Division One North Title Contenders: Chorley FC Women.

Photography by John Shirras

Chorley Women FC: Tier 3 contenders?

Chorley Women FC recorded a relatively mediocre campaign in 23/24 as they finished 8th in the Division 1 North of the FA Women’s National League finishing on 25 points. This season, Carmelo Ruggeri’s side have already bettered this total, and currently sit on 26 points in 2nd place, having only played 13 games in the league.

After having made some impressive summer signings such as Pakistani international Sanah Mehdi, Chorley currently sit in second place only 3 points behind leaders Cheadle Town Stingers and have a game in hand. Out of their 13 league games, they have won 8, drew 2 and lost 3 and the league is now set for an exciting end to the season.

Standout Players and Key Contributions:

Their impressive results are partly due to the goals scored by their top goal scorer and number 7 Molly Wood. The prolific forward has been a key asset to the team’s forward line and has scored an impressive 9 goals in 14 appearances for the club.

Another crucial player is the club’s number 12 Nicola Worthington, who has been voted player of the match a huge 5 times this season already. Her long range strikes are enough to strike fear into any keepers in the Division One North.

Key Results so far:

October was a bright month for Chorley and they recorded a total of 7 out of 9 points available in the league as well as a crucial draw against promotion rivals Middlesborough. This unbeaten form led to their manager Carmelo Ruggeri being nominated as the FAWNL manager of the month for October.

Another crucial league result for Chorley is the 1-0 win Huddersfield Town which came in early september. In this encounter, it was Millie Fitzpatrick’s goal who made the difference and captain Megan Searson put in an impressive performance to claim the opposition player of the match.

County Cup Run:

Despite having been knocked out of the League Cup by their promotion rivals Cheadle Town Stingers, Chorley have their sights set on glory in the Lancashire FA County Cup. They have already marked up two big victories against Darwen FC Women and Fleetwood Town Wrens scoring a total of 9 goals between these two games.

They are now set to play in a final against Tier 3 opposition Burnley on the 20th March. This is set to a highly entertaining match where both teams will give their all to get their hands on the silverware.

Big Signings:

Sanah Medhi, who attended training camps to represent Pakistan internationally in October, has undoubtedly been a positive summer signing for Chorley. As well as that, Chorley did good business in the summer as the signing of Molly Wood from a lower league has paid off as she has become their top scorer.

Upcoming Fixtures: Can they push on?

As we move towards the business end of the season, Chorley have some massive fixtures coming up as they look to continue their title charge. Having already lost twice against their main rivals Cheadle Town Stingers (once in the league and once in the cup) the return fixture on the 23rd of February will be an opportunity to settle old scores and to close the 3 point gap.

Chorley also are set to play fellow promotion rivals Middlesborough on the 2nd of February and Leeds United on the 13th April. These will be crucial matches as Leeds and Middlesborough sit in 3rd and 4th place respectively and only one point behind Chorley.

The club as a whole:

Chorley FC are a progressive club who are self-funded and primarily rely on the help of volunteers who are passionate about furthering the Women’s game. The pathway into the club is boosted by the fact that Chorley currently boasts 3 teams: an U18s side, a Development side and the First Team. It is also a team with a history of supporting the women’s game and has included a women’s team since 1978.

As we move into the month of February make sure to watch out for Chorley’s promotion bid!