Notts County Ladies Football Club was a
women's football club based in
Nottingham
Nottingham ( , locally ) is a city and unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located north-west of London, south-east of Sheffield and north-east of Birmingham. Nottingham has links to the legend of Robi ...
, England. Like the club's male affiliate
Notts County FC, they played their home games at
Meadow Lane
Meadow Lane Stadium is a football stadium in Nottingham, England. It is the home ground of Notts County, who have played there since it opened in 1910. The stadium was also home to Notts County Ladies F.C. from 2014 until 2017.
It currently h ...
.
Notts County Ladies were created in 2014 when Lincoln Ladies were relocated from
Lincoln
Lincoln most commonly refers to:
* Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), the sixteenth president of the United States
* Lincoln, England, cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England
* Lincoln, Nebraska, the capital of Nebraska, U.S.
* Lincol ...
to Nottingham and rebranded. The club were originally formed in Lincoln in 1995 and also spent a period known as Lincoln City Ladies while affiliated to
Lincoln City.
Sincil Bank
Sincil Bank Stadium, known for sponsorship reasons as LNER Stadium, is a football stadium in Lincoln, England which has been the home of Lincoln City since 1895. Previously, Lincoln City had played at the nearby John O'Gaunts ground since th ...
and other smaller venues staged the club's matches during their time in Lincoln. The club was
named OOH Lincoln Ladies from 2008 until 2010, due to
sponsorship
Sponsoring something (or someone) is the act of supporting an event, activity, person, or organization financially or through the provision of products or services. The individual or group that provides the support, similar to a benefactor, is k ...
from
Ray Trew's OOH Media PLC.
The club withdrew from the
FA WSL 1, the top tier in the
English women's football league system, two days before the start of the
FA WSL Spring Series
The FA WSL Spring Series was an interim edition of the FA WSL between the sixth and seventh full seasons. The Spring Series ran from February to May 2017 to bridge the gap from the 2016 FA WSL season which ran from March to September as a summer t ...
on 21 April 2017.
Lincoln Ladies
Lincoln Ladies FC were founded in 1995 and began playing in the East Midlands Combination League.
The club was promoted in each of the following seasons, bar one, until reaching the
FA Women's Premier League Northern Division
The FA Women's National League Northern Premier Division is a league at the third-level in the women's football league pyramid in England, along with the Southern division. These two divisions are part of the FA Women's National League and bel ...
in 2002.
This feat was achieved with the same core group of players.
The team finished as league runners-up in four successive seasons (2006–07, 2007–08, 2008–09, 2009–10) and reached the semi-final of the
FA Women's Cup
The Women's FA Challenge Cup Competition is the top annual cup tournament for women's clubs in English football. Founded in 1970, it has been named the WFA Cup, FA Women's Cup and now Women's FA Cup (Vitality Women's FA Cup for sponsorship reas ...
in 2007–08.
A five-year sponsorship deal with former
Lincoln City F.C.
Lincoln City Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of Lincoln, England, Lincoln, Lincolnshire, England. The team compete in , the third tier of the English football league system.
Nicknamed the "Imps" aft ...
board member
Ray Trew in June 2008 led to the club's change of name to OOH Lincoln Ladies.
Trew had previously sponsored the club through his SportsTV company, and made available extra funds for signings such as
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
internationals
Kay Hawke and
Amanda Barr to assist the club's promotion bid.
In November 2009 the club announced a bid to join the
FA WSL.
If successful the club planned to divide home games between
Sincil Bank
Sincil Bank Stadium, known for sponsorship reasons as LNER Stadium, is a football stadium in Lincoln, England which has been the home of Lincoln City since 1895. Previously, Lincoln City had played at the nearby John O'Gaunts ground since th ...
and current home,
Ashby Avenue Ashby may refer to:
People
* Ashby (surname)
* Alan la Zouche, 1st Baron la Zouche of Ashby (1267–1314), governor of Rockingham Castle and steward of Rockingham Forest, England
* Walter Ashby Plecker (1861–1947), American physician and public ...
