The Female Talent Pathway was launched as a sustainable replacement to the outgoing FA Regional Talent centres at the end of the 2022/23 season.

Staff from Derby County Community Trust, who had previously run the talent centres, and Derby County Women’s youth team coaches, worked together to establish the new pathway, which sees nine teams, from Under 10 to Under 20 level, represent Derby County in local and regional leagues.

The aim of the pathway is to create future first-team players, and with five of the Under 18s and Under 20s already making their first team debut this season, its success is already apparent.

With over 750 girls trialling for the teams ahead of the 2023/24 season, the appetite for, and growth of, female football is clear to see, and as we recognise the Her Game Too movement today, we’re shining a light on the achievements of our players this year.

Our Under 10s, under 11s and Under 12s make up our Foundation Phase, and play in the Derby Junior Football leagues, and have been gaining great experience through playing mainly male teams. The lower two age groups play non-competitively against other local teams, and the Under 12s have just been crowned winners of their league at the first time of asking!

Sponsored by NSX Sports, ORO Wellbeing and Aggregate Industries respectively, the girls have represented the pathway excellently all season, and you’ll also see our Under 12s acting as tonight’s ball girls, to mark the Her Game too occasion.

The next three age groups, under 13s, Under 14s and Under 15s, make our Youth Development Phase. All teams play in the Junior Premier League, and have seen some great results across the season, with the Under 13s reaching the semi-final of the national cup, where they were narrowly defeated by Arsenal.

The Under 14s look set to finish towards the top of their league, after playing some good football all season. Sponsors Midland Lead continue to support the team as they look to their last handful of fixtures.

Our Under 15s and 16s will also be present at tomorrow’s Derby County match and will be welcoming the teams to the pitch at Pride Park. The stadium will also play host to the Derby County Women’s first team at the end of this month, when they take on Nottingham Forest (Sunday 31st March, 2pm kick-off).

Their respective sponsors, Bates Weston and Midland Automotive Group, have continued to back the girls throughout the season.

At the highest end of the pathway, in our Professional Development phase, our Under 18s and Under 20s have both had excellent seasons. The Under 18s, sponsored by Hellmann Logistics, are currently in a top of the table tussle with their counterparts at Nottingham Forest, and will play in the Junior Premier League national cup final in the coming weeks.

The Under 20s, sponsored by Unite the Union, have recorded an unbeaten run of games to date, and comfortably sit at the top of the FA Women’s National League – Reserve Midland Division, alongside preparing for the County Cup final which will take place in early May.

Five players from the older squads have also marked their first team debuts this season: Eve Shepherd, Katrina St John, Charlie Duffy, Amy Cotton and Isabel Sheridan – with the latter also representing the winning England Colleges team in a recent international tournament.

The success of the pathway this season is testament to the hard work of the players, commitment of staff who have united from across the Community Trust and Derby County Women, and the ongoing support of sponsors who have made the opportunities financially viable for many involved.

Trials for next year’s talent pathway teams will take place in the summer, and players can register their interest at any time through the Derby County Community Trust website

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