The nominees for the BBC Women's Footballer of the year 2022 have been named and we don't have long to wait for the winner to be announced as that will be happening on the 9th November. It has been a big year for Women's football and I really don't know how the panel have managed to narrow the nominees down to the 5 names they have done as the game is going from strength to strength with players improving year after year and really becoming standout names that everyone is beginning to know. With this summer's Euros a lot of players have started to become household names and young players have started catching people's attention showing just what we can expect from them as their careers progress. The five nominees for this years BBC Women's Footballer of the year have all had an exciting year and here is a look at those nominees...

Sam Kerr

Kerr is definitely an established household name. The Chelsea & Australia star just keeps putting in some amazing performances for club and country with no signs of slowing down anytime soon. We have grown used to seeing Kerr's name on these nomination lists and I can't see that stopping anytime soon. She won the WSL golden boot last year and played a big part in Chelsea securing another title in the WSL. Kerr is a player that is always great to watch but do I think she has had a better season than some of the other players on this list? Honestly I don't think she has, I think a few others have a much more influential season. 

Beth Mead

I think it is safe to say Beth Mead is a name a lot of fans have become used to hearing this year, she has had a fantastic season at Arsenal and really helped them in their push to knock Chelsea off the top spot where they just came up short on the final day. She also had an amazing Euro campaign where she was influential in England winning their first major trophy, she won the golden boot in the tournament and as the new Arsenal season has begun she is showing her form from the summer is continuing into the new season, there seems to be no stopping Beth Mead these days whether that is on a scoring front or assisting her team mates. After being left out of the Team GB Olympic squad Mead had a point to prove and she has certainly done just that, I think this is only the start of seeing Mead receiving well deserved award nominations. 

Alexandra Popp

Popp might not have played much during the domestic season for Wolfsburg however, when she did play she made an impact. She missed most of the season with a serious injury but she wasn't going to come back and sit in the shadows, she wanted that Germany call up for the Euros and she got it at long last Popp was heading to a major tournament. She started the early stages on the bench for Germany but came on and made an impact on the games, soon enough she was a started and was challenging Beth Mead for the Golden Boot. Popp really helped Germany progress through the Euro's and we were looking forward to seeing her really challenge the English defence in the final unfortunately though that wasn't to be as she pulled out of the game during warm ups with an injury. I really do think she could have changed the outcome of the final if she had played but now I guess we will never know. All I know is she is a name I am going to be keeping a closer eye on in the future as she has really impressed me this year.

Alexia Putellas 

The Barcelona captain has had a good few seasons now and has found herself a back to back Ballon D'or winner after two solid campaigns with Barcelona. Putellas is the Barcelona captain and has led the club to the domestic treble scoring 18 goals in the process and providing the team with plenty of assists. She has become a name a lot of female fans now know and I don't see that changing anytime soon with the skill she possesses. Putellas was a player everyone was looking forward to seeing play in the Euros and a player who was always going to be a key player for Spain however, right before the competition was due to start Putellas unfortunately found herself out injured with an ACL injury. I think her injury definitely impacted the Spanish Euro performance but do I think she should win this award? Honestly I think other names should have been considered and other nominees have definitely made a stronger case to win this award.

Wendie Renard

Renard has been one of those defenders I have loved watching since I started watching the women's game properly, she seems to have gone from strength to strength especially at club level but as a part of the French national team I don't think that we have seen her potential this year, yes she has played well but she hasn't looked like she used to. As for with Lyon though she has had another great season, she missed the early season through injury but she soon bounced back and helped Lyon win yet more trophies throughout the season, they just seem unstoppable. The Defender is also the first female player to make 100 Champions League appearances which I guess just shows how great she is, she really is an integral part of the Lyon squad and the French squad and I can't see that changing anytime soon. 

So there you have it those are the five players that have been nominated for this years award, do I think other players could of made the cut? Of course I do but I guess these five have just stood out that little bit more. For me though there is only winner and that is Beth Mead, she has been fantastic all year round and is showing no signs of slowing down, I am glad she is finally getting the recognition she deserves. 

