The Women’s Championship attendance record is set to be not merely broken but shattered into smithereens on Sunday when a crowd of more than 20,000 is expected to converge on the Stadium of Light for the Wear-Tyne derby.
“I don’t buy that it’s just another game,” says the Newcastle head coach, Becky Langley. “Sunderland’s a special match, incredibly important for our region, where you need incredible focus. There’s always that extra bite in a derby and the girls are saying they don’t want to get beat by the Mackems. We’ve got to be bold. We can’t be vanilla.”
Langley was mentored as a young coach by Sunderland’s manager, Melanie Reay, but their enduring bond has morphed into a friendly rivalry as their teams compete to reach the Women’s Super League.
Given that the top flight contains no team north of the M62 and its composition is heavily tilted towards London, a glaring regional imbalance is apparent. “We all know a north-east team needs to be in the WSL,” says Langley. “Rivalries aside, both Mel and I want to see north-east women’s football doing well. To have one or more of our teams, and I include Durham [also in the Championship] in that, would be really important for women’s football in England.”
Backed by Newcastle’s wealthy Saudi Arabian owners, Langley’s team have climbed two divisions in three seasons and are on a mission to reach the top flight as soon as possible. Sunderland’s owner, Kyril Louis-Dreyfus, anxious not to be eclipsed, is determined to return the club to an elite division they once regarded as their natural habitat and was encouraged by last season’s third-place Championship finish.
It helps that Sunderland and Newcastle – mid-table after four matches – are backed by the sort of partisan support sometimes still lacking in women’s football. “Our fans are really loud and travel in such numbers,” says Langley. “At away games last season they outnumbered the home supporters. When we went to London City Lionesses at the start of this season the whole stadium was black and white.”
With Sunderland fans similarly passionate, Stadium of Light executives are confident Sunday’s crowd will comfortably exceed the record 11,137 that turned out to watch Sheffield United play London City in the second tier two years ago.
A string of England’s current and recent Lionesses – Lucy Bronze, Beth Mead, Steph Houghton, Jill Scott, Jordan Nobbs, Carly Telford, Demi Stokes and Lucy Staniforth – began their careers at Sunderland, and interest in women’s football in the north-east has traditionally been strong. “Let’s hope that, soon, top players won’t have to leave the north-east for an Arsenal or a Manchester City in order to play for England,” says Langley.
Stokes has switched to Newcastle after a long stint at Manchester City. “Demi’s phenomenal, she’s been brilliant,” says Langley. “She’s been speaking to the group about her experiences playing for England this week. She’s an incredible leader.”
Newcastle’s head coach receives staunch support from Newcastle’s sporting director, Paul Mitchell, after apparently bonding with Dan Ashworth’s successor somewhat faster than her men’s counterpart, Eddie Howe.
“I had a really good relationship with Dan but my relationship with Paul’s very strong,” she says. “He’s been great. He got to know me during a few chats over coffee and he’s been really supportive. I can’t talk highly enough of him and James Bunce [Newcastle’s performance director].”
It also helps that Howe and his assistant, Jason Tindall, are interested in Langley’s work. “Eddie’s a great guy, he’s really keen for us to keep progressing,” says Langley. “There’s so much we can learn from his and Jason’s coaching philosophy. Their knowledge is so rich and they’re so willing to share it.”
