Fran Kirby

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Fran Kirby
Fran Kirby Lewes FC Women 1 Chelsea Women 2 Conti Cup 02 11 2019-519 (49006183211).jpg
Kirby with Chelsea in 2019
Personal information
Full name Francesca Kirby[1]
Date of birth (1993-06-29) 29 June 1993 (age 28)[1]
Place of birth Reading, England[2]
Height 5 ft 2 in (1.57 m)[1]
Position(s) Forward[1]
Club information
Current team
 Chelsea
Number 14
Youth career
2001–2010 Reading
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2012–2015 Reading 42 (68)
2015– Chelsea 72 (48)
National team‡
2013–2014 England U23 4 (1)
2014– England 47 (14)
2021– Great Britain 2 (0)
Honours
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 15:42, 11 November 2020 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 19:45, 5 August 2019 (UTC)

Francesca "Fran" Kirby (born 29 June 1993) is an English professional footballer who plays as a forward for Chelsea and the England national team. She began her career with her local team Reading before moving to Chelsea in July 2015. In August 2014, Kirby won her first senior cap for England. She represented her country at the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup in Canada, the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup in France, and at the UEFA Women's Euro 2017 in the Netherlands.

In April 2018, Kirby was awarded the PFA Women's Players' Player of the Year and the Football Writers’ Women’s Footballer of the Year. As of December 2020, she is Chelsea's leading all-time scorer.[3]

Early life[]

"[My mum] used to tell a story about taking me to the doctors for a couple of tests. The doctor threw a tennis ball to see how I would react. I think I was supposed to just catch it, but I kicked it straight back to him. I was three years old. My mum just went, “O.K., … I thinks she wants to be a footballer.”

Fran Kirby[4]

Born and raised in Reading with her brother Jamie and parents Denise and Steve,[5] Kirby began playing football as a young girl after watching her brother play. She would play any chance she got: at school, in the street, in the front garden.[6] At a young age, her mother, Denise, wrote in a birthday card that that Fran would play in a World Cup one day: she was her biggest supporter.[5] When Fran was 14, her mother died suddenly from a brain haemorrhage.[5] Two years later, she experienced a deep depression.[5]

Kirby attended Caversham Park Primary School and Chiltern Edge, Sonning Common where she played against boys.[7][8] At age 7, she joined Reading's academy and made her senior debut at 16.[9]

Club career[]

Reading, 2012–15[]

Kirby joined her hometown club Reading at the age of seven and worked her way through the youth teams. She made her debut for the first team at the age of sixteen but quit football the following year after an onset of depression, brought about by the death of her mother.[10][11] Kirby returned to the club in 2012 and went on to become the FA Women's Premier League Southern Division's top scorer for the 2012–13 season, with 32 goals in 21 appearances.[12]

With Reading promoted to the newly formed Women's Super League 2 for 2014, Kirby helped the team achieve third place with 24 goals in sixteen appearances.[13] She ended the season as the league's top goalscorer; netting four against London Bees,[14] as well as hat-tricks against Durham, Watford and Doncaster Rovers Belles.[15][16][17] Shortly after, she became the first female player to receive a professional contract from the club.[18] At the 2014 FA Women's Awards, Kirby was named the inaugural WSL2 Players' Player of the Year.[19]

Kirby continued her goalscoring form into the 2015 WSL2 season, taking 11 goals in five league appearances for Reading, including all four goals in a 4–2 away win against Yeovil Town and five goals in a 7–0 win against London Bees.[20][21] Following the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup, Reading accepted an undisclosed transfer fee from Chelsea and she completed a move in July 2015.[22] It was reported that the fee of between £40,000 and £60,000 constituted a British record, although Chelsea denied this was the case and Kirby was not aware of the figure.[23]

Chelsea, 2015–[]

At the 2015 FA Women's Cup Final, staged at Wembley Stadium for the first time, Kirby was a cup-tied spectator for Chelsea's 1–0 win over Notts County. It was Chelsea's first major trophy.[24] In October 2015, she scored twice in Chelsea's 4–0 win over Sunderland which secured the club's first FA WSL title; a league and cup double.[25] The same month, Kirby scored Chelsea's first ever UEFA Women's Champions League goal in a 1–0 win over Glasgow City.[26]

