2020–21 Reading F.C. Women season

Reading
2020–21 season
Manager	Kelly Chambers
Stadium	Madejski Stadium
WSL	6th
FA Cup	Fourth Round
League Cup	Group Stage
Top goalscorer	League: Lauren Bruton (2); All: Three Players (2)
Home colours	Away colours
	← 2019–20

The 2020–21 Reading F.C. Women season is the club's 14th season and their sixth in the FA Women's Super League, the highest level of the football pyramid. Along with competing in the WSL, the club will also contest two domestic cup competitions: the FA Cup and the League Cup.

Season events

On 15 July, Reading announced the signing of Danielle Carter and Emma Mitchell from Arsenal.^[1]^[2]

On 17 July, Reading announced the signing of Deanna Cooper, who last played for Chelsea.^[3] On the same day, Reading announced new contracts for Natasha Harding, Kiera Skeels and Lily Woodham.^[4]

On 14 August, Reading announced the signing of Erin Nayler from Girondins de Bordeaux.^[5]

On 19 August, Jess Fishlock joined Reading on loan from OL Reign.^[6]

On 1 September, Reading where drawn in Group D of the League Cup alongside West Ham United, Charlton Athletic and Brighton & Hove Albion.^[7]

On 4 September, Reading announced the signing of Jeon Ga-eul.^[8]

On 8 January, midfielder Sophie Quirk moved to London Bees on loan for the remainder of the season.^[9]

Transfers

In

Date	Position	Name	From	Fee	Ref.
15 July 2020	DF	Emma Mitchell	Arsenal	Free	^[2]
15 July 2020	FW	Danielle Carter	Arsenal	Free	^[1]
17 July 2020	DF	Deanna Cooper	Chelsea	Free	^[3]
14 August 2020	GK	Erin Nayler	Girondins de Bordeaux	Free	^[5]
4 September 2020	FW	Jeon Ga-eul	Bristol City	Free	^[8]

Loans in

Start date	Position	Nationality	Name	From	End date	Ref.
19 August 2020	MF		Jess Fishlock	OL Reign		^[6]

Out

Date	Position	Nationality	Name	To	Fee	Ref.
24 June 2020	FW		Lisa-Marie Karlseng Utland	Rosenborg	Undisclosed	^[10]

Loans out

Start date	Position	Nationality	Name	To	End date	Ref.
8 January 2021	MF		Sophie Quirk	London Bees	End of season	^[9]

Squad

As of match played 23 January 2021^[11]

No.	Name	Position	Date of birth (Age)	Signed from	Signed in	Apps.	Goals
Goalkeepers
1	Grace Moloney	GK	(1993-03-01) 1 March 1993 (age 31)	Academy	2009
16	Erin Nayler	GK	(1992-04-17) 17 April 1992 (age 32)	Girondins de Bordeaux	2020^[5]	1	0
72	Rhiannon Stewart	GK		Academy	2019	0	0
Defenders
2	Kristine Bjørdal Leine	DF	(1996-08-06) 6 August 1996 (age 28)	Røa	2019	31	2
3	Emma Mitchell	DF	(1992-09-19) 19 September 1992 (age 31)	Arsenal	2020	13	0
5	Molly Bartrip	DF	(1996-06-01) 1 June 1996 (age 28)	Academy	2014
14	Deanna Cooper	DF	(1993-06-20) 20 June 1993 (age 31)	Chelsea	2020	14	0
28	Lily Woodham	DF	(2000-09-03) 3 September 2000 (age 23)	Bristol City	2018	14	0
29	Kiera Skeels	DF	(2001-01-20) 20 January 2001 (age 23)	Academy	2019	2	0
31	Bethan Roberts	DF	(2003-05-14) 14 May 2003 (age 21)	Academy	2019	2	0
Midfielders
4	Fara Williams	MF	(1984-01-25) 25 January 1984 (age 40)	Arsenal	2017	80	34
6	Angharad James	MF	(1994-06-01) 1 June 1994 (age 30)	Everton	2019	38	2
8	Jess Fishlock	MF	(1987-01-14) 14 January 1987 (age 37)	loan from OL Reign	2020^[6]	16	2
11	Natasha Harding (captain)	MF	(1989-03-02) 2 March 1989 (age 35)	Liverpool	2017	63	5
23	Rachel Rowe	MF	(1992-09-13) 13 September 1992 (age 31)	Swansea City	2015
32	Molly Childerhouse	MF		Academy	2020	0	0
36	Emma Harries	MF	(2002-03-29) 29 March 2002 (age 22)	Academy	2020	11	0
Forwards
7	Jeon Ga-eul	FW	(1988-09-14) 14 September 1988 (age 35)	Bristol City	2020^[8]	3	0
9	Amalie Eikeland	FW	(1995-08-26) 26 August 1995 (age 28)	Sandviken	2019	37	5
10	Lauren Bruton	FW	(1992-11-22) 22 November 1992 (age 31)	Arsenal	2013
18	Danielle Carter	FW	(1993-05-18) 18 May 1993 (age 31)	Arsenal	2020	15	2
19	Brooke Chaplen	FW	(1989-04-16) 16 April 1989 (age 35)	Sunderland	2017	76	29
Out on loan
35	Sophie Quirk	MF	(2002-02-12) 12 February 2002 (age 22)	Academy	2019	0	0
Left during the season

