Coventry United’s women are to relocate around 15 miles to the neighboring town of Rugby and rebrand as Rugby Borough FC as they bid to bounce back following their relegation from the Women’s Championship.
The club says the move gives them “a place to call home” and they will play at Rugby Borough’s £2.5 million facility at Kilsby Lane just to the east of the Warwickshire market town, Telegraph Sport can reveal.
Coventry, who reached the fifth round of the Women’s FA Cup this term but endured a poor league campaign and finished 11 points adrift of second-bottom Sunderland, previously played their home matches at Butts Park Arena, which is the home of Coventry Rugby. However, they have been traveling to Rugby Borough for training sessions in the past two seasons.
Chairman Lewis Taylor, who rescued the club from the brink of liquidation in January 2021 by buying the club, believes the traditional “one-club” feeling of the city towards Coventry City made it difficult for locals to embrace Coventry United.
“We never really belonged in Coventry,” he said. “They see themselves as a one-club city and I completely understand that. We were always kind of playing second fiddle before [at Butts Park Arena]trying to fit in where we could in a facility that’s not geared up for football, but as soon as you go through the gates at Rugby Borough you feel like you’re in a proper football place.
“What I would say to reassure all the fans is that we’re doing this for longevity in the club. We were never guaranteed permanent residency previously, so we would have had to consistently renegotiate our terms.”
“We’re very thankful for the fans that came out to see us [in Coventry] but if there is a kind of feeling of ‘we’re taking away the club from Coventry’, my point would be, we didn’t really see those people on match days [in huge numbers]. We’re still going to keep working in the community within Coventry and Rugby, so we see it as an opportunity to cast our net far and wide, and now we’ve got somewhere to call home.”
Rugby Borough FC will compete in the third tier of the English women’s pyramid, at the same level as a host of men’s Premier League-backed sides. Jack Heaselden, Coventry United’s general manager, told Telegraph Sport: “The aim is to hopefully only be in tier three for one year. “
“We want not only a Championship mentality but actually a WSL [Women’s Super League] mentality. We’re going to provide things that we don’t necessarily need to provide by the regulations, so giving the girls access to top medical provision and player houses – we’re not seeing it [relegation] as an opportunity to just do the bare minimum.”
“Rugby Borough is a fantastic facility, there are a lot of clubs even higher up that haven’t got access to this kind of facility, and there are plans in place to expand it and give us our own building and gym, so it’s going to become a real hub for the club.”
‘It will put us on the map’
Founded in 1994 and after winning promotion in April, Rugby Borough’s men’s team will play in step five of the non-league system next term. Their girls’ set-up was formed five years ago and includes 200 playing members from ages four to 18. They share the 35-acre site with the men’s team.
Rugby Borough women’s and girls’ chair Theresa Blandford said of the merger: “It will put us more on the map, help us grow our fanbase and give us more opportunity to grow our facility even further. We’re really pleased to have them come on board. We’ve got a massive girls’ section, and now the girls can see the progression to senior level.”
Next term, sides backed by men’s Premier League sides Burnley, Newcastle United, Nottingham Forest and Wolverhampton Wanderers will compete in the Northern Premier Division of the Women’s National League, whilst in the Southern region, Rugby Borough will join promotion-chasing Ipswich Town, Oxford United and Portsmouth. From next term, two teams will be promoted from tier three to the Championship, one from the North and one from the South.
Head coach Lee Burch, who has previously managed Yeovil Town in the WSL as well as London Bees, is to remain in charge of the rebranded team and said: “We know we’re going in a division with some really big football clubs. It [the merger] really shows the forward-planning of the club. It ticks a lot of the boxes we need and I’m really excited for the future.
“We’re very mindful of our fans who have been with the club on its journey, but hopefully they can continue to support the team even though there’s a change of color and a change of badge – ultimately it’s the same people and quite a few of the same players and staff, so please come along on the journey with us.”
Central midfielder Katy Morris, who is approaching her fifth season with the team and who also works as the club’s Community Development Officer, added: “We’ve been training at rugby’s facilities for the past couple of seasons so to be on board here now it’s just a very exciting time, to have a club behind us. “
All the equipment can be stored here, which is something we’ve struggled with in the past, so it’s something that’s really ideal. With the staff and players that we have, hopefully it can put us in a good position to compete and hopefully bounce straight back to the Championship.”
Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month, then enjoy 1 year for just $9 with our US-exclusive offer.