Kirby during a 2019–20 FA Women's League Cup match, November 2019

Kirby's form extended into the 2016 FA WSL season. In April, she secured Chelsea's return to Wembley Stadium by scoring a late, extra-time winner against Manchester City in the FA Women's Cup semi-final.[27] Four days later, she scored both goals in Chelsea's 2–0 WSL win at Arsenal.[28]

On 22 April 2018, Kirby was awarded the PFA Women's Players' Player of the Year and the Football Writers’ Women’s Footballer of the Year for the 2017–18 season.[29]

In February 2020, Chelsea announced that Kirby was diagnosed with pericarditis,[30][31] which had ruled her out of the team since November 2019.[30][32] She overcame her infection, despite being told by cardiologists that she may never play again,[31] and played 70 minutes in Chelsea's FA Community Shield win against Manchester City on 29 August 2020.[33] On December 9 2020, Kirby’s 2 goals in a 5-0 win against Benfica in the UEFA Women's Champions League, saw her overtake Eniola Aluko as Chelsea's all-time goal scorer, with her 69th and 70th goals for the club, five years after signing.[34]

During a match against her former club, Reading on 10 January 2021, Kirby scored four goals lifting Chelsea to a 5–0 win.[35] In the 2021 FA Women's League Cup final match against Bristol City W.F.C., Kirby scored two goals and created four assists as defending champions Chelsea won 6–0 at Vicarage Road.[36]

Kirby was singled out by observers as the top performer for Chelsea during their double-winning 2020-21 campaign.[37][38][39] She later won FWA's 2021 Women's Footballer of the Year award.[37][40]

International career[]

Kirby in 2019

Early in her career, Kirby was a member of the England under-23 squad. She became the first WSL 2 player to be called up to the senior squad, in June 2014 for the World Cup qualifiers against Belarus and Ukraine.[41] She was named on the substitutes' bench against Belarus but did not make an appearance. She made her senior international debut against Sweden in August 2014, getting the second goal in a 4–0 friendly win at Victoria Park, Hartlepool.[42]

In May 2015, England manager Mark Sampson named Kirby in his final squad for the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup, hosted in Canada.[43] She scored in England's 2–1 win over Mexico[44] and was hailed "mini Messi" by Sampson.[44][31] Although Kirby was disappointed to be ruled out by injury from the quarter-finals onwards, England's eventual third-place finish left her with a positive overall impression of the tournament: "a fantastic experience and one I won’t forget in a hurry."[45]

Sampson kept Kirby in the national team for the UEFA Women's Euro 2017 qualifying campaign. In Estonia on 21 September 2015 she scored twice in England's 8–0 win.[46][47] After "12 months of hell" caused by knee and ankle injuries, Kirby returned to England's line-up for UEFA Women's Euro 2017 in the Netherlands.[48] In England's opening fixture against rivals Scotland, second striker Kirby's clever dummy sent Jodie Taylor through to score England's opening goal in a 6–0 rout.[49] In the next match Kirby and Taylor scored in a 2–0 win over Spain, which secured England's place in the quarter-final.[50] When England were thrashed 3–0 by the hosts in the semi-final, Kirby was rueful: "We had chances and could have had a few penalties. We are bitterly disappointed".[51]

On 6 October 2018, Kirby scored in England's 1–0 friendly win over Brazil at Meadow Lane. In post-match interviews England coach Phil Neville breathlessly proclaimed Kirby's superiority to six-time World Player of the Year Marta: "I'd take my No 10 over Brazil's No 10, that's for sure".[52]

Great Britain[]

Kirby was hailed as a "stand out player" in Great Britain's gold medal-winning team at the 2013 Summer Universiade in Kazan, Russia.[53]

Career statistics[]

Club[]

