Preston North End Women prepare for FA Cup tie at Deepdale

Preston North End’s women’s team kick off their Women’s FA Cup campaign this Sunday at Deepdale.

They take on Wirral United in the Second Qualifying Round of the competition. It’s the first game PNEWFC have played at the ground since May 2024, around the time current joint head coaches Cameron Molloy and Logan De-Klerk joined the club. They usually play home matches at Longridge Town FC’s Inglewhite Road.

North End Women were promoted as champions of the North West Women’s Regional Division One North last season - the same tier Wirral now play in, although they compete in Division One South.

Molloy and De-Klerk, who also have roles at the club’s Community and Education Trust, spoke to the Lancashire Post ahead of the game.

“We were quite fortunate to come in at the time because that was post-season,” Molloy said about the previous game at Deepdale.

“It was a friendly against Bolton. We were at the end of the season before they ripped up the pitch. They allowed some teams to go and play on it and we were fortunate to have that.

“However, this, I think, represents a different structure. We're in-season, Preston North End men's are away at QPR and we're here on Sunday. It's showcasing the support, showcasing that they want the fans to come and attend Deepdale stadium, to come and watch us.

“It's something that the girls aren't used to. The type of ground that we play in, now in tier five, are nothing like this. The quality of pitches are different, also the atmosphere is different.

“So, the girls are really looking forward to this opportunity and I'm sure there'll be plenty more opportunities to come and play at Deepdale again.

“I think we take the game in two aspects. You've got one where we're playing at Deepdale stadium, which in itself is a fantastic privilege. There's a second we're focused on, it's the Women's FA Cup and that's really our focus.

“We want to progress through this competition. We've got Wirral United, who we'll give the respect to. We've done what we need to do in terms of our preparation on them so far and that'll continue going into [Thursday night’s] session.

“Deepdale’s fantastic but the players have to perform, preparation's got to be key because the FA Cup's quite an important competition, not only for the club but also the historical factors of it. It's something that all players want to progress through.

“All our attention's on Wirral United and getting the result, and then progressing up through the rounds.”

Striker Maddie Hadley was the competition’s top scorer in the 2024/25 season with 11 goals, the same campaign in which North End made it to the first round proper for the first time in their history.

PNE Women start at the second qualifying round as opposed to the first due to their status as a tier five club. The cup can reap important financial rewards to sides, a win this weekend would see them earn £3,500.

“It allows us to step up our off-the-pitch stuff and gives us that funding so we can put more money into the team,” said De-Klerk.

“We can't always bring money from all over the place so to get that fund it'll be massive for us to make good improvements to continue our progression and where we want to go, where Cameron and I want to take this team.”

The team are hoping for a decent crowd on Sunday to show their support. Tickets are £5 for adults and £2 for under-16s while under-11s go free.

“All the support is what we need,” said De-Klerk.

“It's a brilliant occasion to get as many people down. Preston playing away at QPR means many fans aren't going to be able to see them that weekend so for people to come down and watch us will be massive for the team and for us as staff as well.

“It'll be a great occasion for everyone and it should be a good day.”

Last season’s title-winning campaign is just one step in the long-term plan for PNE Women.

“When me and Logan came into Preston North End, we saw that it was a club that somewhat competed but never really pushed on within tier six,” said Molloy.

“It's a team that was kind of stuck and hadn't gained a promotion within over 10 years.

“We wanted to put our footprint on it. We wanted to change the philosophy and change the ideas within the players' eyes, that is a team with ambition, this is a team that wants to scale up and compete at the highest level.

“In tier six, there's some competitive teams in there. You've got the likes of Accrington, even Penrith.

“You travel away to those kind of teams and the teams that can take points away from you. But over the course of our first full season, it was about setting the foundations, getting everything right and then the second season, which was the last, to really push on and give it a really good go, which is what we did.

“The girls saw that. They saw the vision. They put it into the performance going into each Sunday, which is why we were crowned champions of tier six. Tier five is just another point where we're resetting ourselves. We're understanding the league.

“Again, we'll have the same outlook. We'll understand where we are, what the opponents are like, what we need to do to push on against these opponents. In the seasons to come, if not next season, we'll push on and we'll give it a really good go to go and get another promotion.”

After seven games, they find themselves eighth out of 12 teams in their new league, the NWR Premier Division, with two wins, one draw and four losses.

Reflecting on the season so far, Molloy said: “We want to be playing in these difficult games. We want to be playing against the best teams and the most difficult teams to play against.