. In 2009–10 they had taken second place in the
FA Women's Premier League Northern Division
The FA Women's National League Northern Premier Division is a league at the third-level in the women's football league pyramid in England, along with the Southern division. These two divisions are part of the FA Women's National League and bel ...
to
Liverpool LFC, after finishing second to
Sunderland WFC,
Nottingham Forest
Nottingham Forest Football Club is an association football club based in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England. Nottingham Forest was founded in 1865 and have been playing their home games at the City Ground, on the banks of the River Tren ...
and
Liverpool LFC in the three previous seasons.
On 22 March 2010 Lincoln were announced as one of the eight
FA WSL teams for the inaugural 2011 season,
which was televised on
ESPN
ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). Th ...
.
In August 2010 the club signed
Jess Clarke and
Sophie Bradley for their
FA WSL campaign. In the same week
Sue Smith Sue Smith may refer to:
* Sue Smith (politician) (born 1951), member of the Tasmanian Legislative Council
* Sue Smith (footballer) (born 1979), English footballer
* Sue Smith (trainer) (born 1948), British horse trainer
* Sue Smith (writer), Austra ...
also joined from
Leeds United
Leeds United Football Club is a professional football club based in Leeds, West Yorkshire in England. The club competes in the Premier League, the highest level of England's football league system, and plays its home matches at Elland Road ...
. Weeks before the start of the new competition, Lincoln made another major signing with the capture of
Casey Stoney
Casey Jean Stoney (born 13 May 1982) is an English professional football manager and former player who is the head coach of San Diego Wave FC. A versatile defender, she was capped more than 100 times for the England women's national footbal ...
from
Chelsea
Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to:
Places Australia
* Chelsea, Victoria
Canada
* Chelsea, Nova Scotia
* Chelsea, Quebec
United Kingdom
* Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames
** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...
.
Stadia
Lincoln Ladies FC ground-shared with
Lincoln United F.C.
Lincoln United Football Club is a football club based in Lincoln, Lincolnshire, England. They are currently members of the and play at Ashby Avenue. Nicknamed the Whites after their home kit colours, they have played at Ashby Avenue since th ...
at
Ashby Avenue Ashby may refer to:
People
* Ashby (surname)
* Alan la Zouche, 1st Baron la Zouche of Ashby (1267–1314), governor of Rockingham Castle and steward of Rockingham Forest, England
* Walter Ashby Plecker (1861–1947), American physician and public ...
after summer 2009.
Before that the club spent three seasons playing in
Collingham, Nottinghamshire at the Station Road ground, which became a "fortress".
In 2002–03 the club played their home games at
Sincil Bank
Sincil Bank Stadium, known for sponsorship reasons as LNER Stadium, is a football stadium in Lincoln, England which has been the home of Lincoln City since 1895. Previously, Lincoln City had played at the nearby John O'Gaunts ground since th ...
and became the first
women's club to play a full season at a professional
Football League stadium.
On 7 January 2013 the club announced that they would play their fixtures for the
2013 FA WSL at Sincil Bank.
Supporters
Lincoln Ladies FC claimed to have had one of the largest fanbases of any
female
Female ( symbol: ♀) is the sex of an organism that produces the large non-motile ova (egg cells), the type of gamete (sex cell) that fuses with the male gamete during sexual reproduction.
A female has larger gametes than a male. Females ...
club in
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
.
The
FA Women's Cup
The Women's FA Challenge Cup Competition is the top annual cup tournament for women's clubs in English football. Founded in 1970, it has been named the WFA Cup, FA Women's Cup and now Women's FA Cup (Vitality Women's FA Cup for sponsorship reas ...
semi-final in 2008 attracted 3,000 fans to
Sincil Bank
Sincil Bank Stadium, known for sponsorship reasons as LNER Stadium, is a football stadium in Lincoln, England which has been the home of Lincoln City since 1895. Previously, Lincoln City had played at the nearby John O'Gaunts ground since th ...
