Catching up with… Anna Gauvain, Guernsey FC Women Head Coach

With the Green Lionesses due to kick-start their first league campaign, we grabbed Anna Gauvain for a chat about hopes for the season ahead, how the team is settling into their new home at Victoria Park and why a growing fan base is lifting the team’s spirit.  

Your first league campaign is about to kick off. How excited is the camp?

Everyone’s very excited. It's a bit nerve-wracking for the players, wondering whether they're in the team selection or not, because it's going to be a big one against Wimborne Town FC.

We've got a couple of people with niggly injuries, but hopefully they'll overcome those in the next week or so.

How lucky are the girls to have Victoria Park as a home ground?

It's a great facility, especially for the younger players here. The older players keep telling them how lucky they are!

We've been involved with women's football for a long time, and we've never had anything like this. Just from the changing rooms, coming out onto the pitch, training here week in and week out—it's just fantastic.

It's a great facility, especially for the younger players. The older players keep telling them how lucky they are!

What are your targets and aims for the season?

Well, we're going into the unknown a little bit with the first full English League campaign. So, in terms of our targets, we’re aiming to be competitive, and to see some improvement from the girls straight away.

Hopefully, having games week in and week out will help us build on each one and work on things during training. I’m hoping we can be competitive and get some results.

Of course, it’s unknown territory, and many clubs across the UK are now investing heavily into their women’s setups, which is fantastic, and we’ve just got to be ready for that challenge.

Many supporters have opted to buy a club season ticket and will follow both the men's and women's teams. How much does that support mean to you and the group?

I think it's massive. Having different people coming down to watch is huge. Not just our family and friends, but new supporters from the men's side of the club as well. I just hope that more and more will come down - families, children, and the girls who want to be part of this when they're older. 

We've had a bit of a taste of football here, especially with the doubleheader, and we’ve had the previous fixtures at Footes Lane. When we had those two games here, I think the support really lifted the girls, they really felt it. There was a buzz about stepping out in front of people, because when we go away, the crowds aren’t always as big.

But now, families, friends, supporters - people who’ve supported us for a long time - they can come and enjoy the excitement when we step out here, it’s just fantastic.

The Guernsey Lionesses take on Wimborne Town FC on Sunday 31 August, kick-off is at 2pm. For ticket information, visit https://victoriapark.gg/tickets.

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