Throughout 2025/26, we’ll be speaking to former West Ham United women’s team players who made a huge impact on and off the pitch during their time in Claret and Blue. Today, we’re talking to Stacey Little...
It’s the night before West Ham United women’s team’s cup encounter at Preston North End in 2015. The Hammers are in their hotel preparing for the game and captain Stacey Little is running up and down the corridors. Why? Because she was trying to prove to her manager, Julian Dicks, that she was able to run normally. Why? Because in the week leading up to the fixture, Little broke her wrist, but insisted on playing against Preston and got the physio to remove her cast, to her manager’s displeasure.
Did Little play? Of course she did - all 90 minutes, tucking and rolling every time she hit the turf so she did no further damage to her wrist. That was the type of character the defensive midfielder was. A lifelong Hammer, who would do anything for the Club she loves.
Brought into the West Ham family by her Dad and Grandad, Little, who grew up in Hatfield, Hertfordshire, only knew football, as she’d go and watch her father play every Saturday and Sunday. After playing at grassroots level, she soon found herself a club, QPR, before hearing about an opportunity at Charlton Athletic in 2007.
Little didn’t back herself as much as she should have done, struggling with confidence when she was finding her feet in football, so when she joined the M25 on her journey from Slough to south-east London for her trial at Charlton, she took the first exit back home.
She eventually attended a trial at the Addicks and their manager, Paul Mortimer, signed her there and then. Playing for Charlton gave Little a grounding as she played against the likes of Arsenal, Doncaster Rovers Belles, Liverpool, Everton and Leeds United, and faced players such as Kelly Smith, Alex Scott, Jill Scott, Sue Smith, Fara WIlliams, Karen Carney and Rachel Yankey.
After spending three seasons at Charlton, an opportunity arose at her childhood club and Little took the chance with both hands, signing for West Ham in the summer of 2010 after another successful trial. Two years after winning Player of the Season in her first campaign at the Club, she was appointed captain by then manager Julia Setford and led us to Essex FA County Cup glory in 2014, scoring our final goal in a 5-1 success over Barking.
Little departed the Club in October 2015 before later hanging up her boots. But her love for the game proved too strong and she soon came out of retirement. She currently plays for East Thurrock, as well as managing her boys’ grassroots team, and her Hammers-supporting children know their Mum captained the club they love.
Here is her West Ham story...
How did you get into supporting West Ham and what are your earliest memories of playing football?
“I support West Ham because of my Dad. I think it’s quite rare these days because kids seem to support different clubs, but my children support West Ham as well. My Nan and Grandad grew up in east London, near Grays, but I grew up in Hatfield, Hertfordshire. I always used to go watch my Dad play on a Saturday and Sunday, so I was always around football with him.
“When I was younger, there weren’t any girls’ teams. At school I played with the boys and you didn’t get the ball, you weren’t allowed to play in their team, so I just played for a local club, Hatfield Youth, and played against people like Lianne Sanderson and Natasha Dowie.
“Back then, when someone asked you, ‘What do you want to be when you’re older?’, you couldn’t say you wanted to be a footballer because it wasn’t a thing. It wasn’t possible. It’s so nice that young girls can have that dream now.”
After playing for QPR and Charlton, you joined West Ham United in 2010. When did you first hear of our interest?
“It was through a trial, everything was done by trials back then. I saw it advertised that West Ham were looking for new players. I thought, ‘It’s the team I love, I’m going to go for it’. West Ham signed me there and then, and that was it. I was a West Ham player!
“It was such a surreal feeling. My Dad was super proud and it was a dream come true. It was something really special.”
And you hit the ground running, winning Player of the Season in your first campaign?
“When I went to West Ham, it helped that I supported them. I was always committed to every team I played for, but more so to West Ham. I would do the two-hour drive from Slough to Chadwell Heath training ground every Tuesday, every Thursday. In rain or snow. I was always fully committed, fully dedicated.
“The biggest thing I remember is that they fully trusted me as a player. I was a defensive midfielder and they made that my position. That was my role. I would literally run through brick walls for my teammates. My biggest frustration is that we never got promoted, and we should have done. We were a really good team with really good players.”
What was Julia Setford like as a manager?
“I loved Wiggs! Sorry, Wiggs is what we called her! I don’t know why we called her that! Julia put all her trust in me. I had so much time for her. She made me the player I was and had a big impact on me.”
And she appointed you captain?
“When I first joined, Rosie Sullivan was captain. She got injured in a friendly and I remember Julia said, ‘We want you to be captain’. I thought, ‘Sorry, what?’. They knew how much West Ham meant to me, but I never expected to be captain, I didn't want to be captain. I was just happy playing for the badge, but I was so grateful to them. They didn’t want me to get wrapped up in the captain role, they just said to carry on playing my game.
“I took the role seriously. You’re the voice that people come to if they don’t feel they can go straight to the manager. And being a West Ham fan, I knew about the rivalries, so whenever we played Tottenham or Millwall, I let the players know that we had to beat them! When you play for the badge, it means a lot.
“Before we started playing the likes of Tottenham, our biggest competition was Colchester United. Kate Longhurst used to play for them, and we didn't like each other! We were both Essex teams and there was just this massive rivalry.”
As captain, you led the team to Essex FA County Cup success with a 5-1 win against Barking in the final - and you got on the scoresheet!
“I was so emotional [that day]. All my family were there and when I scored the goal, I ran straight to my Dad in the crowd and hugged him. I remember all I could think of when I was running over to him was ‘Oh no, I’m cramping, I’m cramping!’.
“I got interviewed afterwards and I remember saying that after the season we’d had (struggling in the league), it meant so much. Our manager had left, our physio stepped up as a coach. It was a very emotional night and it’s one I’ll never forget. The goal wasn’t bad either!
“To play in a final for West Ham, to score in it and then win it, it’s definitely up there [as one of my favourite moments of my career].”
Are there any other stories that stand out from your time at the Club?
“We were away at Preston in the cup and the week before, I broke my wrist against QPR. I travelled with the team to Preston and took my kit with me, but my wrist was in a cast. I told Julian [Dicks, the manager at the time] that I was going to cut it off and play. He told me there was no way that I was going to play…
“Anyway, in the morning, I got the physio to cut it off and, rightly or wrongly, I played. I wanted to play and did stupid things to play! My wrist still causes me grief to this day! Julian said I was an idiot for doing it. I remember running up and down the hotel corridor to prove I could run with my wrist and during the game I had to tuck and roll so I didn’t land on it. And we lost the game 1-0!”
