Jemma Purfield

Jemma Elizabeth Purfield (born 21 February 1997) is an English footballer who plays as a full-back for Women's Championship club Southampton.

Early life
Born in Beverley, England, Purfield is the younger of two children to her parents, Rob and Liz. She grew up in Cottingham and began playing football at the age of five, joining the kids academy at her local club, Cottingham Rangers, because her brother James already played for the club. When she was seven years old, Purfield was playing on the under-9s boys team for Cottingham, where she was the only girl. She was identified and, after a trial, selected to the Hull Girls Centre of Excellence. When the Hull centre was closed down by The Football Association (FA) as part of a national restructuring of the women's game, Purfield switched to the North Yorkshire Centre of Excellence.

Purfield attended Cottingham High School and Wyke College, where she played on the football team and was named Sports Personality of the Year during her senior season. She captained the team to the Sports Colleges National Cup Final and scored the FA Goal of the Game in the final. At Wyke, she pursued her A-levels in physical education.

Career
Purfield began her career with Doncaster Rovers Belles, making her senior first team debut on 20 April 2013 as a halftime substitute in a 4–0 WSL defeat to Chelsea. In doing so she became Doncaster's youngest WSL player. Purfield moved to newly founded Durham during the 2014 season, scoring three goals in their inaugural WSL 2 campaign as the team finished 6th.

College career
In 2015, Purfield moved to the United States on a scholarship to play college soccer, first with the South Alabama Jaguars before transferring to the Arizona State Sun Devils after two seasons. She captained both teams and earned several individual awards, including Sun Belt Conference Freshman of the Year in 2015 and SBC Player of the Year in 2016.

Liverpool
Purfield declared for the 2019 NWSL College Draft but was not selected. She instead returned to England and signed a contract with FA WSL club Liverpool in January 2019.

Bristol City
Following Liverpool's relegation, Purfield left upon the expiration of her contract and remained in the WSL after signing a two-year contract with Bristol City. She made 27 appearances for Bristol in all competitions, including in the 2021 FA Women's League Cup Final as Bristol City finished runners-up to Chelsea. Purfield left at the end of the season following the team's relegation.

Leicester City
In July 2021, Purfield joined Leicester City. In June 2023, she departed the club.

Southampton
In 2023, Purfield joined Southampton.