Out on loan

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


No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
35	MF	ENG	Sophie Quirk (at London Bees until end of the season.)


No.	Pos.	Nation	Player

Competitions

WSL

Results summary


Overall								Home						Away
Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD
13	3	6	4	16	23	−7	15	1	3	3	7	12	−5	2	3	1	9	11	−2

Last updated: 23 January 2021.
Source: FA WSL

Results by matchday

Round	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13
Ground	A	H	A	H	H	A	A	H	A	A	H	H	A
Result	L	W	W	L	D	D	D	D	L	W	L	D	D
Position	12	7	6	6	6	6	7	6	6	6

Source: ^{[citation needed]}
A = Away; H = Home; W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss

Results

6 September 2020 1	Arsenal	6–1	Reading	Borehamwood
12:30 BST (UTC+1)	Little 15' Miedema 33', 78' Roord 40', 63', 81' Maritz 42' Maier 86'	Report	Bruton 56' Fishlock 60' Harding 69' Carter 89'	Stadium: Meadow Park Attendance: 0 Referee: Amy Fearns
Note: Match played behind closed doors due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom.

13 September 2020 2	Reading	3–1	Aston Villa	Reading
14:00 BST (UTC+1)	Eikeland 24' Bruton 40' 85' Williams 45+3' (pen.) Harding 72'	Report	Siems 59' Larsen 79' (pen.) 90+6'	Stadium: Madejski Stadium Attendance: 0 Referee: Emily Heaslip
Note: Match played behind closed doors due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom.

4 October 2020 3	West Ham United	0–1	Reading	Dagenham
15:00 BST (UTC+1)	Dali 60'	Report	Bruton 26' Bartrip 31'	Stadium: Chigwell Construction Stadium Attendance: 0 Referee: Robert Whitton
Note: Match played behind closed doors due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom.

11 October 2020 4	Reading	0–1	Birmingham City	Reading
14:00 BST (UTC+1)		Report	Scott 64' Walker 72' Scofield 82'	Stadium: Madejski Stadium Attendance: 0 Referee: Sarah Garratt
Note: Match played behind closed doors due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom.

18 October 2020 5	Reading	1–1	Manchester City	Reading
14:00 BST (UTC+1)	Eikeland 3' Mitchell 51'	Report	Mewis 56'	Stadium: Madejski Stadium Attendance: 0 Referee: Savvas Yianni
Note: Match played behind closed doors due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom.

7 November 2020 6	Tottenham Hotspur	1–1	Reading	Edgware
14:00 GMT (UTC)	Neville 25' Harrop 63'	Report	Chaplen 13' Rowe 22'	Stadium: The Hive Stadium Attendance: 0 Referee: Helen Conley
Note: Match played behind closed doors due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom.

