White “pleased” with SSFC Women’s pre-season

Ellie White says that she is "pleased" with how South Shields Women's pre-season preparations have gone.

It has been a relatively quiet spell, with no friendly last week after a planned game against Middlesbrough FC Women U23s was called off.

White has managed to make the most of the time off, over the Bank Holiday weekend, despite no game to look forward to.

“I enjoyed spending some time with family and getting together with friends,” she said.

Since York RI AFC Ladies have withdrawn from the NERWFL Premier Division, the Mariners won’t be in league action this Sunday – stay tuned for any updates on that front.

But when taking a step back and reflecting on the past fortnight or so, which has seen matches against Chester-le-Street Town Ladies, Durham PGA and Washington FC Women take place, White thinks there are many good things to take from it.

She continued: “I’m pleased with how pre-season has went and I think as the games went on, things began to click more between the group, which is good to see that the hard work is paying off!”

Shields finally get their 2025/26 campaign underway on Sunday, September 7th, with a visit to Spennymoor Town Ladies.

White is excited to kick things off against a strong Moors side, who have given the Mariners plenty of threat over the past couple of seasons.

“I’m really looking forward to the Spennymoor game,” she said.

“It’s always a good game with plenty of atmosphere on and off the pitch; I think it’ll be a good but tough test for us.”

In fact, Shields were the victors in the opening game of the 2024/25 season – a 4-1 win at Harton Welfare against the Moors.

White can look to games such as that one, and April’s 6-2 win away from home, as motivation for the season opener.

She finished: “Hopefully we can get a result similar to the opening game against them last season, and get off to a flying start, and I think all the girls will be up for it!” 

Keep an eye on our social media channels this week for any updates to this weekend’s plans, as well as behind the scenes content and exclusives (@SSFCWomen on Twitter/X and @southshieldswomenfc on Instagram).

Image credit: Craig McNair (@ideventphoto)