Rotherham United Women saved by new owners

A women's football club which came within days of closure has been saved - and its new owners have pledged to reach the highest level within five years.

Rotherham United Women, which began in 1969, has been bought by local owners Phil Smith and Scott Thorpe as it was set to fold due to financial uncertainty.

The pair appointed Francesca Ross as chair and set a target to win back-to-back promotions and a five-year plan to reach the Barclays Women's Super League.

Smith said the club had been on the "brink" of disappearing" and that "simply could not be allowed to happen".

"Rotherham United Women has history, heart and people who have fought to keep it alive," he said.

Smith and Thorpe also paid tribute to Valerie Hoyle, who spent 57 years connected to the club before stepping down at the end of the season.

They said the message from the new ownership group was clear: "Survival is no longer the ambition. Survival was the starting point."

The club began in 1969 as Kilnhurst Shooting Stars before it became known as Rotherham United Women Football Club.

It was carried forward by players, coaches, volunteers, families and supporters who believed women and girls in Rotherham deserved a club of their own.

The new ownership group thanked the players, parents, families, staff, volunteers, supporters, local businesses and the wider people of Rotherham for their support during a difficult and uncertain period.

It said it now wanted to build the club around football performance and community purpose.

"Scott and I saw a club with huge potential and felt we had a responsibility to step in," Smith said.

"It is a new era built around ambition - back-to-back promotions, a five-year Women's Super League ambition and a club the whole town can get behind."

Thorpe said: "This is one of those moments where people either talk about community or actually do something for it.

"The club was days away from going out of business. Now it has local backing, a proper structure, a football plan, a business plan and serious ambition.

"We want sponsors, supporters, schools, families and grassroots clubs to look at Rotherham United Women and think 'this is going somewhere, and I need to be part of it'."

Ross said it would be a "new beginning" for team.

"The club has come through a really uncertain period, but now it has energy, investment and a clear plan behind it."

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