14 November 2020 7	Everton	1–1	Reading	Liverpool
16:30 GMT (UTC)	Magill 39' Christiansen 66'	Report	Harding 42'	Stadium: Walton Hall Park Attendance: 0 Referee: Emily Heaslip
Note: Match played behind closed doors due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom.

6 December 2020 8	Reading	1–1	Bristol City	Reading
14:00 GMT (UTC)	Williams 50' Cooper 62'	Report	Bissell 43'	Stadium: Madejski Stadium Referee: Lucy Oliver

13 December 2020 9	Reading	1–2	Manchester United	Reading
12:30 GMT (UTC)	Leine 18' M.Turner 56' Bartrip 64'	Report	Galton 32' A.Turner 63' Ladd 83' Heath 90+5'	Stadium: Madejski Stadium Referee: Helen Conley

20 December 2020 10	Brighton & Hove Albion	1–3	Reading	Crawley
14:30 GMT (UTC)	Kaagman 21' (pen.) Bowman 55'	Report	Fishlock 17', 44' Leine 23' Bartrip 61' Carter 88' Rowe 90+1'	Stadium: Broadfield Stadium Attendance: 365 Referee: Abigail Byrne

10 January 2021 11	Reading	0–5	Chelsea	Reading
14:00 GMT (UTC)	Williams 45+1' Moloney 45+2'	Report	Kirby 16', 23', 45+2', 53' Ji 86'	Stadium: Madejski Stadium Attendance: 0 Referee: Abigail Byrne
Note: Match played behind closed doors due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom.

17 January 2021 12	Reading	1–1	Arsenal	Reading
14:00 GMT (UTC)	Bruton 5' Fishlock 58'	Report	Wubben-Moy 26' Miedema 40' Wälti 76'	Stadium: Madejski Stadium Attendance: 0 Referee: Lisa Benn
Note: Match played behind closed doors due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom.

23 January 2021 13	Aston Villa	2–2	Reading	Walsall
12:30 GMT (UTC)	N'Dow 30' Iwabuchi 55' Larsen 80' Silva 90+1'	Report	James 3' Rowe 57'	Stadium: Bescot Stadium Attendance: 0 Referee: Kirsty Dowle

7 February 2021 14	Manchester United	v	Reading	Leigh
12:30 GMT (UTC)				Stadium: Leigh Sports Village

Table

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
5	Everton	22	9	5	8	39	30	+9	32
6	Brighton & Hove Albion	22	8	3	11	21	41	−20	27
7	Reading	22	5	9	8	25	41	−16	24
8	Tottenham Hotspur	22	5	5	12	18	41	−23	20
9	West Ham United	22	3	6	13	21	39	−18	15

Source: FA WSL
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Number of goals scored.

FA Cup

v

League Cup

Group stage

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	WPEN	LPEN	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	West Ham United	3	2	1	0	0	9	2	+7	8	Advanced to knock-out stage
2	Reading	3	2	0	0	1	6	3	+3	6	Possible knock-out stage based on ranking
3	Brighton & Hove Albion	2	0	0	1	1	2	4	−2	1
4	Charlton Athletic	2	0	0	0	2	0	8	−8	0

Source: thefa.com
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Number of goals scored; 4) Number of wins; 5) Head-to-head record

7 October 2020 1	Reading	4–0	Charlton Athletic	Reading
19:30 BST (UTC+1)	Carter 27' Harding 68', 70' Chaplen 90+2' 90+2'	Report	Watling 38'	Stadium: Madejski Stadium Attendance: 0 Referee: Emily Heaslip
Note: Match played behind closed doors due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom.

4 November 2020 2	West Ham United	3–0	Reading	Dagenham
19:30 GMT (UTC)	Lehmann 14' 45' Flaherty 29' van Egmond 51' Daly 58'	Report		Stadium: Victoria Road Attendance: 0 Referee: Aji Ajibola
Note: Match played behind closed doors due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom.

