Emily Allen (born 29 January 1992) is a Welsh

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...

born in

Whitehaven Whitehaven is a town and port on the English north west coast and near to the Lake District National Park in Cumbria, England. Historically in Cumberland, it lies by road south-west of Carlisle and to the north of Barrow-in-Furness. It is th ...

Cumbria Cumbria ( ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in North West England, bordering Scotland. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local government, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumb ...

, England. She played for FA Women's National League South team

Oxford United Oxford United Football Club is a professional football club in the city of Oxford, England. The team plays in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. The chairman is Grant Ferguson, the manager is Karl Robinson and t ...

as a midfielder and striker until 2021. In 2021 she returned to

Cardiff Met , image_name = Shield of Cardiff Metropolitan University.svg , image_size = 150px , motto = cy, Gorau Meddiant Gwybodaeth , mottoeng = The most valuable possession is knowledge , established = 2011 – Car ...

Career

Allen started playing football in

Ashton Keynes Ashton Keynes is a village and civil parish in north Wiltshire, England which borders with Gloucestershire. The village is about south of Cirencester and west of Cricklade. At the 2011 census the population of the parish, which includes the ...

Wiltshire Wiltshire (; abbreviated Wilts) is a historic and ceremonial county in South West England with an area of . It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset to the southwest, Somerset to the west, Hampshire to the southeast, Gloucestershire ...

when she was 5 and coached by her father. She later moved to Swindon Town Ladies followed by Swindon Badgers before joining

Cirencester Town F.C. Cirencester Town Football Club is a football club based in Cirencester, Gloucestershire, England. Affiliated to the Gloucestershire County FA, the club are currently members of the and play at the Corinium Stadium. History The club was estab ...

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( abbreviated Glos) is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn and the entire Forest of Dean. The county town is the city of Gl ...

. In 2008, when she turned 16, Allen signed a contract with

FA Women's Premier League National Division The FA Women's Premier League National Division (originally WFA National League Premier Division) was a football division in England. From 1991 until 2010, the National Division functioned as the top league in English women's football. Durin ...

team

Bristol Academy W.F.C. Bristol City Women's Football Club is a women's association football team from the city of Bristol. Formed in 1998 as Bristol Rovers W.F.C., they were renamed Bristol Academy W.F.C. in 2005 following increased involvement of the Bristol Academ ...

as she was unable to sign a contract until then. In 2010, she was part of the Filton Academy team that reached the final of the English Schools Cup when she was 18. Later in the year, Allen made her first team debut for Bristol Academy coming on as a substitute against Everton Ladies in the FA Women's Premier League National Division. Allen then joined Cardiff Met. Ladies in 2011. While playing for Cardiff, in 2013, Allen set a Welsh Premier Women's Football League record by scoring 15 goals in one game against Caerphilly Castle F.C. In 2015, Allen played for Cardiff Met. Ladies in the

UEFA Women's Champions League The UEFA Women's Champions League, previously called the UEFA Women's Cup (2001–2009), is a European women's association football competition. It involves the top club teams from countries affiliated with the European governing body UEFA. The ...

and scored the team's only goal in the campaign. She was later named as the team captain, and also took the team's

penalty kick A penalty shot or penalty kick is a play used in several sports whereby a goal is attempted during untimed play. Depending on the sport, when a player commits certain types of penalties, the opposition is awarded a penalty shot or kick attempt. ...

s. In 2021 she rejoined Cardiff Met.

Personal life

As well as playing football, during her youth Allen played cricket for the youth team of

Gloucestershire County Cricket Club Gloucestershire County Cricket Club is one of eighteen first-class county clubs within the domestic cricket structure of England and Wales. It represents the historic county of Gloucestershire. Founded in 1870, Gloucestershire have always ...

. Allen studied for a National Diploma in Sports Development at

Filton College Filton is a town and civil parish in South Gloucestershire, England, north of Bristol. Along with nearby Patchway and Bradley Stoke, Filton forms part of the Bristol urban area and has become an overflow settlement for the city. Filton Church d ...

South Gloucestershire and Stroud College South Gloucestershire and Stroud College, also known as SGS College, is a college of further education and higher education based in South Gloucestershire and Stroud, England. It was established in February 2012 following the merger of Filton Co ...

in Bristol. Allen has now completed BSc in Sports Coaching.

References

External links

WPSL profile
* Footballers from Whitehaven Welsh women's footballers Bristol Academy W.F.C. players Cardiff Met. Ladies F.C. players Welsh Premier Women's Football League players 1992 births Living people Women's association football midfielders Oxford United W.F.C. players {{Wales-footy-midfielder-stub