JUST SIX months ago, Rachel Rowe was a part-time midfielder, contemplating her next five-hour round trip to get to a twice-weekly Reading FC Women training session.
Now a full-time professional, Wales international Rowe has quit her job, left her home and goes into this weekend’s FA Cup quarter-final showdown with Sunderland as the club’s current first choice left-back.
Rowe’s story is not uncommon with a number of her team-mates, who have been rewarded with full-time contracts following Reading’s promotion to WSL 1 and she admits it has had a big impact.
“Promotion has been absolutely life-changing,” Rowe told The Wokingham Paper.
“It was a big deal.
“Everybody knows financially it’s not great in women’s football but when you are so passionate about something, you are willing to take sacrifices and there’s more than enough people in our team who have taken, not a sacrifice as such because it’s something you want to do but it just makes it a little bit harder to live comfortably.
“Inevitably to play football full-time was the main goal so you’re willing to do anything to do that.”
She added: “When I explain my schedules and a couple of the girls’ schedules (last season) it’s a bit insane really!
“There’s a load of us that travelled a far way.
“Personally there were two of us that travelled from Swansea, you’re talking 150 miles up, that would be after a full day’s work, then we’d pick up one of the girls from Cardiff, which is a little bit closer and then get home at half past 12 in the night to go back into work in the morning.”
Changing her plans has became second nature for Rowe who, after working in the prison service, switched careers and took up an apprenticeship in the Welsh government.
After breaking her leg playing football locally in the 2013-14 season, work took a back seat, yet 12 months on she was in action again and signed by Reading in January of last year in what she describes as a “crazy” few months.
But the change does not end there, with Rowe also now adopting a new position on the field as well as a new life off it.
“I signed as a left winger and naturally I’m a central midfielder,” she explains.
“I started to play a few games left wing last season before getting put back into centre mid and I played the remainder of the season there.
“But after a change in personnel I’ve just taken up a new position now of left-back which is a new challenge really.
She continued: “I’m enjoying it. It’s a learning curve and it’s a bit more stressful not knowing the position like I know the other positions but it’s good to learn new positions.
“When players aren’t available then you’re versatile so it’s a positive.
“It doesn’t feel like a positive, but it is!”
Having picked up one point from their opening two league games in WSL 1, Reading’s focus now switches to the FA Cup and a second consecutive trip to Sunderland, having drawn 1-1 there last weekend.
“I don’t know which way to take it really,” she said.
“It’s got pros and cons because obviously playing them last week, we kind of know they’re not going to be able to change much about their team.
“We know where they’re vulnerable and we’ve spent all week working on that, where we can exploit them.
“But that’s the same as what they would have been doing to us.”
After a nightmare journey home from the north-east last Saturday in which the coach broke down, Rowe is eyeing a smoother trip this time (Sunday, 2pm kick-off) and she also admits she is thinking about a possible FA Cup final at Wembley in May.
“That’s the main aim,” she said.
“I think it’s silly to try and underestimate us.
“I think we’ve got a good bunch of girls, maybe not the big names and things like that, but we’ve got such good team morale so I just think, why limit yourself?
“Anything is possible.
“It’s 90 minutes of football so anything can happen but I’ve got confidence in the girls and the coaching staff having confidence in us.
“I think we are more than capable of getting a result.”