As of 10 November 2020[54]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League Cup Continental Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Reading 2014 Women's Super League 0 0 4 4 — 4 4
Chelsea 2015 Women's Super League 5 4 3 3 4[a] 2 12 9
2016 Women's Super League 7 5 0 0 — 7 5
2017 Women's Super League 5 6 0 0 — 5 6
2017–18 Women's Super League 17 8 6 7 8[a] 4 31 19
2018–19 Women's Super League 16 9 5 4 8[a] 5 29 18
2019–20 Women's Super League 4 0 2 0 — 6 0
2020–21 Women's Super League 18 16 2 0 1 2 20 16
Total 72 48 18 14 21 13 97 71
Career totals 71 46 22 18 21 13 101 75
  1. ^ Jump up to: a b c Appearances in the UEFA Women's Champions League

International[]

Statistics accurate as of match played 27 July 2021.
Year England Great Britain
Apps Goals Apps Goals
2014 ? ? N/A
2015 ? ? N/A
2016 ? ? N/A
2017 ? ? N/A
2018 ? ? N/A
2019 ? ? N/A
2020 ? ? N/A
2021 ? ? 1 0
Total 45 13 1 0

International goals[]

As of match played 6 July 2019. England score listed first, score column indicates score after each Kirby goal.
International goals by date, venue, opponent, score, result and competition
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition Ref.
1 3 August 2014 Victoria Park, Hartlepool, England  Sweden 2–0 4–0 Friendly [55]
2 9 April 2015 Academy Stadium, Manchester, England  China PR 2–0 2–1 Friendly [55]
3 13 June 2015 Moncton Stadium, Moncton, Canada  Mexico 1–0 2–1 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup [55]
4 21 September 2015 A. Le Coq Arena, Tallinn, Estonia  Estonia 3–0 8–0 UEFA Women's Euro 2017 qualifying [55]
5 6–0 [55]
6 10 June 2017 Tissot Arena, Biel, Switzerland   Switzerland 2–0 4–0 Friendly [55]
7 23 July 2017 Rat Verlegh Stadion, Breda, Netherlands  Spain 1–0 2–0 UEFA Women's Euro 2017 [55]
8 24 November 2017 Bescot Stadium, Walsall, England  Bosnia and Herzegovina 4–0 4–0 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup qualification [55]
9 28 November 2017 Colchester Community Stadium, Colchester, England  Kazakhstan 2–0 5–0 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup qualification [55]
10 1 March 2018 Mapfre Stadium, Columbus, Ohio, United States  France 4–0 4–1 2018 SheBelieves Cup [55]
11 6 October 2018 Meadow Lane, Nottingham, England  Brazil 1–0 1–0 Friendly [55]
12 9 October 2018 Craven Cottage, London, England  Australia 1–0 1–1 Friendly [55]
13 6 July 2019 Allianz Riviera, Nice, France  Sweden 1–2 1–2 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup [56]
14 9 April 2021 Stade Michel d'Ornano, Caen, France  France 1–2 1–3 Friendly

Honours[]

Chelsea[]

England[]

Individual[]

Personal life[]

While growing up, Kirby was very close to her mother Denise.[65] At the age of 14, her mother passed away due to a brain hemorrhage. "I just could not comprehend what had happened. And it stayed like that for many years."[66] Away with England U17, she broke down because she "missed [her] mum". She returned home and dropped out of football. After her mother's death, she fell into a depression. "I’d have days where I wouldn’t get out of bed. Or I wouldn’t go to college. I could get as far as the bus stop, then I’d just break down crying." One day, one of her friends invited her to play with her amateur team, where she found her love for football again. Kirby says that her mother is still very important in her life. "Towards the end of the season where everything was great, [...] I remember sitting on the coach back from the last game of the season and I just cried. [...] I remember sitting next to the girls and I just said 'there's only one person who I wanna pick up the phone to and call, and I can't do that'."[67] "I think about her every day, but especially when things are going well, because I want to celebrate with her."[citation needed]

In October 2019, Kirby received the honorary degree of Doctor of Science (D.Sc) from the University of Winchester for her "achievements both on and off the field, in particular her work supporting mental health and wellbeing."[68]

In February 2020, Chelsea revealed Kirby had successfully recovered from Pericarditis, a potential career ending illness.[31] Kirby had fallen ill in November 2019 and came close to retiring from the game as a result.[32]

