goals from Rianna Dean the goal machine and birthday girl Lucy Quinn. Personally I feel 0-2 was a bit of a short result, West ham had some opportunities too and Tottenham missed a few chances of their own and this entertaining match should have had a higher score to match.
History makers.
Two months later another piece of history was made in the women’s game and again it involved our very own Spurs women. The weekend of November 16th & 17th saw the first annual Women’s Football weekend and on Sunday the 17th November Tottenham Women welcomed the 2018/19 Women’s Super League champions Arsenal to the shiny new Tottenham Hotspur Stadium which saw over 38,000 fans come out setting a new record attendence for a Women’s Super League match.
What can we say about the first ever WSL North London derby, sometimes things do not go your way. I think 95% expected Arsenal to win comfortably but our Lilywhites made it anything but comfortable for the 2018/19 champions. Anyone who had not seen the game would be surprised to learn that Arsenal were not the better team on the day and Tottenham should have at least gone in 1 up at the break. No one can deny that Kim Little scored a fanatstic goal but had things gone our way just a little that goal should have been nothing more than a consolation for Arsenal and I won’t even speak about the Vivianne Miedema’s goal as I can only put it down to tiredness. We are still learning and we need to learn how to finish teams off espeically teams like Arsenal. Not many teams can make Arsenal look average but our Spurs Women did exactly that but we lack the experience Arsneal have gained over the past 18 years, they have been in top flight football. For a team that had just been in the top flight for 2 months I think we done pretty well and hopefully this game as well as others have taught the ladies a lot in preparation for the 2020/21 season.
Another Hightlight of the season would see a 2-2 draw to Everton back in February after coming from 2 goals down to take a point with a player down after Rosella Ayane was sent off for retaliating off the ball after being hacked down twice.
February 12th was a very cold night under the lights and it most certainly saw our Tottenham Women show what they are made of with once again showing off their never give up spirit which has made them tough to beat this season. As we have seen in other matches Tottenham’s weakness is finishing teams off or taking advantage of opportunities and before seeing ourselves 2 down Tottenham should have been 1 up when Rianna Dean hit the post in the first half and those missed opportunites can cost you matches like we saw in the North London Derby. Everton have much more experience in the top flight and this showed throughtout the game as they gained control of the game with goals from Chloe kelly and Inessa Kaagman but the Lilywhites never give up mentality really showed in the last 20 minutes of this game with goals from Angela Addison and lonee Emma Mitchell gave Tottenham a hard fought point.
This was the first time in a long time that Rachel Furness no longer being at the club was really noticed. I really liked Furness and was saddened that she had left and knew she would be a player that would take a long time to replace and so far I don’t believe we have found anyone that has repaced her in her role. Furness was a tough player that brought confidence to the team and was great for physical games like this one, she was able to create and score goals and I believe was dearly missed in this match but we have been really lucky becasue the loan signing of Emma Mitchell has brought much needed organisation and confidence to the team. I saw the defence and midfield much more confident since Emma Mitchell’s arrival and her experince was much needed to nurture this group of players that are still learning everyday. I would love Emma mitchell to remain at Tottenham but honestly I think she will return to Arsenal but who knows anything is possible and I think our team has shown any player out there that we are a club that wants to go places, we want to win trophies and that we are not just here to scrape through and survive by a narrow margin. I personally think we have a fanatsic team but we do need some more experienced players to come in and nurture some of our younger players but overall I think we have done a fantatsic job and had the season played until the final day of the season I think we would have comfortably survived the first year in the WSL.
Ticketing and Refunds.
Now that the 2019/20 Women’s Super League has been officially called off many are asking what will happen regarding refunds for pre purchased game tickets and/or regarding season tickets. On Monday May 25th the club announced that they will issue a pro rota credit to all season ticket holders for the final 4 home matches which can be applied against 2020/21 season tickets. Alternativey if fans would rather a refund this is also possible by filling out all the information at the following link https://bit.ly/3guIu3c before 5pm on Thursday 11th June 2020 and fans will be contacted with further information regarding refunds by Friday 19th June 2020. If fans have pre purchased any tickets for any of the remaining home matches vs Birmingham, Chelsea, Bristol City or Reading fans should email the Hive at tellus@thehivelondon.com to obtain a refund.
If any fans have purchased any tickets for the FA Cup quarter final game away to Arsenal, refunds will be processed in 7-10 days but for any enquires you may email Arsenal at arsenalwomen@arsenal.co.uk.
Player of the season.
This is a strange one because it’s something that we wanted to do but its not really something that we have given much thought to as we didnt’t expect the season to end this abruptly. There have been so many outstanding moments this season from Rianna Dean’s header vs West Ham at the London Stadium, Lucy Quinn’s birthday strike in the same match, Angela Addisions header which sparked the comeback of the season vs Everton to Emma Mitchell’s thunderous goals including the one in the Everton game therefore making it impossible to pick a player of the season therefore as cowerdly as it may seem my player(s) of the season go to all 23 inspirational senior team women which include loanee Emma Mitchell, former player Rachel Furness and Megan Wynne who had been on loan to Bristol City , congraulations team ladies you are all players of the season in our eyes.
Conclusion.
I for one am proud of every single player that has worn the jersey this season and I hope for more of the same next season and expect to see some new faces at the club. I just really hope that no player at Tottenahm or any other club will be retiring under these circumstances. I for one would hate to see a player like Jenna Schillaci who has given so much to the club for the last 11 years to leave the club or retire under these circumstances. Players Like Jenna are keepers and if possible she would be a great inspiration to have around to guide new players and who knows maybe one day in the future even coach the team. Jenna has been around a long time and she has seen the team progress so much over the years and with winning the 2016/17 FA Women’s Premier League Southern Division and in 2019 helping Tottenham gain promotion from the Championship to the Women’s Super League I personally hope she remains at least another season and then who knows.
Well that is it from us for the 2019/20 season, it’s not the way we or anyone expected the season to finish but on a positive note Tottenham Women have survived their first season in the top flight and even if the season had played out until the end I believe Tottenham were safe from relagation which is a huge achievement for a newly promoted team in the top flight for the first time. What can we expect from the ladies next season? well why not a challenge for a champions league spot or maybe even challenge for the title. Some may say thats a bit optimistic but you know what they say dream big or don’t dream at all and our Lilywhites have shown that they belong in this league and with the same passion the players have shown this season, a few new experienced additions and the guidence of Juan and Karen and Tottenham can be serious title contenders in the next few years.
I hope when the WSL returns and fans are able to attend matches that we see a HUGE attendance at the Hive for the ladies first home game with fans and I hope that the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium will again host a ladies match in season 2020/21. Until then if you can stay home, stay safe and save lives.
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