18 November 2020 3	Brighton & Hove Albion	0–2	Reading	Crawley
19:30 GMT (UTC)	Simpkins 58'	Report	Harding 28' Fishlock 41' Eikeland 73'	Stadium: Broadfield Stadium Attendance: 0
Note: Match played behind closed doors due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom.

Squad statistics

As of match played 23 January 2021

Appearances

No.	Pos	Nat	Player	Total		WSL		FA Cup		League Cup
No.	Pos	Nat	Player	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
1	GK	IRL	Grace Moloney	15	0	13	0	0	0	2	0
2	DF	NOR	Kristine Leine	13	0	7+3	0	0	0	2+1	0
3	DF	SCO	Emma Mitchell	13	0	10	0	0	0	2+1	0
4	MF	ENG	Fara Williams	11	2	7+3	2	0	0	0+1	0
5	DF	ENG	Molly Bartrip	16	0	12+1	0	0	0	3	0
6	MF	WAL	Angharad James	16	1	13	1	0	0	3	0
7	FW	KOR	Jeon Ga-eul	3	0	1+1	0	0	0	1	0
8	MF	WAL	Jess Fishlock	16	2	13	2	0	0	3	0
9	FW	NOR	Amalie Eikeland	16	3	13	2	0	0	3	1
10	FW	ENG	Lauren Bruton	16	3	6+7	3	0	0	2+1	0
11	MF	WAL	Natasha Harding	16	4	13	1	0	0	2+1	3
14	DF	ENG	Deanna Cooper	14	0	12	0	0	0	2	0
16	GK	NZL	Erin Nayler	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
18	FW	ENG	Danielle Carter	15	2	7+5	1	0	0	2+1	1
19	FW	ENG	Brooke Chaplen	8	2	4+1	1	0	0	2+1	1
23	MF	WAL	Rachel Rowe	14	2	4+7	2	0	0	2+1	0
28	DF	WAL	Lily Woodham	8	0	4+2	0	0	0	1+1	0
31	DF	ENG	Bethan Roberts	2	0	1+1	0	0	0	0	0
36	MF	ENG	Emma Harries	11	0	3+5	0	0	0	0+3	0
Players away from the club on loan:
Players who appeared for Reading but left during the season:

Goal scorers

Place	Position	Nation	Number	Name	WSL	FA Cup	League Cup	Total
1	MF		11	Natasha Harding	1	0	3	4
2	FW		10	Lauren Bruton	3	0	0	3
	FW		9	Amalie Eikeland	2	0	1	3
	4	MF		4	Fara Williams	2	0	0	2
		MF		8	Jess Fishlock	2	0	0	2
		MF		23	Rachel Rowe	2	0	0	2
FW			18	Danielle Carter	1	0	1	2
FW			19	Brooke Chaplen	1	0	1	2
8	MF		6	Angharad James	1	0	0	1
8				Own goal	1	0	0	1
Total					16	0	6	23

Clean sheets

Place	Position	Nation	Number	Name	WSL	FA Cup	League Cup	Total
1	GK		1	Grace Moloney	1	0	2	3
Total					1	0	2	3

Disciplinary record

Number	Nation	Position	Name	WSL		FA Cup		League Cup		Total
Number	Nation	Position	Name
1		GK	Grace Moloney	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
2		DF	Kristine Leine	2	0	0	0	0	0	2	0
3		DF	Emma Mitchell	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
4		MF	Fara Williams	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
5		DF	Molly Bartrip	3	0	0	0	0	0	3	0
8		MF	Jess Fishlock	2	0	0	0	1	0	3	0
10		FW	Lauren Bruton	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
11		MF	Natasha Harding	2	0	0	0	0	0	2	0
14		DF	Deanna Cooper	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
18		FW	Danielle Carter	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
19		FW	Brooke Chaplen	0	0	0	0	1	0	1	0
23		MF	Rachel Rowe	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
Players away on loan:
Players who left Reading during the season:
Total				16	0	0	0	2	0	18	0