There isn't long to wait with the winner being announced on the 9th November, who would your winner from these five players be? 

 It is safe to say it is already getting pretty tight at the top of the WSL table and there is still a long way to go in the season. It might be early days but we are seeing a very competitive start to the 22/23 with Arsenal and Manchester United really standing out to us, they are both unbeaten and look very threatening on the attack, I just hope these two teams really keep on pushing and challenging Chelsea who are level on points but having played 1 more game than Arsenal & Man Utd, they definitely aren't where they would expect to be by now, that opening weekend defeat to Liverpool has got them playing catch up. As for the rest of the table Everton are really showing us that they have a point to prove after last season's struggles. Unfortunately, at the bottom of the table both Reading & Leicester are struggling, neither side have recorded any points yet and with how the rest of the table is moving I do believe they need to start picking up points soon. So here is a look at the weekend's results...

Finally on Sunday we managed to get to our first Manchester United game of the season. We picked up our first season tickets for the club and the game vs Brighton was the first we could attend due to prior engagements on the day of the Reading game. This was definitely a great first live WSL game of the season for us with a fantastic result going Man Utd's way. On the drive to the game we said we could end up seeing a few goals but I don't think either of us expected all 4 goals would go in United's favour. 

United started the game really well though and looked threatening from the get go. It only took 14 minutes for United to get off the mark and of course it was Ella Toone who got the goal with a pretty good header.  She then went on and doubled United's led in the 26th minute, the goal was nicely slotted home after a fantastic bit of build up play through the middle of the field. In the 40th minute Leah Galton finally found her way onto the score sheet after playing a big part in Toone's goals, it was another great goal created by United getting through Brighton's defence too easily. The first half was absolutely fantastic from United but in the second half they just seemed to sit back a bit and passes didn't flow as well as they had in the first half. We did get to see a goal in front of us though as Leon got her first for the club with a brilliantly placed low driven shot. The game ended 4-0 to United but Brighton could have certainly got themselves on the score sheet as they had some great moments of build up play throughout the game, they just couldn't get past Earps who made some absolutely brilliant saves. Her save at the end of the first half was certainly the best though as she was outstretched and it looked almost certain that the ball was heading into the top corner.

Manchester United moved the ball around really well throughout the game however, in the first half a lot of the best plays were coming from link ups down the left hand side with Galton being instrumental in a lot of the attacks especially those that led to the goals. To be honest Galton could possibly have been our player of the match as she seemed to be everywhere making runs that Brighton didn't expect and getting the team into some dangerous positions. I think it is safe to say Galton is going to be a key player this season if United want to challenge for the top spot so I really hope she stays injury free. Her reading of the game is definitely a great asset for United to have. I am glad she got on the score sheet too as she definitely deserved it. 

It has been a long time coming but I finally got to see Lucy Staniforth in action, she is one of those players I have loved watching for a long time now and I really do believe she is a massively under rated and I wish other people would see her potential. She reads the game well and doesn't panic when in possession, her balls through the backline are brilliantly placed and she can switch the play to the other side with ease. She just seems to be aware of things before they happen and it was rare we saw a bad ball from her on Sunday. Again just like with Galton I think she is going to play a big part in United's chase for glory this season if she can stay away from any injuries. As for Ella Toone it is safe to say she has gone from strength to strength this summer and her two goals on Sunday just shows us she is on fire and ready to help United improve on last seasons 4th place finish. If she stays in the form she is currently in I can see her being on the scoresheet becoming a very regular occurrence. 

With the performances we have seen from Man Utd this season I think it is safe to say they are definitely giving it their all to get a Champions League spot come the end of the season and if they keep performing like they have in these early stages I think they have a strong possibility to gain a Champions League spot and even challenge to be the winner of this seasons WSL. After 3 games they are sitting at the top on goal difference with a game in hand on current title holders Chelsea, it might only be early days but United are getting their fans hopes up so let's hope the momentum keeps on rolling.

