The Women’s FA Cup returns this weekend – and as fourth-tier Swindon Town prepare to travel to WSL2 side Charlton Athletic, one of their new signings is telling SheKicks.net about her debut in the competition.
Sky Bedwell – now 20 years of age – came on as a second-half substitute for Southampton against Illminster in the second round back in 2021, when she was just 16 years of age.
What’s more, she grabbed herself a goal and an assist in a 7-0 win.
“It was my first trip away with the first team,” she recalls. “I wasn’t really expecting anything to come of it, but I came on at half-time and I performed really well, so I was buzzing coming away from that.”
Sky Bedwell: I love playing football
Bedwell signed for the Robins this month following her departure from the Saints, and has settled in well (“the girls are honestly so lovely”) – but it’s been a difficult couple of years for her. She suffered serious knee injuries – tearing both ACLs, one after the other, with a meniscus problem sandwiched in there too.
The first ACL injury was in a match – away in the north-west. She had some setbacks during her recovery process, meaning she was out for well over a year. Then she had her meniscus injury – and in her second game back after that, she tore her other ACL.
“You know what you’ve done straight away,” she says.
And she also knew how long she would be out of the game for.
“It would have been easy to just walk away, but I think it’s more painful to just walk away – I enjoy it too much. I love playing football.”
Her new manager Richard Wood has described her as “very strong, fit, and incredibly determined”, and praised her attitude. She thinks some of that might have come from her time out injured.
“I definitely think it matured me a lot as a person as well as a player,” she says. “I’m just grateful to be on the pitch.”
Bedwell: I want to help Swindon in their promotion push
And now she’s adjusting to life at a new club.
“I had a look at a few different teams and that was something I found difficult – realising no matter where I go, it’s going to be different than what I’m used to because I’ve been at Southampton for so long.
“But I came away from Swindon just excited. I felt positive. I was excited to go to the next session and that decided for itself in a way.”
And she’s determined to make a contribution to the Robins’ promotion campaign in the second half of the season.
“The girls and the team are pushing to win the league this year and so I just want to help with that as much as I can.”
Although encountering Swindon’s famed “magic roundabout” for the first time engendered “a little bit of panic”, she adds, “It’s easier than it looks!”
And her family and friends – who supported her through her time out injured – are all set to travel a little bit of extra distance from Southampton to cheer her on.
“They really enjoy watching me play and so they’re always happy to travel anywhere,” she grins.
