WSL league 2 team joins the likes of Manchester City in supporting their players further
Monday 21st November 2022
Bristol City women's team will be following in the footsteps of Manchester City, Stoke City, West Bromwich Albion and Livingston in no longer wearing white shorts; the change was seen on Sunday at their latest game against Birmingham in the WSL in front of a 2,988 attendance at Ashton Gate. After the game, Bristol City currently sits second on the WSL League 2 table after winning three of their last five games.
After internal discussions, captain Amiee Palmer- captain of Bristol City- stated “We’re going to play our best football when we’re in the best mindset and that’s the main reason for the change." Bristol City- also commonly referred to as the Robins- will now wear red shorts as their home kit and black shorts for away games (seen below).
Palmer added "we’re seeing other teams in the women’s game starting to make the change, which encouraged us even more to make it a reality. We’ve already had a lot of support internally which has been really important for us – Bristol City is one team.”
Head coach Lauren Smith added: "The confidence and comfort of our players is crucial to get the best result when we step out onto the pitch." Whilst there has been little research on the impacts on women playing on their periods it has been concluded that there is a higher risk of injuries, a dip in performance levels as well as lowered motivation levels; in addition, many players have stated that wearing white on their period is "not practical" (Beth Mead, Arsenal and England striker) and can cause less confidence in the players.
Smith concluded that "We’re proud to be able to support this change and hopefully we can inspire others to start these conversations and make positive steps in women’s football.”
With more teams making these changes to their kits, it may not be long till more WSL or international teams make changes to accommodate female players and increase support in the game.
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