We are back at Leigh Sports Village for the next home game vs Chelsea in November and it is safe to say the countdown is on. It is going to be a big test for United and I think it is going to be a close game but I guess only time will tell, can they extend their lead or will Chelsea prove too strong for them? 

There may or may not be a new shirt on its way ready for this game but can you guess who's name is on the back?

England played their final friendly of October on Tuesday evening as they took on the Czech Republic in Brighton. This game was a chance for Wiegman to rotate her team a bit and see what worked and what didn't. we saw Stanway added to the out injured list and saw Mead and Daly starting from the bench. England were looking to continue their unbeaten run in a game which saw Lucy Bronze gain her 100th cap for her country however, the unbeaten run continues in a way that England probably won't be happy with as they were held to a 0-0 draw. 

The Czech Republic showed England in the first few minutes that they weren't there to be sat back and bullied, they were going to bring a game to England and put up a fight themselves. They even had the first chance of the evening with a shot that found its way over the bar and out for a corner. England's first chance came from Lauren James on her first senior start for her country, she let off a brilliant strike which came very close to going into the back of the net, instead though it rattled against the post and was cleared from the danger zone by the Czech defence. The Czech team certainly held their own especially in the first 10 minutes when they defended well and made a few breaks for themselves. As for England though the seemed to be getting in each others way too many times and this led to them losing the ball rather than continuing a promising attack, which is something we definitely aren't used to seeing from this current England side. When England did manage to string some passes together though they looked fantastic and unstoppable but unfortunately this didn't seem to happen as much as us fans would have liked it to. They definitely dominated the first half possession though there was just no end product throughout the first half, Hemp is still trying to learn her new role and there never seemed to be back up to get the most challenging shots, it was a far cry from the performance we saw in the first half against the USA on Friday. 

The teams went into half time with the score line at 0-0, there wasn't too much from either side but the Czech Republic definitely showed us they weren't here to mess around, they wanted to push and cause an upset. Half time saw Wiegman make some changes with Mead and Toone entering the pitch and it is safe to say England started much livelier than they did the first half with some great balls into the box which no one could convert into a goal. The best effort came from a brilliant ball in from Mead which found the head of Hemp but even that found its way over the crossbar. The second half also saw Esme Morgan finally get her first England cap and also Ebony Salmon receive her second, these are 2 players with a lot of potential so to see them getting a chance is great, I think they will be names we see a lot of in the future. England were doing everything right and had plenty of chances however, they just couldn't get the ball across the line and the game ended 0-0, credit to the Czech Republic though they really brought England a challenge that I don't think many of us expected. 

The Mead and Bronze link up looked really strong at time and I think this could be very beneficial for the World Cup if both players stay fit and get called up for the competition. England certainly used this game to experiment with their players and it created an interesting game which just looked like it was lacking something at times, it was a far cry from Friday's victory over the USA. The loss of Williamson and Russo was definitely noticed in this game as the defence was shaky and not as in control as we have seen when Williamson has been commanding the backline and I do believe Russo would have helped massively attacking wise as her positioning and awareness is fantastic, she would have really suited this game. I think I am enjoying Hemp in her new role and if she settles into it quickly I think this could really benefit both England & Man City, although we did lack that pace and threat on the left with her upfront. I think James settled into the game well too, she looks a bit shaky at first but with it being her first start I guess that could have been expected, as the game progressed she definitely settled in well and I think she is another player we will be seeing much more of in the next few months at least. 

I will be honest I had the Scotland vs Republic of Ireland game on at the same time as this one and I have to say I much preferred watching that game as it was a lot more exciting than the England game, Friday night for England was much more entertaining, whether that was due to the opposition or the team rotation I aren't sure but the Czech Republic definitely turned out to be a strong opponent for us that we couldn't break down. 

