HER GAME TOO ANNOUNCES NEW OLDHAM ATHLETIC PLAYER ADVOCATE

Abbey Rogers grew up watching her uncle play professional football, but finding a girls’ team to play for herself proved difficult as opportunities were lacking. 

Now aged 22 and captain of the newly-formed Oldham Athletic Women’s team, she has stepped forward to become a Her Game Too Player Advocate to help inspire the next generation of female footballers into the game. 

A deep passion for football runs in Abbey’s family and her weekends as a child were spent supporting her uncle, Matt Gilks, as he played in goal for the likes of Rochdale, Blackpool, Scunthorpe United, Wigan Athletic, Lincoln City and Bolton Wanderers, where he now works as a goalkeeping coach. 

“I was around him playing football a lot, so I started playing pretty much as soon as I could walk,” she said. 

“I joined a boys’ team and then at school I was the only girl in my whole school who played football, so I was always having to play with the boys’ team.” 

Abbey joined her first girls’ team at Curzon Ashton aged ten and she has been reunited with her manager of eight years from that team at Oldham – Holly Espie, who Abbey credits with teaching her “basically everything I know about football”. 

Abbey’s playing journey has since taken her to the likes of Bolton Wanderers and Accrington Stanley, but she has spent the majority of this year recovering from knee surgery to correct a long-term injury sustained while skiing as a nine-year old. 

The prospect of returning to the pitch and representing The Lactics is an exciting one. 

“I grew up in Oldham, all my family are Oldham fans and I’ve supported them my whole life, so it’s a proud moment and my family are really proud of me – they’ve just named me as captain as well, which is even better. 

“It’s something you dream of as a little girl, playing for your hometown club, and I’ve got that opportunity now.” 

The team are entering the women’s football pyramid in tier 7 and have ambitions to rise up the leagues, with several players, including Abbey, dropping down leagues to be part of the project. 

Kicking off their 2024/25 campaign this weekend away at Mancunian Unity Women B, their matches will be played at the Oldham Athletic’s Chapel Road training ground, and they hope to hold a Her Game Too dedicated fixture at Boundary Park around International Women’s Day. 

Abbey has always followed the work of Her Game Too and supports the campaign’s aims of stamping out sexism and championing women in all roles in sport. 

“I think Her Game Too is a good movement because I started going to watch England away about six years ago, and it always felt a bit awkward to go as a woman because you were in the minority and some of the men were very derogatory about women in football. 

“It’s really important to promote women in football and stop the stereotypes.” 

Through her Player Advocate role, Abbey hopes to support the work of Her Game Too’s Oldham Athletic Ambassador, Alison Schofield, in raising awareness of the campaign at the club and be a role model to young girls who want to play football in the area. 

“When I was growing up, there was no women’s team in Oldham – there was no one to look up to – and hopefully with this new team, local girls can look up to us and they might start wanting to play football and enjoy it. 

“I used to struggle when I was little to find any female team for my age, so it’s good that there are so many more opportunities for the new generation coming through now.” 

Holly Espie, Female Development Officer at Oldham Athletic, said: “Partnering and working closely with the Her Game Too campaign is really important for us at OAFC Women; to highlight the impact and the work that the men’s side have already done and to push and drive it forward, to make Oldham Athletic a safe and inclusive environment for us all.  

“I couldn’t think of anyone better to be player advocate than Abbey, she has represented the club so well, really pushed it forward and is a natural leader.” 

Alison Schofield, Her Game Too’s Lead Ambassador at Oldham Athletic, said: “I’m thrilled to announce Abbey as our first-ever Player Advocate at the club. 

“We’ve already had productive meetings discussing our goals and ambitions for Oldham, and I’m confident she will be an outstanding advocate for our team. 

“I’m also incredibly excited to see the launch of our women’s team at Oldham. This is a significant milestone and I believe it will inspire many young local supporters and aspiring players. 

“I look forward to working closely with Abbey over the coming seasons as we build something truly special.”