In the final part of our review of the 2025/26 season, Charli, Jeremy and Simon share their thoughts on whether LCFC Women can bounce back to the WSL at the first time of asking – amid deeper questions about the long-term stability of the club.
Charli Parkes
I couldn’t actually watch most of Saturday’s game as I was on my sister-in-law and future brother-in-law’s sten do weekend. In an amazing house in the Peak District with incredible views, it was hard to complain too much about being distracted from what I was sure would be at least 90-minutes of nail biting torture. However, I did feel pangs of guilt that I wasn’t able to go and lend my voice to the travelling support, to will on a group of players who I do believe want to fight for the badge and each other.
During our afternoon walk, my husband kept me updated with the score and stats. From what I could gather, as expected, we were largely on top while Charlton sat back, as they have done all season, and waited for an opportunity to counterattack. And we did what we’ve done all season – huffed and puffed, executed good “processes”, but not got the bloody ball over the line.
The longer it stayed 0-0, the more confident I was in our fate. We’d either concede a silly goal from a counterattack, or we’d lose on penalties. Charlton’s keeper Sophie Whitehouse has been their player of the season, and should be commended for her heroics, but a team that has scored 11 goals all season were never going to be favourites in a shoot-out.
I wrote some of this section pre-8am on Saturday morning, looking out at the Derbyshire Dales, knowing that no matter the outcome, my feeling would be the same. It’s been, quite frankly, an embarrassing season. Next term, an attitude adjustment is needed from the people that are running this women’s team. Are we serious about being in the top flight? Do we want to make it hard to come and play us at home again? Do we want to win an away league game for the first time in over two years?
Big change is needed – the gap is closing between the first and second tier, and WSL2 sides like Newcastle, Bristol City and Nottingham Forest have already invested heavily in the push for promotion only to fail this time around. I think it’s clear that Passmoor’s race is run, and it remains to be seen how many players in the current squad we will be able to retain, given many are good enough for WSL football. If we choose to stick with the current direction rather than twist, we risk being marooned in the second tier for an extended period, or god forbid, slipping even further.
As a relatively new football fan, I’m not overly negative. But it’s been so hard to find reasons to be positive this season. I’d like to stop moaning. I’m bored of it. I’d like to speak proudly about us again, about our fight, how we can make life difficult even for the big teams, and how we do have players capable of moments of magic. I’d like us to live up to our club motto. Because at the moment, we’re behaving like a team of quitters.
Jeremy Benson
As this season drew to a close, and it was increasingly obvious where this neglected team would end up, I began thinking the unthinkable: did I actually want to support them any longer? I never expected to see us win things: supporting a team like this is an expression of hope and identity, a wish to be part of something which might lead to fleeting enjoyment and occasional cheers – plus it feels wrong to support the men’s team (as I will continue to do, despite everything) and ignore the women.
But the pact between the club and its fans feels badly strained: we will support a team through good times and bad, and in return the club has to put in the resources, effort and expertise to make us feel we’re part of something that matters. We can forgive stupid mistakes and poor management – they’re part of football – but the one thing a club must not do is lose interest. And it almost seems to have stopped caring, so why should we?
Yet I still spent a day going to the playoff, as did many others. And when I headed home afterwards, feeling down, the happy vibe of central London crowds in the sunshine jarred with my mood. That made me realise I retain an emotional commitment to this team, despite everything; so yes, I will renew my season ticket, and give the club another chance to show they’re serious. They need to do that now, for players as well as fans.
What would that look like? First, Passmoor clearly needs to go. He has given no reason to think he is the manager to oversee a rebuild, in terms of tactics, vision or leadership. Listening to him shouting on the touchline or talking on the radio, it’s hard to believe he’s an inspiration to the players any more than to us. We need a manager who can take the responsibility (and opportunity) of leading and driving a fresh start.
I’m not going to pretend I know about football strategy, or how to create a coherent vision that aligns recruitment, development, tactics and overall approach. But at times over the last five seasons we seemed to get close to that – those moments when the players all seemed to know the plan, the football was exciting to watch, and we dared to feel optimistic. That’s what we want again in WSL2, to give us something to look forward to each Sunday and beyond.
We can hope.
Simon Birch
With the financial state of the club as a whole, there had already been rumours of selling off the women’s team or making them semi-pro. WSL 2 is a fully professional league, so I don’t know if Leicester could forfeit their place and drop in the third tier, but the way this club is run I wouldn’t put it past them.
Moving away from complete conjecture, based on our performance against the third best team in WSL 2, we won’t be going down and sweeping aside all competition. The quality of the individual players in the squad isn’t so much the problem, it’s the way they function collectively.
We’ll be sure to lose our best players and I’d imagine Passmoor will leave. But who comes in next, on the pitch and in the dugout, is a complete mystery. Anything could happen over the summer and I don’t have any faith that the club can make the correct decisions to see this team bounce back, or even continue sinking.
The Fosse Way 