Luton Town L.F.C.

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This article is about the women's football club. For the men's football club, see Luton Town F.C.
Luton Town
Full nameLuton Town Ladies Football Club
Nickname(s)The Hatters
Founded1997; 27 years ago (1997)
GroundSharpenhoe Road
Kenilworth Road
Capacity4,000 (160 seated)
ChairmanMark Wareham
ManagerRobert Burton
LeagueEastern Region Women's Football League
2022–23Eastern Region Women's Football League, 2nd of 11
WebsiteClub website

Luton Town Ladies Football Club (/ˈluːtən/) is a semi-professional women's football club based in the town of Luton, Bedfordshire, England. Founded in 1997, Luton compete in the Eastern Region Women's Football League, with home games played at Sharpenhoe Road, Barton Rovers.[1] The club are affiliated with the Bedfordshire County Football Association.[2]

Luton achieved successive promotions from the fifth tier Southern Region Division One South, and the fourth tier Southern Region Premier Division during the 2003–04 and 2004–05 seasons. The club were promoted to the second tier after winning the 2008–09 South East Combination, but were relegated after just one season. After nine years in the FA Women's National League South East Division One, the club were relegated at the end of the 2018–19 season.

History[edit]

Formation and league development (1997–2010)[edit]

Luton Town Ladies Football Club was founded in 1997. After forming a partnership with Luton Town in 2000, the name Luton Town Belles was adopted in 2001, before the current name in 2006.[3] The club achieved a third place finish in their inaugural season, the 2001–02 Southern Region Division One North.[4] Luton were promoted to the Southern Region Premier Division after finishing the 2003–04 season as runners-up.[5] The club achieved a second promotion to the South West Combination following a runners-up finish in the 2004–05 season.[6] The club won the 2008–09 South East Combination, and were promoted to the FA Women's Premier League Northern Division. Luton were relegated back to the South East Combination at the end of the 2009–10 season.

Recent history (2010–present)[edit]

As a result of the restructuring of the FA Women's Premier League for the 2014–15 season, Luton competed in the newly formed FA Women's Premier League South East Division One. The club made their debut at Kenilworth Road on 15 October 2014,[7] with a 2–1 win against Bedford.[8] Luton reached the final of the 2017–18 FA Premier League Plate, but lost 5–0 to West Ham United.[9] The club were relegated to the Eastern Region Football League at the end of the 2018–19 season.[10] Rob Burton was appointed manager in June 2022.[11] Luton won the 2022–23 Eastern Region League Cup, beating Stevenage 2–1 in the final.[12]

Stadium[edit]

For much of Luton's history, the club played their home games at Stockwood Park Athletics Centre.[13] In January 2019, the club moved to the Brache, the training ground of the men's team.[14] In October 2022, the club moved to Sharpenhoe Road, Barton Rovers. With their partnership with the men's team, Luton also play home games at Kenilworth Road.

Players[edit]

Current squad[edit]

As of 14 January 2024.[15]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
— GK England ENG Amy Butler
— GK England ENG Leah Robinson
— DF England ENG Rebecca Ferris
— DF England ENG Elly Wade (vice-captain)
— DF England ENG Tanya Blacksley
— DF England ENG Maria Taylor
— MF England ENG Hannah Major
— MF England ENG Lilac Wilson
— MF England ENG Fiona Constable
— MF England ENG Keira Palmeiro
— MF England ENG Andie Dickens
No. Pos. Nation Player
— MF England ENG Nancy Tucker
— MF England ENG Jess McKay (captain)
— MF England ENG Adi Milton
— MF England ENG Amber Pearson
— FW England ENG Elizabeth Sanders
— FW England ENG Sam Khan
— FW England ENG Gabriella Spillman
— FW England ENG Shakeela Hussain
— FW England ENG Shanice Lewis
— MF England ENG Leyah Maddix (vice-captain)

Managers[edit]

As of 14 January 2024.
Dates Name
2001–2013 England David Baker
2013–2022 England Nikki Baker
2022– England Robert Burton

Honours[edit]

League

Cup

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Luton Town Ladies FC - Home Grounds". lutontownladiesfc.co.uk. Retrieved 19 November 2017.
  2. ^ Association, The Football. "Female Teams". bedfordshirefa.com.
  3. ^ "Club history". Luton Town L.F.C. Archived from the original on 8 September 2008. Retrieved 5 May 2010.
  4. ^ "Club history 2001/02". Luton Town L.F.C. Archived from the original on 3 February 2009. Retrieved 15 January 2024.
  5. ^ "Club history 2003/04". Luton Town L.F.C. Archived from the original on 3 February 2009. Retrieved 17 January 2024.
  6. ^ "Club history 2004/05". Luton Town L.F.C. Archived from the original on 3 February 2009. Retrieved 14 January 2024.
  7. ^ "Kenilworth Road Host Luton Ladies Tonight". Luton Town. 15 October 2014. Retrieved 15 January 2024.
  8. ^ "Ladies Football: Kane bags Hatters winner". Luton Today. 17 October 2024. Retrieved 15 January 2024.
  9. ^ "West Ham United Ladies win WPL Plate with Luton victory". West Ham United. 15 April 2018. Retrieved 14 January 2024.
  10. ^ "Luton Ladies stars stayed to get us back to where we belong, says boss Baker". The Lutonian. 25 August 2019. Retrieved 14 January 2024.
  11. ^ "Burton appointed Luton Town Ladies boss as Baker moves upstairs". Luton Today. 1 June 2022. Retrieved 14 January 2024.
  12. ^ "Cup Final Special – Stevenage FC Women v Luton Town Ladies". Women's Football East. 22 May 2022. Retrieved 14 January 2024.
  13. ^ "Luton Town Belles F.C." Luton Town Belles F.C. Archived from the original on 12 February 2003. Retrieved 15 January 2024.
  14. ^ @LTLFC_Official (21 January 2019). "Breaking News: New Home Ground for First Team" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  15. ^ "Luton Town Ladies First". The Football Association. Retrieved 14 January 2024.

External links[edit]

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