In April 2020, Kirby was named in Diva magazine's '"Visible Lesbian 100" list during .[69]

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b c d "FIFA Women's World Cup Canada 2015: List of players: England" (PDF). FIFA. 6 July 2015. p. 10. Retrieved 1 June 2019.
  2. ^ "Women's World Cup 2019: Mapping England's Lionesses squad". BBC Sport. 2 July 2019. Retrieved 6 September 2019.
  3. ^ "Fran Kirby makes history in Chelsea win while City beat Gothenburg". The Guardian. 9 December 2020. Retrieved 10 January 2021.
  4. ^ Kirby, Fran (4 June 2019). "The Puzzle". The Players Tribune. Retrieved 10 January 2021.
  5. ^ Jump up to: a b c d Hamilton, Tom (4 June 2019). "The true grit of England's Fran Kirby". ESPN. Retrieved 10 January 2021.
  6. ^ Malin, Angelica. "About Time You Met: Fran Kirby". About Time Magazine. Retrieved 10 January 2021.
  7. ^ "Interview with Chelsea and England star Fran Kirby". Berkshire Life. 28 June 2016. Retrieved 10 January 2021.
  8. ^ "Reading and England striker Fran Kirby boosts Crosfields' six-a-side". getreading.co.uk/. Berkshire Live. 22 October 2014. Retrieved 28 March 2021.
  9. ^ Preston, Andy (11 June 2019). "Maiden Erlegh's Fran gives Lionesses a lift". Wokingham Today. Retrieved 10 January 2021.
  10. ^ Hassan, Nabil (17 March 2015). "Fran Kirby: England & Reading forward on overcoming adversity". BBC Sport. Retrieved 10 April 2015.
  11. ^ Kessel, Anna (27 December 2014). "England forward Fran Kirby aiming for greatness at women's World Cup". The Guardian. Retrieved 10 April 2015.
  12. ^ "Southern Division Player Stats 2012/13". The Football Association. Retrieved 11 April 2015.
  13. ^ "WSL Player Stats". FA WSL. Retrieved 11 April 2015.
  14. ^ "London Bees 1 – 9 Reading FC Women". FA WSL. Archived from the original on 15 October 2014. Retrieved 12 April 2015.
  15. ^ "Reading FC Women 4 – 0 Durham Women FC". FA WSL. Retrieved 12 April 2015.
  16. ^ "Hat-Trick Heroine Kirby". FA WSL. Retrieved 12 April 2015.
  17. ^ "Stunning Reading Silence the Belles". FA WSL. Retrieved 12 April 2015.
  18. ^ Trehan, Dev (24 March 2015). "England striker Fran Kirby says Reading means 'everything' to her". Sky Sports. Retrieved 12 April 2015.
  19. ^ "Ji So-Yun named FA WSL 1 Players' Player of the Year". The Football Association. Retrieved 12 April 2015.
  20. ^ "Royals defeat Glovers to kick of 2015 Campaign". FA WSL. Retrieved 11 April 2015.
  21. ^ "Royals take the sting out of the Bees in the Hive". FA WSL. Retrieved 11 April 2015.
  22. ^ "Fran Kirby: Chelsea Ladies sign England striker from Reading". BBC Sport. Retrieved 8 July 2015.
  23. ^ "Fran Kirby: Chelsea striker 'does not know' her transfer fee". BBC Sport. 14 July 2015. Retrieved 19 December 2015.
  24. ^ Aloia, Andrew (1 August 2015). "How Chelsea won the Women's FA Cup". BBC Sport. Retrieved 5 October 2015.
  25. ^ Garry, Tom (4 October 2015). "WSL 1: Chelsea Ladies 4–0 Sunderland Ladies". BBC Sport. Retrieved 8 October 2015.
  26. ^ https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/34480687
  27. ^ Piperdy, Hash (18 April 2016). "Kirby wants Wembley chance after firing Chelsea to Final". The Football Association. Retrieved 23 April 2016.
  28. ^ "Chelsea beat Arsenal with Kirby brace". BBC Sport. 21 April 2016. Retrieved 23 April 2016.
  29. ^ "Fran Kirby named Football Writers' Women's Footballer of the Year". 24 April 2018 – via www.theguardian.com.
  30. ^ Jump up to: a b "Fran Kirby on her Chelsea FC Women absence". chelseafc.com. Chelsea FC. 17 February 2020. Retrieved 17 February 2020.
  31. ^ Jump up to: a b c d Taylor, Louise (5 September 2020). "Fran Kirby: 'The cardiologist said if I didn't slow down, I wouldn't play again'". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 10 May 2021.
  32. ^ Jump up to: a b Wrack, Suzzane (14 April 2021). "England striker Fran Kirby came close to retiring due to illness". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 10 May 2021.
  33. ^ Sanders, Emma. "Chelsea 2–0 Man City in Women's Community Shield: Millie Bright stunner helps Blues win". BBC Sport. Retrieved 5 September 2020.
  34. ^ McElwee, Molly (9 December 2020). "Fran Kirby becomes Chelsea's record goalscorer in five-goal thrashing of Benfica". Telegraph – via [1].
  35. ^ "Four-goal Kirby fires Chelsea to WSL win amid COVID chaos". Times of India. Reuters. 10 January 2021. Retrieved 10 January 2021.
  36. ^ Robson, James (14 March 2021). "Chelsea Women win Continental Cup as Sam Kerr and Fran Kirby star in win against Bristol City". Evening Standard. Retrieved 15 March 2021.
