Women’s Football Key Figures: Hope Powell 5/5 (1)

The meteoric rise of women’s football over the last few years has been a warmly welcomed one. Both investment and coverage have seen substantial increases and even at grassroots level, the game continues to grow. Girls Football Week runs from 6 Nov – 12 Nov and amongst our ambitions to raise further awareness for this side of the game along with increasing participation levels, we bring you the second of our detailed profiles examining key figures in the women’s game. This time we focus on Hope Powell – the former England Women’s coach who registered a number of firsts during her tenure and almost became the first female coach to take over the reigns at a professional men’s club.

It seems rather fitting that Powell began making headlines from an early age after rules prohibited the 12-year-old from representing her school team any longer. Despite the inability to play in mixed teams after the age of 11, the teacher responsible for running the team appealed the ban – not because of his interest in gender equality, but rather a pragmatic desire to field his strongest team.

Following this debacle, Powell moved on to play club football for the local Millwall Lionesses instead. It was here that a significant bond would blossom between herself and coach Alan May – a Senior Manager with British Telecom – who taught her the importance of people management skills and helped shape her into the coach she eventually became. It’s clear to see the impact May had on Powell’s outlook and coaching style and offers no surprise when she later hired him as Head Scout after becoming England manager.

At age 17, Powell was awarded her England debut by then manager Martin Reagan during a Euro qualifying game against Republic of Ireland which ended in a 6-0 win. She followed this up by playing in the final of the 1984 European Championships as England were beaten by Sweden on penalties.

Two years after her making her England debut, Powell passed her preliminary coaching award at the tender age of only 19. This would serve as the first of various qualifications that she would acquire both during her playing days and post-retirement.

An 11-year stay at Millwall came to an end in 1987 when she joined fellow London rivals, Friends of Fulham. This period of her career was by and large, one of the more understated times for her. It proved important to her continued growth both on and off the field, however, and culminated with an appearance at the Women’s FA Cup final in 1989. Powell scored twice and was the standout performer for her team on the day. Sadly, the game provided a bitter end to her time with FOF as they were defeated 3-2 by Leasowe Pacific.

She returned to the Millwall Lionesses where she became the club’s all-time record goal scorer – an achievement that was accomplished from a midfield position, making it all the more impressive.

In 1990, Powell graduated from Brunel University in London with a degree in Sport Science and History. A year later, Powell tasted her first success as a footballer with a return to the Women’s FA Cup final in which the Millwall Lionesses defeated Doncaster Belles 1-0. That same year, she also helped her side win the Greater London League, ultimately qualifying them for the inaugural National Division in 1991-92.

Unfortunately, the team disbanded in the aftermath of their success, resulting in Powell forming a new club in Bromley Borough alongside teammate Sue Law. Beginning in the South-East Counties League, the club quickly progressed through the divisions. The addition of England international Brenda Sempare counterbalanced by less senior figures including Powell herself helped guide Bromley to promotion into the top flight of English Women’s football in 1993-94.

After securing promotion, the club entered a partnership with Croydon FC the following year. Powell’s own individual contributions did not go unnoticed, either. She and five of her teammates represented England at the 1995 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Sweden.

Powell’s continued leadership rewarded her the captaincy for her club where she enjoyed a domestic double during the 1995-96 season. During the FA Women’s Cup final versus Liverpool, Powell equalised during ninety minutes before converting her penalty in a shootout that Croydon won.

A gruelling end of season fixture backlog saw her team play five games in the space of ten days, winning four and drawing one to dismantle Doncaster’s 13-point lead at the top and ultimately win the NPD on goal difference.

During the latter stages of her playing career, Powell worked as a development officer for Lewisham London Borough Council and in Crystal Palace FC’s community outreach scheme. She had also been a volunteer coach at soccer camps in the US. Ted Copeland, England Women’s manager between 1993 and 1998, encouraged Powell to complete the FA’s new female mentoring scheme and obtain her B license whilst still playing – a decision that Powell acted upon and that put her further ahead of the curve.

