For Katie Chapman, 2015 is proving a year to remember. There was her recall to the England squad for the World Cup in Canada followed by an impressive role in the Lionesses’ bronze-medal finish. Next, came Chelsea’s FA Cup win and now the double is in touching distance. A home victory against Sunderland in Sunday’s final round of Women’s Super League fixtures will guarantee the title.
“This really has been the perfect year,” says the Chelsea captain who will be cheered on by her husband and three sons on Sunday evening. “And now we want to make history by winning the league for the first time.”
Not that Chapman is remotely complacent about the threat posed by Manchester City. Two points behind Emma Hayes’s team, City have turned into an almost irresistible force during the second half of the WSL season, recovering from an alarmingly iffy start to take the title race down to the wire.
Chelsea are well aware a draw with Sunderland will not be quite sufficient to retain top spot should City beat Notts County at home by two goals or more. “It’s good for the fans,” says Chapman. “It keeps everyone on the edge of their seats.”
Extra spice is provided by Sunderland’s decent record against the west London side, something emphasised by Carlton Fairweather’s players winning the reverse fixture this season 4-0, with the prolific Beth Mead registering a hat-trick.
“A really bad day at the office,” recalls Chapman. “But we can put things right in front of our fans on Sunday.”
The 33-year-old midfielder has been thrilled to see Chelsea’s crowds “more than double” since England’s Canadian odyssey. “It’s been nice,” says Chapman, who spends weekends juggling her own football commitments with those of 12-year-old Harvey (whose junior match she will watch on Sunday morning) and six-year-old Riley.
Things will become even more complicated when two-year-old Zachary gets his first pair of boots but, ably supported by her husband, Mark, an electrician, Chapman has no plans to retire any time soon.
If the new-found respect she commands from her sons’ schoolfriends is “nice”, she relishes playing for Hayes. “Emma’s a fantastic coach,” she says. “And for the league’s only female manager to be so close to the title is brilliant.”
With the Football Association stipulating that all coaches in the increasingly professional, fast improving WSL hold the Uefa A Licence (a qualification few British women currently possess), Hayes remains in splendid isolation.
“It’s a difficult one. You want the best coaches regardless of gender,” says Kelly Simmons, the FA’s director of the national game. “But we’re very mindful of the need to develop female coaches.”
Some of the next batch may yet emerge from the England players currently starring at Chelsea and City. While Chapman plays alongside her international team-mates Claire Rafferty, Eniola Aluko and Fran Kirby, the Lionesses at City are Steph Houghton, Lucy Bronze, Jill Scott, Karen Bardsley and Toni Duggan.
For the moment at least the closest of international team-mates have been transformed into bitter rivals. “The squad we had in Canada was the best, the most together I’ve been part of with England,” says Chapman. “But, since coming back, we haven’t had too much contact with the City girls.”