References

^ ^a ^b "Arsenal Women strike star Carter signs for Kelly Chambers' side". readingfc.co.uk/. Reading F.C. 15 July 2020. Retrieved 15 July 2020.
^ ^a ^b "Mitchell makes move from Gunners to Reading Women' side". readingfc.co.uk/. Reading F.C. 15 July 2020. Retrieved 15 July 2020.
^ ^a ^b "Deanna Cooper leaves WSL champions to sign for Reading FC Women". readingfc.co.uk/. Reading F.C. 17 July 2020. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
^ "Academy captain Skeels signs first pro contract with Reading Women as Harding and Woodham also seal new deals". readingfc.co.uk. Reading F.C. 17 July 2020. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
^ ^a ^b ^c "Goalkeeper Erin Nayler joins the Royals". readingfc.co.uk/. Reading F.C. 14 August 2020. Retrieved 14 August 2020.
^ ^a ^b ^c "ess Fishlock MBE joins Royals on loan". readingfc.co.uk/. Reading F.C. 19 August 2020. Retrieved 19 August 2020.
^ "Women draw Hammers, Addicks and Seagulls in Conti Cup". readingfc.co.uk/. Reading F.C. 1 September 2020. Retrieved 1 September 2020.
^ ^a ^b ^c "Royals women sign South Korean international Jeon Ga-eul". readingfc.co.uk/. Reading F.C. 4 September 2020. Retrieved 4 September 2020.
^ ^a ^b "Quirk completes loan move to London Bees". readingfc.co.u. Reading F.C. 8 January 2021. Retrieved 8 January 2021.
^ "Nok en A-landslagsspiller til Rosenborg!". rbk-kvinner.no/ (in Norwegian). Rosenborg BK Kvinner. 24 June 2020. Retrieved 24 June 2020.
^ "Reading FC | Women's First Team". www.readingfc.co.uk.

[Danielle_Carter-1] "Arsenal Women strike star Carter signs for Kelly Chambers' side". readingfc.co.uk/. Reading F.C. 15 July 2020. Retrieved 15 July 2020.

[Emma_Mitchell-2] "Mitchell makes move from Gunners to Reading Women' side". readingfc.co.uk/. Reading F.C. 15 July 2020. Retrieved 15 July 2020.

[Deanna_Cooper-3] "Deanna Cooper leaves WSL champions to sign for Reading FC Women". readingfc.co.uk/. Reading F.C. 17 July 2020. Retrieved 17 July 2020.

[3_New_Contracts-4] "Academy captain Skeels signs first pro contract with Reading Women as Harding and Woodham also seal new deals". readingfc.co.uk. Reading F.C. 17 July 2020. Retrieved 17 July 2020.

[Erin_Nayler-5] "Goalkeeper Erin Nayler joins the Royals". readingfc.co.uk/. Reading F.C. 14 August 2020. Retrieved 14 August 2020.

[Jess_Fishlock-6] "ess Fishlock MBE joins Royals on loan". readingfc.co.uk/. Reading F.C. 19 August 2020. Retrieved 19 August 2020.

[7] "Women draw Hammers, Addicks and Seagulls in Conti Cup". readingfc.co.uk/. Reading F.C. 1 September 2020. Retrieved 1 September 2020.

[Jeon_Ga-eul-8] "Royals women sign South Korean international Jeon Ga-eul". readingfc.co.uk/. Reading F.C. 4 September 2020. Retrieved 4 September 2020.

[Sophie_Quirk_Loan-9] "Quirk completes loan move to London Bees". readingfc.co.u. Reading F.C. 8 January 2021. Retrieved 8 January 2021.

[10] "Nok en A-landslagsspiller til Rosenborg!". rbk-kvinner.no/ (in Norwegian). Rosenborg BK Kvinner. 24 June 2020. Retrieved 24 June 2020.

[11] "Reading FC | Women's First Team". www.readingfc.co.uk.

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v t e Reading Football Club
Current season
Seasons	2016 2017 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24
Grounds	Adams Park (2006–2020) Madejski Stadium (2020–present)
Related articles	Reading