  37. ^ Jump up to: a b c "Fran Kirby: Chelsea forward wins Football Writers' Association Women's Footballer of the Year award". Sky Sports. United Kingdom. 14 May 2021. Archived from the original on 14 May 2021.
  38. ^ Wrack, Suzzane (10 May 2021). "How Emma Hayes turned Chelsea from also-rans to all-conquerors". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 10 May 2021.
  39. ^ Ruszkai, Ameé (10 May 2021). "Miedema, Kerr and the Women's Super League team of the season". goal.com. Archived from the original on 10 May 2021.
  40. ^ Jump up to: a b Percival, Holly (14 May 2021). "Chelsea's Fran Kirby wins FWA Women's Footballer of the Year". The Athletic. Archived from the original on 14 May 2021.
  41. ^ "Mark Sampson announces 23-player squad for crunch qualifiers". The Football Association. Retrieved 12 April 2015.
  42. ^ Reid, James. "Ruthless England Women defeat Sweden in Hartlepool". The Football Association. Retrieved 11 April 2015.
  43. ^ Lavery, Glenn (11 May 2015). "England squad named for FIFA Women's World Cup". The Football Association. Retrieved 12 May 2015.
  44. ^ Jump up to: a b Magowan, Alistair (14 June 2015). "Women's World Cup 2015: Kirby England's mini Messi – Sampson". BBC Sport. Retrieved 13 October 2015.
  45. ^ "Kirby: I couldn't have asked for any more". FIFA. 12 November 2015. Retrieved 23 April 2016.
  46. ^ "Danielle Carter hat-trick guides England to opening Euro 2017 qualifying win". The Guardian. 21 September 2015. Retrieved 21 September 2015.
  47. ^ "Euro 2017 qualifying: England thrash Estonia 8–0". BBC Sport. 21 September 2015. Retrieved 21 September 2015.
  48. ^ Pitt-Brooke, Jack (18 July 2018). "Fran Kirby looks to put 12 months of hell behind her and become England's 'mini Messi' once again". The Independent. Retrieved 1 March 2019.
  49. ^ Theivam, Kieran (19 July 2017). "Women's Euro 2017: 5 things we learned from England 6-0 Scotland". FourFourTwo. Retrieved 1 March 2019.
  50. ^ Edwards, Luke (24 July 2017). "England 2 Spain 0, Women's Euro 2017: Lionesses refuse to buckle as they advance towards quarter-finals". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 1 March 2019.
  51. ^ Garry, Tom (3 August 2017). "Women's Euro 2017 semi-final: FT: Netherlands 3-0 England". BBC Sport. Retrieved 1 March 2019.
  52. ^ Wrack, Suzanne (6 October 2018). "Fran Kirby strikes early to seal narrow win for England Women over Brazil". The Observer. Retrieved 1 March 2019.
  53. ^ "Fran Kirby 2013 – Gold Medalist at World University Games Kazan, 2015 England forward, going for gold again". British Universities and Colleges Sport. 9 June 2015. Retrieved 23 April 2016.
  54. ^ Fran Kirby at Soccerway
  55. ^ Jump up to: a b c d e f g h i j k l Karsdorp, Dirk (2018). The England Women's FC 1972 – 2018: The Lionesses – A Statistical Record. Soccer Books Ltd. ISBN 978-1-86223-391-1.
  56. ^ "Women's World Cup: England finish fourth after Sweden defeat". 6 July 2019 – via www.bbc.co.uk.
  57. ^ Jump up to: a b c d e f g h "F. Kirby". Soccerway. Retrieved 10 January 2021.
  58. ^ "Match for third place - Match report" (PDF). FIFA. 4 July 2015. Retrieved 7 July 2019.
  59. ^ "England record statement win over Japan to clinch prestigious SheBelieves Cup". The Football Association. 5 March 2019. Retrieved 7 July 2019.
  60. ^ "Chelsea's Fran Kirby wins PFA Women's Player of the Year prize". Sky Sports. Retrieved 22 April 2018.
  61. ^ Pasztor, David (25 May 2021). "Emma Hayes, Fran Kirby win 2020-21 WSL Manager, Player of the Season awards". SB Nation. Archived from the original on 25 May 2021.
  62. ^ "PFA WSL 1 Team of the Year: Five Chelsea Ladies players named". BBC Sport. 19 April 2018.
  63. ^ "Chelsea players, including Fran Kirby and Sam Kerr, dominate PFA WSL Team of the Year". Sky Sports. United Kingdom. 4 June 2021. Archived from the original on 4 June 2021.
  64. ^ "Fran Kirby named Football Writers' Association Women's Footballer of the Year". Sky Sports.
  65. ^ "It's OK not to be OK - Fran Kirby". youtube.com. WePlayStrong. 30 August 2018. Retrieved 27 January 2020.
  66. ^ Kirby, Fran (4 June 2019). "The Puzzle". The Players' Tribune. Retrieved 27 January 2020.
  67. ^ "England's Fran Kirby: "It's OK not to be OK"". youtube.com. Players' Tribune Global. 3 June 2019. Retrieved 27 January 2020.
  68. ^ "Fran Kirby presented with a Honorary Doctorate". Chelsea FC. Chelsea FC. 22 October 2019. Retrieved 27 January 2020.
  69. ^ "Visible Lesbian 100". Lesbian Visibility Week. Retrieved 24 October 2020.

