Palace Women move to a new home in Sutton – News

The move signals a new era for Palace Women, who secured back-to-back top five finishes in the league for a second successive season, and recently appointed Grace Williams[1] as the club’s new Head of Women’s Football to lead a restructuring programme, with Laura Kaminski[2] joining as the new head coach.

The FA Women’s Championship kicks off on 26th August and Palace Women’s first home match will be a 14:00 BST kick-off on Sunday, 27th August. Ticketing information will be announced shortly.

Crystal Palace has a strong fanbase in Sutton and Sutton United’s historic Gander Green Lane ground, which hosted its first match in 1912, has a capacity of more than 5,000. Sutton United, currently in League Two of the EFL, have played at the venue continuously since 1919.

Palace Women will be leaving Hayes Lane, home of National League Club Bromley FC, where they have played their home matches since 2014. Selhurst Park has also hosted Palace Women, attracting a record-breaking attendance for the league match against Southampton last September, and two matches will be played there in the coming season.

Crystal Palace chairman Steve Parish said: “This is an exciting new start for Palace Women, playing at a historic, local stadium that will be familiar to many of our supporters, and we hope to attract fresh support for the club. We are hugely grateful for Bromley FC’s long-standing support for Palace Women and we would like to thank them for their hospitality over many years, the move is in large part driven by the WSL requirement for a grass pitch."

Sutton United vice-chairman Adrian Barry said: “We are delighted to welcome Crystal Palace Women to the VBS and look forward to furthering the extremely strong relationship the clubs have always enjoyed. Our discussions with them over the summer have been extremely positive and collaborative, leading to what we're sure will be a mutually beneficial partnership."

References

  1. ^ Grace Williams (www.cpfc.co.uk)
  2. ^ Laura Kaminski (www.cpfc.co.uk)