West Ham United women’s team manager Rehanne Skinner wants her side to build on the foundations of last season’s record-breaking campaign this pre-season, so they can hit the ground running in 2025/26.
Following a Monday of medical testing, the manager, her coaching staff and squad gathered at Chadwell Heath on Tuesday morning for a proper welcome back.
In the meeting, Skinner outlined what went well last term and where she wants them to improve. And her players were quick to join in the discussion, inputting their thoughts as to how they can better last campaign and make the upcoming season one to remember.
As a manager, you never truly get a break - even in the off-season, as plans for the next campaign commence at the final whistle of the last. But that preparation is key, making sure everyone is singing from the same hymn sheet come the first kick of the new term.
For Skinner and her West Ham team, there is no need to write a new hymn sheet, but simply - as the manager put it - a top-up on last season. Especially in the second half of 2024/25, the east Londoners were fearless, particularly at home, as they set new Club records.
An off-the-pitch record set by the Irons was the highest number of international players to be called up in one international break - 18 - and consequently, nine players went on to represent their countries in tournaments over the summer, with some still away on duty at the time of writing. Skinner enjoyed watching her Hammers in action and is preparing to welcome them back as her squad begin the pre-season journey ahead of the upcoming campaign.
The manager took time out of her schedule to discuss her aims for pre-season, the benefit of the players having a break and their desire to improve on last term.
Firstly, how was your summer?
“Yeah it was very nice, thank you! I had some time with family, a bit of a break away. Obviously busy trying to get everything set up so we can start the season hitting the ground running.”
Did you get time to reflect on the season?
“We reflect at the end of every season in detail and for me personally, I try to work with all of the staff over the course of the season to look at how we can evolve things. When you get to have a bit of a break, a bit of headspace, often in those moments you start to migrate to thinking about ‘do you remember when that happened?’, or ‘that worked really well’, or ‘that’s something we need to improve on’. It comes to you organically when you’ve taken steps away from the building. Those are the nuggets you get that influence the change that help you to move forward.”
It’s good for the players to have the break as well, isn't it?
“The players sometimes want to come in during the summer and do certain things, which is fantastic as it means they’re missing the game, it means they’re missing being in the environment. But equally, we want them to take a break because you don’t get them a lot in the season. For their wellbeing, sometimes we have to go ‘don’t do that now’ because it means when they come back, they’re going to be keen to come back, and also it’s healthier across the board to ensure they’re in the right space to get through the challenge that will come.”
It’s only been two days, but how nice is it to be back?
“When you feel like it’s been too long, you know you’ve recovered, rested, and that’s been the general tone from everybody - staff and players. The mood and the energy has been fantastic, and I didn’t expect anything less because the people in the building are such good characters. Everyone enjoyed the time we had last year, so everyone wants to come back in.”
What have the players been doing in the first two days?
“In this first phase you’re doing a lot of the physical testing and the medical checks you need to do, there’s a whole list of things the players have to go through to set us up for the season. Players have been on programmes while they’ve been away, to phase them back in, and they come in and we hope they’re at a certain point - so we want to test where that’s at. The first couple of weeks are so important to go through that phase at the right speed. Gradually increasing the load is really important.”
As a manager, do you enjoy pre-season?
“Yeah, I do! I think the biggest thing about it is you’re setting the tone for the year, so it’s absolutely vital. If you get pre-season wrong, you’re going to know it when the season starts. Sometimes some of those things are uncontrollable. If you bring in players late in the transfer window, which was what we had last year, the time together to build relationships [is short] and you’re learning on the job in the season. This year, we’ve made a conscious effort to stop the churn of players and make sure we’ve got a really strong core group. Then you’re just topping up on last year, not wholesale changes to the style of play.
“I enjoy being back with the team and getting back on the grass. I love being on the grass, it’s such a big part of it. We’re trying to make sure everyone’s in the right headspace to push the environment on to another level of high performance. When everyone’s contributing, you put yourself in a really strong position to maintain that through the season, regardless of results.”
What are you hoping to get out of pre-season?
“It’s a revisit of what we did well, looking at ways we can enhance them even more. Player input is vital for that. On Tuesday morning, we had a conversation about what went well from their perspective, what areas do they think they can get those marginal gains, and then you try to add that to your process and the way you train. It’s getting everyone back on board with what’s going to help us make the difference. We’ve still got players away so we can do certain bits, but we need everybody in the building to be able to contribute to that."
You mentioned the players who are still away - how proud have you been of the players representing their countries this summer?
“I’ve kept track of everything they’ve been doing, it’s really good to see different styles of football as well. I’m really proud [of the amount of international players we have], we’ve been working hard to get the right calibre of players in the building over the course of the past two years, and that’s allowed us to be more competitive. We want the right people, but we also need the right talent. All of those internationals have definitely had an impact. The attitude of those players was superb last year. It’s one thing being an international, it’s another thing making sure you’re keeping yourself in the best possible space to help contribute to the team. I’m proud of them and the role models that they are in women’s football."
You had a team meeting on Tuesday morning - what was the main message delivered to the players?
“The biggest message was that we’ve done a lot of work to get the foundations right and they were solid last year, especially in the second half of the season when people realised where we were - that helped us to go another level. That then gives another platform to build from. It’s about being better, it’s always about being better. We’re openly constructive about our criticism about what we do and don’t do. In the meeting, the players were saying ‘we need to do this next, this is going to help us be more successful’ and when you’ve got a team of players contributing like that, you know you’re moving in the right direction. We need everyone on the same page, staff and players, everyone contributes. Everyone needs to be ready to do that at the highest level, at the best of their ability, and we can because we've got the foundations in place.”
