When Manuela Paví struck a 91st-minute equaliser for West Ham United women’s team against Manchester City, Princess Ademiluyi was delighted to have a front-row seat to the late, late show.
The 18-year-old spent the first half of the campaign on loan at Barclays Women’s Championship outfit Charlton Athletic and returned to Chadwell Heath in January, as manager Rehanne Skinner wanted to keep the young striker in her squad for the remainder of the season.
Having appeared 17 times for the Hammers after making her debut in March 2023, Ademiluyi was rewarded with her first professional contract with the Club in the summer prior to her loan move to the Addicks, and made her return to the pitch in West Ham colours away at Liverpool in February.
While Ademiluyi was given a six-minute cameo that afternoon on Merseyside, Skinner beckoned the forward back from her warm-up on Wednesday night at Chigwell Construction Stadium just ten minutes after half-time. Having received instructions from the boss and her coaching team, the England U19 international replaced Shelina Zadorsky on 57 minutes.
“Honestly, I didn't really expect it [to come off the bench], so it was nice to get the shinpads on and get running,” beamed Ademiluyi, speaking after the enthralling encounter in east London.
“Whilst I was on the pitch, I felt super focused and people such as Riko [Ueki] were helping me out with the press, and it clicked for me. I was just so excited to be on the pitch.
“I haven’t really experienced that [feeling] of [the team] scoring a goal on the pitch, but to get that feeling again, especially in a game like that when we needed a point, it felt so good.
“Watching how happy she [Paví] was when the ball went in, and seeing that first person, I was like ‘Wow!’.”
During the February international break, Ademiluyi was on target for the Young Lionesses in their Albir Garden Tournament clash with the Netherlands U19s. That clinical finish in Spain and minutes for the Hammers have provided her with the confidence and belief to kick on.
“I feel like since I’ve been back, I feel a lot sharper, more ready,” she said. “Last season, I was 17 and had just come up through the academy, so I feel there’s a big gap between now and then. I feel like I’m definitely ready for that step up.
“I got that goal on international duty, so I’ve got the momentum with me. I was just really happy that Rehanne [Skinner] chose to put me on in a game like that [against Manchester City], especially with that amount of time left in the game, it was really nice.
“The fans are always welcoming, you always hear them on the side. I’m really focused on the pitch, but there was this one time I heard them all shouting my name and it boosted me.”
The 1-1 draw with Gareth Taylor’s side followed a spirited away performance at third-placed Arsenal, which saw the Hammers narrowly fall to a 4-3 loss. But Ademiluyi stated the team learned their lessons from the defeat at Meadow Park and put them into practice against the Citizens.
She said: “After reviewing that game [against Arsenal] with clips at the training ground, we learned how to take the momentum of them scoring into doing what we do. Regardless of them scoring, we still had touches in the box, made chances, and we took it when it came.
“We needed the goal. I feel like we’ve been playing really well over the past couple of games and we just needed some points, so it was really nice to get that at the end.”
