| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Rachel Louise Williams[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 10 January 1988 | ||
| Place of birth | Leicester, England | ||
| Playing position | Midfielder / Forward |
||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Birmingham City Ladies | ||
| Number | 8 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Linden Old Girls | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| –2008 | Leicester City Women | ||
| 2008–2010 | Doncaster Rovers Belles | ||
| 2010 | Leicester City Women | ||
| 2011– | Birmingham City Ladies | 14 | (14) |
| National team‡ | |||
| 2009– | England | 4 | (1) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 19:25, 14 August 2011 (UTC). † Appearances (Goals). |
|||
Rachel Louise Williams (born 10 January 1988) is an English international women's footballer. She currently plays club football for FA WSL club Birmingham City Ladies, where she has been converted from an attacking midfielder to a striker.
Contents |
Williams joined Leicester City Women as a twelve-year-old, progressing through their centre of excellence to play in their senior side.[2] She was vice-captain as the side won the County League in 2005.[3] and the following season was a member of the side that again won the County League, but also the County Cup.[4] In the 2006-2007 season, Williams was a member of the Leicester side that won the treble of the East Midlands Women's Premier League title, the County Cup and the League Cup and promotion to the Midlands Combination League.[5] The following season she was part of the Leicester side that won promotion to the FA Women's Premier League Northern Division.
She left Leicester at the end of the 2007-08 season to join Doncaster Rovers Belles.[2] She was the FA Premier League player of the month for October 2008,[2] and was a member of the Doncaster side that lost to Arsenal Ladies in the 2009 FA Women's Premier League Cup final.[6] She ended her first season with Doncaster as the club's Player of the Year and the Players' Player of the Year.[2]
She scored on the opening day of the 2009-10 season as Doncaster drew 1-1 at home to Blackburn Rovers Ladies.[7] In October 2009 she scored against former club Leicester City Women as Doncaster progressed in the Premier League Cup.[8]
With Doncaster not playing until the FA WSL in March 2011, Williams re-signed for Leicester City in summer 2010.[9] In December 2010, Williams was revealed to have signed for Birmingham City's FA WSL squad.[10] After converting to a striker, Williams made an impressive start to the new season with Birmingham, scoring five goals in her first two WSL appearances[11] and winning a recall to the England squad.[12]
Williams scored on her England Under-19 debut, whilst still an Under-17 player, against Switzerland in 2005.[3] Later that year she was selected as part of the England squad for the UEFA Women's Under-19 Championship.[3]
In May 2009, Williams was one of the first 17 female players to be given central contracts by the Football Association.[13] At the time she was the only uncapped player to be awarded a contract.[14] Her debut for the England senior side came in July 2009 when she came on as a substitute for Alex Scott in the 2-0 defeat at home to Iceland.[15] She missed out on a place in the Women's Euro 2009 Squad, but was picked by head coach Hope Powell for England's squad to face Malta in the first qualifying game for the 2011 Women's World Cup.[16]
| # | Date | Venue | Opponent | Result | Competition | Scored |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 22 September 2011 | County Ground, Swindon | Slovenia | 4–0 | 2013 UEFA Women's Championship Qual. | 1 |
Williams also works as a plasterer.[14]
|
|||||
|
|||||