, while over 1,500 attended other high-profile home matches.
By the last two seasons in Lincoln, 2012 and 2013, average home attendances had slumped to 526 and 269 respectively.
Lincoln City Women
In 2019, Nettleham LFC rebranded to
Lincoln City Women F.C. and became the new team affiliated with
Lincoln City F.C.
Lincoln City Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of Lincoln, England, Lincoln, Lincolnshire, England. The team compete in , the third tier of the English football league system.
Nicknamed the "Imps" aft ...
They are often mistaken for Lincoln Ladies but held no connection to the original team.
Notts County Ladies
Move to Nottingham
On 26 April 2013, the club said it would become Notts County Ladies from the 2014 season onwards, but did not reveal logistics of the presumed move to Nottingham. This has not been without controversy. There was talk of creating a wholly new team in Lincoln as a consequence; in 2019, Lincoln City F.C. adopted a team in the
FA Women's National League
The FA Women's National League, formerly WFA National League and FA Women's Premier League (WPL), is a group of six football divisions run by the English Football Association. Founded in 1991 by the Women's Football Association, the League includ ...
. A link with a male club was necessary to meet the criteria for the new two tier FA WSL.
Angry supporters in Lincoln compared the move to the 2003
relocation of Wimbledon F.C. to Milton Keynes.
Folding and relaunch of women's team
The club withdrew from the
FA WSL 1, the top tier in the
English women's football league system, two days before the start of the
FA WSL Spring Series
The FA WSL Spring Series was an interim edition of the FA WSL between the sixth and seventh full seasons. The Spring Series ran from February to May 2017 to bridge the gap from the 2016 FA WSL season which ran from March to September as a summer t ...
on 21 April 2017.
The club created a new women's team for the 2018–19 season as
Notts County Women F.C.
Colours and badge
The playing colours of Notts County Ladies FC were black and white striped shirts and white shorts.
The club also used the same badge as their affiliate club.
Stadia
The rebranding to Notts County for the
2014
File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...
season entailed a relocation to
Meadow Lane
Meadow Lane Stadium is a football stadium in Nottingham, England. It is the home ground of Notts County, who have played there since it opened in 1910. The stadium was also home to Notts County Ladies F.C. from 2014 until 2017.
It currently h ...
,
Nottingham
Nottingham ( , locally ) is a city and unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located north-west of London, south-east of Sheffield and north-east of Birmingham. Nottingham has links to the legend of Robi ...
.
Former players
''For details of former players, see
:Notts County L.F.C. players.''
Managerial statistics
Honours
*
Women's FA Cup
The Women's FA Challenge Cup Competition is the top annual cup tournament for women's clubs in English football. Founded in 1970, it has been named the WFA Cup, FA Women's Cup and now Women's FA Cup (Vitality Women's FA Cup for sponsorship rea ...
: Runners-up 2014–15
*
FA WSL Cup: Runners-up 2015
''As Lincoln Ladies F.C.'':
*
FA WSL Cup: Runners-up 2013
*
FA Women's Premier League Northern Division
The FA Women's National League Northern Premier Division is a league at the third-level in the women's football league pyramid in England, along with the Southern division. These two divisions are part of the FA Women's National League and bel ...
Runners-up (4): 2006–07, 2007–08, 2008–09, 2009–10
* Lincolnshire FA County Cup (7): 2002–03, 2003–04, 2004–05, 2005–06, 2006–07, 2008–09, 2009–10
See also
*
List of women's association football clubs in England and Wales
*
Women's football in England
Women's football has been played in England for over a century, sharing a common history with the men's game as the country in which the Laws of the Game were codified.
Women's football was originally very popular in the early 20th century, b ...
*
List of women's association football clubs
References
{{Notts County F.C.
Defunct women's football clubs in England
Notts County F.C.
Association football clubs established in 1995
1995 establishments in England
FA WSL 1 teams
FA Women's National League teams
2017 disestablishments in England
Association football clubs disestablished in 2017
Defunct football clubs in Nottinghamshire