Middlesbrough Women missed out on England Lioness heroes but are now dreaming of WSL push

Middlesbrough Women are taking huge strides to ensure that they have a team that reflects the enormous talent pool in the area.

The north east is responsible for producing many of the biggest stars in English women’s football, with Jordan Nobbs and global superstar Beth Mead hailing from Teesside.

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But while both players successfully made it to the top of the game, the lack of a credible women’s team in Middlesbrough meant that the two players would have to move further north to rivals Sunderland to get their big opportunity in the game.

Formed in 1976, Middlesbrough Women operated as a separate entity to Middlesbrough Football Club, leaving them strapped for cash and support as they floundered in the lower reaches of the English pyramid.

Currently in Women’s National League Division One North – the fourth tier of English football – Boro Women chairman Ben Fisher spoke to talkSPORT.com about what the affiliation means and his new role as general manager of MFC’s newest addition.

“I was secretary at the time of the England vs Brazil game at the Riverside and we were guests of Adrian Bevington, the club’s head of recruitment operations.” Fisher said.

“I’d talked to him and Adrian was keen on bringing the Women’s team across to the main club but unfortunately, Adrian lost his job in the December.

“The conversations carried on going for about three years and finally they made the decision to go ahead with it and bring the team across.”

Speaking about losing Nobbs and Mead to rivals Sunderland, Fisher added: “I wasn’t involved at the club at the time but I have a feeling that as a club, we just couldn’t match their ambition. They wanted to play at a higher level and on a higher platform, but now as part of the club I feel we can match their ambitions.

“There will be no need for these players to go further afield as they’ll be able to fulfill their potential on Teesside.”

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“It’s absolutely massive,” Fisher said. “It means that the players will be training Rockliffe Park and playing at the Riverside Stadium and representing the club really. We’ll be able to pay players now whereas in the past nobody has been paid.

“We’ve struggled previously when clubs have been involved in affiliating with the men’s teams because we couldn’t compete with them. The likes of Newcastle in our league and in the league above you’ve got Wolves, Burnley, Nottingham Forest and there was no way we could compete.

“Now, I feel like we’re on a level playing field and it’s our turn to kick on.”

As part of the merger, Middlesbrough appointed Mick Mulhern as their new head coach, a man who has a wealth of experience managing Sunderland Ladies, where he nurtured the talents of Jill Scott, Steph Houghton, Lucy Bronze and Middlesbrough’s own Beth Mead, before joining the FA as a scout and more recently, a coach for England’s developmental sides.

“Mick will be absolutely massive,” said Fisher. “When Andy [Campbell] decided to leave as head coach before the end of the season, Mick was my number one target to be manager. His experience is second-to-none, he’s had Sunderland in the WSL, he’s got to the FA Cup final and won League Cups with them and probably brought through half of that Lionesses team that won the Euros last year.

“In his current role with the FA he’s been a scout for the juniors sections for the England set-up and so he knows the full spectrum of who is there, who is coming through, who the good players are now and obviously he knows the international superstars.

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“His knowledge is second-to-none and it’ll be crucial in helping us to where we want to go.”

The affiliation between Middlesbrough FC and Middlesbrough Woman may not have happened if it wasn’t for the stunning rise in stature of the women’s game, thanks in part to the Lionesses’ huge success in the Euros in 2022.

Fisher said: “It’s been unbelievable. You just couldn’t have expected it to be as quick in becoming as popular as it has become.

“Even before the Euros success and in the last World Cup, the numbers have started to come through in the junior levels and when England won last summer the numbers have gone through the roof.

“I expect junior girls’ football on Teesside to go on another dramatic rise this summer, but either way, I think the game is just going to continue to rise and get bigger and bigger.”

He added: “Initiatives like ‘Her Game Too’ have been huge. These campaigns have made it more mainstream and more people have become aware of women’s football because of those campaigns.

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“At the final of the Euros last summer there were men going with Beth Mead shirts, you know, it’s not just women who are interested in women’s football. Across the population, everybody wants the England team to do well and hopefully that cascades into helping Middlesbrough to get a larger support to help us to do well as well.”

Playing in the fourth tier of the Women’s pyramid, Middlesbrough Women face a real mix in terms of the calibre of club that they come up against.

While Barnsley, Hull City, Leeds United and Doncaster Rovers will all compete in the league, they’ll also face local sides including Chester-le-Street Town, Durham Cestria and Norton & Stockton Ancients, a representation of where Boro Women have so far pitched themselves.

However with Newcastle Women – now part of Newcastle United – securing promotion to the third tier last season, Fisher says that having the backing of Middlesbrough FC will hopefully see the club push on towards upper echelons of the system.

“In the short-term, we want to get out of this league as quickly as possible. We want to be at the top table and fighting for major honours, but we know it’s not going to happen overnight.

“It’s important that we build a solid foundation so that we don’t become a flash in the pan. We don’t just want to go up one league and then stagnate, we want to move forward, keep going and I think that everything is now in place for us to be able to do that.”

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Asked about ambitions of playing in the WSL, Fisher said: “That’s the dream to be playing in the top league and there’s no reason why we can’t. Mick’s done it with Sunderland previously and with the backing of the club – you know what the chairman’s like at Middlesbrough [Steve Gibson], he wants success.

“We’re not there to just be a successful business, we want to be a successful football club and that’s what we’ll strive to be.”