Even with a 0-0 draw though the unbeaten run continues and it is time for the players to head back to their clubs before returning to representing their country in November. I am really hoping Williamson and Russo are back in the November camp free from injury but I would also love to see Nobbs get another call up and get some game time as I think she would be really beneficial in the midfield. 

England can we please have some more games back up North though it would be great to see the Lionesses play live once again as getting down south is definitely a struggle these days with kick off times etc... 

Wednesday night saw a bottom of the table clash in the FAWNL Northern division 1, as Bradford City Women took on Merseyrail. This would be the first league encounter for the teams after Merseyrail's promotion into the league this season. The game was a bottom of the table clash with both teams looking to pick up the much needed 3 points and try get momentum rolling to move out of the relegation zone. City were also looking to bounce back after a heavy 6-2 defeat to Hull City on Sunday but as the final whistle blew last night it wasn't meant to be and Merseyrail walked away with all 3 points after a 1-0 victory in a game that could have gone in City's favour if they could just convert that final pass...

City started the game really well, moving the ball around and their first real chance came from Charlotte Stuart's long range effort which found it's way into the Merseyrail 'keepers hands rather than the back of the net. Throughout the first half though City had plenty of opportunities to get the ball through on goal as they were breaking through the middle of the field with ease and putting Merseyrail under plenty of pressure when they were on the ball. City definitely were doing all the hard work in the first half but were just unable to get that final pass right to get them into a position to take a challenging shot. Merseyrail had a few half chances in the first half but they were certainly struggling in the middle of the field with how City's midfield were playing.

The second half started more or less the same way the first half ended but as the half went on Merseyrail were starting to settle into the game a lot more and were starting to stop City getting through the middle so easily. City were really pushing though and stringing some brilliant passes together to get in some great positions however, they still couldn't get that final pass right and Merseyrail were able to clear the danger. There were some great balls into the box from crosses and set pieces but again nothing was connecting from City. Hannah Markey had a great shot which looked like it was going to squeeze into the bottom corner saved by the 'keeper's foot but that was City's most promising looking effort in the second half. City really bossed the possession throughout the game and the amount of chances however, it was Merseyrail who got the only goal of the game when a City clearance fell straight to the Merseyrail player in the most space, at first it looked like she had taken too long and taken too many touches but in the end she got herself into a better position and a brilliant strike saw the ball over City's 'keeper and rattling the back of the net. City tried their best to get something back but it was just not coming together for them and they ended up suffering another defeat and now find themselves sat at the bottom of the table. 

City are really going to have to start getting the results soon if they want to get away from that drop zone, if they could just connect that final pass they really would be a team to be feared but for now they are chasing the results in hopes of staying up this season. There is still a long way to go but with how the teams around them are doing they need to get momentum going as soon as possible. You could see the disappointment on the players faces when the final whistle went, they know they should have got something out of that game so let's hope they can have a good few week in the cup and hit the ground running on their return to league action in November. 

As for our player of the match it once again has to go to City's right back Harriet Jakeman, she had a fantastic game making some good moves forward whilst also tracking back really well to stop Merseyrail attacks when they did break through the City plays. Jakeman doesn't mess around she puts in some very strong challenges which are very well timed too to break down opposition attacks but she also plays a big part in the build up of attacks too. 

City have a few weeks away from the league now so let's hope in this time they can progress in the competitions they are competing in and also work on bouncing back in the league, they are capable of getting the results if they could just get that final pass right.

Where have the past 3 years gone? Sitting down to write this post I can't quite believe that it is 3 years since we started Edge of the Area. It was 3 years ago when I was convinced by a few people online that I should create my own separate site for my football content as they enjoyed reading it. It is safe to say looking back to that day 3 years ago I am glad we made the decision to get things going as the past 3 years have been absolutely brilliant, not only has my love for football grown, which I didn't think it could get much bigger but I have also developed so much personally thanks to Edge of the Area, I am putting myself in positions I never dreamt of and due to that my confidence is growing so much. So here are some of the highlights from the past 3 years...