The 1997-98 season proved disappointing for Powell whose Croydon side lost both domestic cup finals to Arsenal. She missed out on the chance to claim a third winner’s medal in the FA Women’s Cup final ending 3-2 despite her scoring the second goal for her team. This occasion marked the end of an era for Powell who agreed to take over as England coach and officially retired from playing, opening up a new chapter in her career.

At 31, Powell became the youngest ever England coach, as well as the first female coach, first non-white coach and first full-time coach to hold the international position.

Her first competitive fixture in charge ended in a 2-0 defeat to Norway in August 1998. After being consigned to last place in their group at the European Championships, England faced a relegation play-off game against Romania. But this game held stakes that were far more troubling than Powell could have imagined – had England lost, they faced being demoted to B level and therefore no longer able to qualify for major tournaments. A substantial reduction in funding was also looming over her and her team prior to the game. Fortunately, England won the tie 6-2 on aggregate and maintained their position with the elite.

Powell steered England through to the 2001 Euro tournament in Germany via the play-offs, despite recording their biggest loss in an 8-0 thrashing away to Norway. However, they did not advance beyond the group stages.

But following this disappointment, Powell was more determined than ever to succeed. 2003 marked a momentous occasion for her and the women’s game when she was awarded a UEFA Pro Licence – the coveted qualification for coaches. This established her as the first female to hold the certificate and sparked a wave of figures inside the game to take notice of her achievement.

During the next major tournament, England automatically qualified as hosts of the 2005 UEFA Women’s Euros. Again, unfortunately, they failed to make it to the semi-finals of the competition, coming unstuck at the group stages following tough fixtures.

The Three Lions qualified unbeaten for the 2007 World Cup in China which ended a 12-year hiatus from the competition. After coming second in their group, they progressed into the quarter-finals where a resilient United States team dispatched them in a 3-0 victory.

Following this improvement, central contracts were issued in May 2009, allowing players to focus on full-time training without having to fit football around full-time employment. At the European Championships in Finland three months later, Powell and her England side rewarded the FA and the entire nation by reaching the final for the first time in 25 years. They lost 6-2 to reigning champions Germany but gave a taster of the progression they’d made under Powell’s leadership.

Her team’s performance at the Euros attracted a lot of attention from across the game, including the men’s side. Grimsby Town were supposedly the ones interested in appointing Powell as a replacement for the recently sacked Mike Newell. This would have broken uncharted territory for the sport had it come to fruition but alas, it was not meant to be. Instead, caretaker manager Neil Woods was hired in a permanent capacity.

England reached their third World Cup in 2011 where they topped Group B – positioned ahead of eventual winners Japan. Their quarter-final game ended in a 1-1 draw before England were ultimately knocked out via a penalty shootout.

After the haziness surrounding Powell’s potential appointment at Grimsby Town in 2009, a legitimate job in the men’s game was offered to her in 2012. Powell, however, rejected the position on the basis of it being an Olympic year and her desire to follow through with managing Team GB. The team participated at the London 2012 Olympics, reaching the quarter-finals following three consecutive wins during the group stages.

The 2013 UEFA Women’s Euros proved to be Powell’s final tournament as England gaffer. Following her side’s poor display which saw them bottom of their group, registering only one point, she was sacked from the role. But that won’t overshadow the long-lasting effects of Powell’s time in charge, namely the structure that has contributed significantly to the Lionesses’ recent success.

Following her dismissal, Powell enjoyed advisory roles for governing bodies including a technical observer position at UEFA, instructing and consulting for FIFA and working for the Professional Footballers’ Association. Her conscious decision to try her hand in a variety of different roles is a testament to how audacious she is both as a person and as a coach.

Several international vacancies were made available to her, one only a matter of weeks after leaving her position with England, but she turned down the opportunity in favour of remaining in the country.

She made great use of her time during this period, even writing and publishing her own autobiography, “Hope: My Life in Football”.

2017 signalled Hope Powell’s return to the sidelines after a four-year absence. She currently resides as first-team manager of Brighton & Hove Albion’s women’s team which presents an unrivalled opportunity to build a club from loose foundations. With potential promotion to the WSL1 and full-time employment on the horizon for her squad, Powell has a real opportunity to rival, or even surpass, her achievements as England manager; and who knows, we can’t be too far away from an announcement of the first female coach in the men’s game.

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