Denise Anne Thomas (born 22 December 1979) is a former international Association football player and

CrossFit CrossFit is a branded fitness regimen that involves constantly varied functional movements performed at high intensity. The method was developed by Greg Glassman, who founded CrossFit with Lauren Jenai in 2000, with CrossFit its registered trad ...

practitioner. She represented

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

at senior level and played club football in England with

Doncaster Belles Doncaster Rovers Belles Ladies Football Club, previously Doncaster Belles, is an English women's football club that currently plays in the , the fourth tier of women's football in England. The club's administration is based at the Eco Power St ...

and Leeds United, as well as in America with

Boston Renegades Boston Renegades was an American women’s soccer team, founded in 2003. The team was a member of the United Soccer Leagues USL W-League, the second tier of women’s soccer in the United States and Canada. The team plays in the Northeast Divisi ...

. Thomas, from

Rotherham Rotherham () is a large minster and market town in South Yorkshire, England. The town takes its name from the River Rother which then merges with the River Don. The River Don then flows through the town centre. It is the main settlement of ...

, began her career in the youth ranks of Chesterfield Ladies. She moved on to

and played in the

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...

club's

2000 FA Women's Cup Final The 2000 FA Women's Cup Final was the 30th final of the FA Women's Cup, England's primary cup competition for women's football teams. It was the seventh final to be held under the direct control of the Football Association (FA). The match was cont ...

defeat. Thomas moved to America that summer on a college scholarship to Central Connecticut State University. She was named Northeast Conference Rookie of the Year in 2000 and Player of the Year in 2001. In February 2002 Thomas returned from America and signed for

Sunderland Sunderland () is a port city in Tyne and Wear, England. It is the City of Sunderland's administrative centre and in the Historic counties of England, historic county of County of Durham, Durham. The city is from Newcastle-upon-Tyne and is on t ...

, who were bottom of the Premier League National Division. When Sunderland were relegated she moved to Leeds United and enrolled at

the Football Association The Football Association (also known as The FA) is the Sports governing body, governing body of association football in England and the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Bailiwick of Guernsey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. Formed in 1863, it is the ...

(FA) Player Development Centre at

Loughborough University Loughborough University (abbreviated as ''Lough'' or ''Lboro'' for post-nominals) is a public research university in the market town of Loughborough, Leicestershire, England. It has been a university since 1966, but it dates back to 1909, when L ...

. She had also been approached by

Birmingham City Birmingham City Football Club is a professional football club based in Birmingham, England. Formed in 1875 as Small Heath Alliance, it was renamed Small Heath in 1888, Birmingham in 1905, and Birmingham City in 1943. Since 2011, the first te ...

manager

Marcus Bignot Marcus Bignot (born 22 August 1974) is an English football manager and former professional player. He is currently assistant coach of the England U19s and first-team coach at Cheltenhham Town. Bignot's playing career spanned nearly 20 years, ...

during the summer. In the middle of the 2002–03 season Thomas left Leeds and went back to America to complete her degree. Thomas joined W-League club

for their 2005 season. In 2008, she was introduced to

and began competing the following year.

References

External links

Denise Thomas
at

UEFA Union of European Football Associations (UEFA ; french: Union des associations européennes de football; german: Union der europäischen Fußballverbände) is one of six continental bodies of governance in association football. It governs f ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Thomas, Denise 1979 births Living people Republic of Ireland women's association footballers Republic of Ireland women's international footballers Doncaster Rovers Belles L.F.C. players Leeds United Women F.C. players Sunderland A.F.C. Ladies players FA Women's National League players Footballers from Rotherham CrossFit athletes Women's association football midfielders Central Connecticut Blue Devils women's soccer players USL W-League (1995–2015) players Boston Renegades players Irish expatriate sportspeople in the United States Expatriate women's soccer players in the United States