West Ham United women’s team v Manchester City
Barclays Women’s Super League, Chigwell Construction Stadium, Sunday 1 October 2023, 3pm BST.
West Ham United women’s team are back in Barclays Women’s Super League action on Sunday, as the 2023/24 campaign begins.
The Hammers start a new era under new Manager, Rehanne Skinner, who will be taking charge of her first competitive fixture since being appointed in July.
With new faces aplenty, the stage is set for an exciting opening fixture in east London!
Here is everything you need to know ahead of the game!
Tickets
You can watch the women’s team on the opening day from just £13 for Adults and £5 for Juniors.
Tickets are available to purchase online by clicking here!
We strongly recommend buying your tickets in advance, but a number of tickets will be available to purchase from the ticket office at Chigwell Construction Stadium on the day of the game.
Our ticket office will open from 1pm on matchday.
Matchday Information
Clubs across the Barclays Women’s Super League and Championship will be paying tribute to Sheffield United's Maddy Cusack, who sadly passed away last week.
A period of silence will take place before kick-off, with players from both teams wearing black armbands to remember Maddy. The thoughts of everyone at West Ham United are with Maddy’s friends, family, teammates and colleagues at this difficult time.
Our Official Programme will be available at both men’s and women’s matches this week, with both sides playing at home across the same weekend!
Priced at £4, you can pick up your programme from official sellers when entering the ground. Packed inside the 116-page issue is content from both men’s and women’s first teams and includes words from Rehanne Skinner and Mackenzie Arnold ahead of the new season.
How to follow
The fixture will be shown live on the FA Player, which you can watch for free!
Alternatively, you can also follow the action across our social media channels, while highlights and exclusive reactions will follow after the final whistle on whufc.com.
The Opposition
Despite suffering their lowest Barclays Women’s Super League finish last season since 2014, Manchester City are firm contenders for this year’s crown.
Boasting England stars Chloe Kelly, Lauren Hemp and Alex Greenwood, alongside Japanese standout and former Hammer Yui Hasegawa, Jamaican skipper Khadija Shaw and fierce new signing Jill Roord, the Citizens are a team filled with passion, finesse and technical ability.
Although City didn’t achieve what they wanted last campaign, they’ve been focused and clinical during preseason. With wins over Everton, Bristol City and Liverpool this past month, they’re not a team to be underestimated.
Gareth Taylor’s team had a relatively stable and quiet transfer window leading up to the 2023/24 campaign compared to the previous summer.
Dutch international Jill Roord arrived at Joie Stadium from Wolfsburg, whilst Hayley Raso departed for Real Madrid. Returning loanees Ruby Mace and Jess Park are back in City Blue after successful spells with both Leicester City and Everton respectively.
This will be Taylor’s fourth season since taking charge of Manchester City, and his statistics are nothing short of impressive.
The former City striker has led the Blues to 79 victories of the 109 games he’s overseen across all competitions, for a win percentage of 72%. Most of those triumphs have come in the WSL.
Since taking the reins from Nick Cushing in May 2020, Taylor’s side have only drawn eight games and lost 22 times. During his tenure, the 50-year-old has also earned two pieces of silverware – the FA Cup and the Continental Tyres League Cup.
Previous Meetings
The Hammers have faced the Blues 12 times since 2018, but luck hasn’t been on their side. West Ham’s only win came in 2021, with City claiming the other 11 matches.
Last time out, in April of this year, Gareth Taylor’s squad secured a 6-2 win at Joie Stadium.
West Ham’s only victory came on 3 October 2021, when goals from Dagný Brynjarsdóttir and Yui Hasegawa secured a famous win.
Watch West Ham United women's team in their first Barclays Women's Super League match of the season! Purchase your ticket by clicking on the graphic below!
