This Week's Opposition: Durham Women

Kirsty Roxanne provides the lowdown on Durham ahead of Pompey's WSL 2 opener at Westleigh Park on Sunday.

Matchday number 1 of the 2025/26 campaign is finally upon us and the first challenge for Jay Sadler's side is last season's 4th place finishers, Durham.

The rebranded WSL 2 (formerly Women's Championship) returns as Jay Sadler’s side welcome the Blues first opponents Durham down to the South Coast for matchday number 1.

MANAGER

The head coach of Durham is Adam Furness.

Furness has previously worked as Head of Football at Durham University, where he led the men’s first team to the National Title in 2022/23 - their first in 67 years.

Across his career as a vastly-experienced coach, Furness has worked with an elite female talent pathway in England, undertaking a variety of managerial and player development focused roles.

Furness now enters his second full season in charge, having initially joined The Wildcats on an interim basis in 2024.

ONE TO WATCH

Our one to watch is Durham's longest-serving player, Beth Hebble.

Hebble came through the ranks in North East England and has barely missed a game since The Wildcats entered the second tier in 2014, racking up over 270 appearances.

The number 7 has become renowned for eye-catching long-range strikes, helping her become a consistent scorer in the league.

Hebble recently signed a new long-term deal with the club, which comes after another impressive season, during which she netted 6 crucial goals.

The only goal scored in pre-season for Durham came from Hebble in a 1-0 victory over Liverpool.

TOP SCORER

Seeing as this season has yet to begin, we’ll take a look at last year’s top scorer instead.

Last term, that accolade went to Mollie Lambert, who bagged 7 goals and provided 3 assists.

Lambert started her senior career at Newcastle United before making the move to Wearside rivals Sunderland. The 2017/18 season was a breakthrough one for the cultural midfielder, playing 17 times in all competitions under Melanie Copeland.

Her first goal for Sunderland came in a 13-0 FA Cup Fourth Round win against Brighouse Town, with Lambert netting a 15-minute hat-trick in the second half.

She was 1 of 4 first team players to remain with the club after their relegation to the 3rd tier for the 2018/19 season.

In July 2020, the number 8 moved to Durham. Lambert was noticed for being a standout player in 2024, when she was named the ‘North East Football Writers' Association's Women's Player of the Year’. She was the 7th Durham player in-a-row to pick up the award and followed teammate Sarah Robson, who had won the award for the 3 previous years consecutively.

CURRENT FORM

Durham go into the new campaign off the back of 2 defeats and 1 win across pre-season, which concluded with a 4-0 loss to Manchester City.

Last term, The Wildcats finished 4th in the WSL 2 after winning 11 of their 20 fixtures, collecting 36 points in total.

Pompey are yet to beat Adam Furness’ side, with a 3-0 defeat at Westleigh Park at the start of last season followed by a 6-0 defeat at Maiden Castle back in March.

Durham have been an ever-present in the 2nd tier since their inception in 2014 and have challenged for promotion on several occasions, coming closest in the 2020/21 campaign, finishing 2nd.

With new faces through the door and new contracts signed, Durham look to build on last year’s strong performance as they make the push for promotion to the WSL.

Can the Blues bounce back from last season and claw all 3 points from The Wildcats?

If you're not heading to Westleigh Park for the game, you can hear full coverage LIVE on Express FM from 1:30pm this Sunday (September 7th) afternoon with Henry Deacon and Kirsty Roxanne.

Kick-off: 2pm!