Further reading[]

  • Aluko, Eniola (2019), They Don't Teach This, Random House, ISBN 9781473564480
  • Brown, Charlotte (2019), Kirby, John Blake ISBN 9781789461565
  • Caudwell, Jayne (2013), Women's Football in the UK: Continuing with Gender Analyses, Taylor & Francis, ISBN 9781317966234
  • Clarke, Gemma (2019), Soccerwomen: The Icons, Rebels, Stars, and Trailblazers Who Transformed the Beautiful Game, ISBN 9781568589206
  • Dunn, Carrie (2019), Pride of the Lionesses: The Changing Face of Women's Football in England, Pitch Publishing (Brighton) Limited, ISBN 9781785315411
  • Dunn, Carrie (2016), The Roar of the Lionesses: Women's Football in England, Pitch Publishing Limited, ISBN 9781785311512
  • Grainey, Timothy (2012), Beyond Bend It Like Beckham: The Global Phenomenon of Women's Soccer, University of Nebraska Press, ISBN 0803240368
  • Smith, Kelly (2012), Footballer: My Story, Transworld, ISBN 9781446488591
  • Stay, Shane (2019), The Women's World Cup 2019 Book: Everything You Need to Know About the Soccer World Cup, Books on Demand, ISBN 1782551921
  • Theivam, Keiran and Jeff Kassouf (2019), The Making of the Women's World Cup: Defining stories from a sport’s coming of age, Little, ISBN 1472143310

External links[]

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