“That's how we learn, that's how we understand where the gaps are within our team. What do we need to do to improve? Is it the system? Is it the player recruitment? All these different aspects that we've got to take into consideration. The first seven games have brought out really clear things to us.

“We know what we need to do moving forward going into the last stage of the season. No other team would have faced these adversities that we've faced. We've had quite a number of absentees through injuries.

“We've had squads that have been quite short within certain games. The players' mentality has been there to push on and compete, which has been fantastic for us as a philosophical aspect.

“We've played what would be the toughest games so far. We've got them out of the way. We know what we need to do to beat them next time.

“Now it's about pushing on and looking at the games ahead and see what we need to do to pick up the points and move up the table. All things at the moment look really positive.

“We know that we're here to stay within Tier 5 and we're here to push on and compete and gain promotion in the seasons to come.”

De-Klerk added: “I think we've shown that we can compete at this level, which has been the best part. Some results could have gone our way in many of them, especially the recent one against Mancunian Unity [3-2 loss].

“I think if decisions go our way, we come away with three points or at least one point. It's about now learning from those games.

“We've got to learn and next time we go play against them, I think we'll do a lot better and come out with the right result.

“I'm really happy with how we've started. Yes, we could have more points, but we're sitting in a decent place and we feel in the next few games we're going to kick on and get back up into the top half of the league.”

The duo are happy with the signings they brought in over the summer that will strengthen what is already a very capable squad.

“We’re really happy,” said De-Klerk, “I think it was that whole idea that, coming under the club, we were able to sell ourselves a bit more and bring bigger names and people that have played at higher levels.

“We've brought in quite a few. We've brought in Ella Whittaker, who's played at Blackburn Rovers. We've brought in Nic [Worthington], who was playing at Chorley.

“These are teams that are above us, in tier four. We managed to sell our project, sell what we're doing here at Preston and get them in.

“They've had an impact on the squad. A couple have been out with injuries now, which has been a bit frustrating for us, but the squad's really pulled together.

“We've got a great squad. All the signings, all the players that have come up and continued with us from last season have done really well. We're pleased with all of them.”

Since Molloy and De-Klerk joined in spring 2024, the women’s side have worked much closer with the club, largely down to the work done by the pair in their first full season.

“The season before last was the restructuring of the whole of the women's side of things,” said Molloy.

“So, what was an amateur grassroots club, we came in and we wanted it to be high performance and somewhat professional, despite the league that we were then playing in.

“We kind of changed the whole philosophy of the club, and now we've got the club's backing and the club's support going into this season.”

“I think any team wants the club backing. I think it's something that the club has now kind of identified that with myself and Logan's eyes on the first team and the changes that we've been doing, not only for the players and the way we play, but the environment and philosophies around things.

“The club are now getting on board and providing that additional support, which is what we need. Obviously, last season we went on a really successful campaign, winning the league, and the club have identified that actually the team do need a little bit more support, especially as they're going through the rankings.

“The club have identified that their aim is to progress up the football pyramid and to try and reach the WSL in the future. All the additional support is fantastic and with the game this Sunday, the club are visually showcasing their support.

“They want us to be playing in the stadium, which is fantastic. The girls are loving the idea of it and are loving preparations for it.

“It's just about showcasing that this is our home and we're one badge, we're one North End and that's the way we want to progress as we move through the years.”

The women’s section also has a reserves and junior setup which continues to blossom.

“It’s just about bridging the gaps and understanding what we need to do to provide that transition from junior ages into our open ages,” said Molloy.

“Going from under-16s in our juniors section and straight into the first team is quite a major jump, so we needed to bridge that gap and the reserves have provided that.

“They've just started their season and that has been successful. They just beat Fleetwood 8-2, which again is a fantastic result and showcases the depth that we have within our Preston North End umbrella.

“We've got young players, exciting players who are there to develop within the reserves, who are looking to try and push on and challenge our first team players.

“We had the likes of Grace [Kendall, 16] who made her debut going from the reserves into the first team during our Bolton fixture [last month] and that's again just a small insight into what we can do at Preston North End that, should players be called upon from the reserves, they can input themselves and they can play within a certain fashion.

“But again, they've been selected because of the quality that we have and that will only progress as we go through.”

PNE Women v Wirral United in the FA Cup second qualifying round kicks off at 2pm on Sunday September 20 at Deepdale.