2019

Everything got started in October 2019, when a little idea brought Edge of the Area to life. After a week or so of debating on a name and getting everything in order it was time to get things moving, the website was created and what better way to kick things off than heading to watch our local women's side Bradford City take on local rivals Brighouse Town. We came back from the game absolutely frozen but sat up until late working on the match report, which was our first post on the new website. We even started writing some content to go in the Bradford City Women's match day programme which was a fantastic opportunity and one that has help develop our writing a lot more. 

Just a month after starting the website we got invited to our first event which was an amazing experience. We went to the launch of the National Football Museums exhibition called when football gets shirty. This was a brilliant evening out with the chance to see some amazing football shirts on display. Since then the Football Museum has been one of my favourite places to visit.

2020 

2020 started off great, some great football matches were watched but then the pandemic hit. It certainly was a strange year and honestly at one point I sat and wondered how on earth the site could carry on when football had stopped. We managed to put a good plan together though and got through the pandemic and had a great year in terms of viewers on the site. We adapted by doing interviews and ended up adding in a lot of shirt content, which honestly just gave me more of a reason to purchase the shirts I wanted to. The shirt content was definitely some of the most popular over the course of the year. 

2021

Finally in 2021 the world started returning to some form of normality and we got back to going to games which I couldn't have been any more excited for. The match reports became more frequent and to be honest the year showed me just how much I loved writing match reports, even now they are some of my favourite pieces to write and people seem to enjoy reading them too which makes it all worth while. In 2021 we seemed to stick to FAWNL content in terms of the women's game but we also did a lot of men's content especially surrounding Bradford City which got us noticed a fair bit, we even ended up going on the radio to discuss the team and I can safely say that is something I never thought I would do. There was also plenty more shirt content being added to the site as that was still popular. The high light of the year for me though has to be going in the press box for Bradford City Women vs Leeds United Ladies, I never thought I would be sat in a press box let alone reporting on the Yorkshire derby from there.

2022

What a year 2022 has been and we still have a few months to go. In the birthday period though it has been absolutely fantastic and so much has happened. The Euros took a big chunk of the year with build ups and then the competition itself. The month of July was spent travelling to games with it ending at Wembley where we witnessed the Lionesses lifting the trophy. It is safe to say that was an emotional day but it also inspired in so many ways. One thing that came from the month though is that we were inspired to switch up content, now we are solely focusing on women's only content, we want the site to be a place where we can help grow the women's game alongside keeping people up to date with what is going on week in week out. We definitely have some ideas in the pipeline for how to increase our content and cover a wider range of leagues. Thanks to us purchasing Man Utd Women season tickets we will no longer just be focusing on the FAWNL there will be match reports from the top flight too alongside plenty of other content. 

2022 has been the best year since we started the site with July and August giving us our best months yet in terms of views and I have to say seeing those views grow just makes us more determined to push on with the content we are creating. We did plenty of coverage for the Euros but I think my favourite was going on the Since 71 podcast to do our predictions, this was our first podcast and it was a brilliant experience, one that we can hopefully do more often if opportunities crop up. It certainly has been an exciting year with the Euros and some very competitive football to watch but it has also been an inspiring year... I have been inspired in so many ways and the main one is that I have been inspired to play football once more. Because the website clearly doesn't keep me busy enough I had to add training and playing to my weeks. But that could very easily create more content ideas in the long run I guess... maybe some boot content again. 

The past 3 years have been absolutely fantastic and I can't wait to see what year 4 holds, fingers crossed next year when I am writing this post there is a whole lot of good stuff to report on, if things go to plan it is certainly going to be a busy year. With the site now being women's game focused we know exactly what direction we want to go in so expect more regular content from and a variety of leagues in a variety of formats, we are hoping to get some player interviews done in year 4 so fingers crossed we can make that happen. 

It is time to make year 4 the best year yet.