Deborah Bampton, MBE

MBE

MBE can stand for:* Mail Boxes Etc.* Management by exception* Master of Bioethics* Master of Bioscience Enterprise* Master of Business Engineering* Master of Business Economics* Mean Biased Error...

, (born 7 October 1961) is an English

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

 former international football midfielder. She was inducted into the English Football Hall of Fame

English Football Hall of Fame

The English Football Hall of Fame is housed at the National Football Museum, currently being relocated to Manchester, England. The Hall aims to celebrate and highlight the achievements of the all-time top English footballing talents, as well as non-English players and managers who have become...

 in 2005. In 1998 Bampton was awarded an MBE in recognition of her services to women's football as both a player and a manager.

Club career

Bampton began her career at the age of 14. She played for Howbury Grange managed by her father Albert. She was a member of the side that won the Women's FA Cup in 1984. In 1988 she moved to Italy

Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

, playing for Trani

A.S. Fortis Trani

Associazione Sportiva Fortis Trani is an Italian association football club located in Trani, Apulia. It currently plays in Serie D. Its colors are light blue and white.- History :...

 as a full-time professional alongside compatriot Kerry Davis

Kerry Davis

Kerry Davis is an English former international women's footballer. She played in all four games of England's 1995 FIFA Women's World Cup appearance.-Club career:...

. She spent just one season there, but won runners-up medals in both the League and national Cup.

She joined Arsenal Ladies

Arsenal L.F.C.

Arsenal Ladies Football Club are an English women's association football club affiliated with Arsenal F.C.. Founded in 1987, they are the most successful club in English women's football having won 34 major trophies to date; which are 12 FA Women's Premier League titles, 11 FA Women's Cups, ten...

 in 1992, winning the treble in her first season at the club. In 1994 Bampton left to become player-manager of Croydon Ladies

Charlton Athletic L.F.C.

Charlton Athletic Women's Football Club play in the FA Women's Premier League National Division in England. Between 2000, the year it was founded from Croydon Women's F.C. and 2007, Charlton had one of the most successful women's teams in England...

. In 1995–96, Croydon won the League title and the FA Women's Cup. She won the league with Croydon twice more before leaving to join Doncaster Belles as a player in 2000 after the Croydon club moved to Charlton.

She joined the coaching staff of Whitehawk Ladies in the 2006 close season, along with former Arsenal and England player Angela Banks

Angela Banks

Angela Banks is a former English female footballer. She represented England at full international level and played at the top club level for Arsenal Ladies.-Club career:...

. In February 2008, she was manager of Whitehawk Ladies. Bampton joined the coaching staff of Lewes FC Ladies in January 2009.

International career

Bampton made her England

England women's national football team

The England women's national football team represents England in international women's football. The side has been quite successful of late, qualifying for three World Cups, 1995, 2007 and 2011...

 debut whilst still at school, playing against the Netherlands

Netherlands women's national football team

The Netherlands women's national football team represents the Netherlands in international women's football. The team played the first women's international recognized by FIFA, on 17 April 1971 against France.-World Cup record:-Current squad:...

 in September 1978. She went on to win 95 caps for England.

Bampton hit the winning goal in Denmark

Denmark women's national football team

The Denmark women's national football team represents Denmark in international women's football. The team is controlled by the Danish Football Association .-World Cup:*1970 : Winner *1971 : Winner...

 as England qualified for the 1984 European Competition for Women's Football

1984 European Competition for Women's Football

The 1984 European Competition for Women's Football was won by Sweden on penalties against England. It comprised four qualifying groups, and the winner of each went through to the semi-finals which were played over two legs, home and away...

 final.

In 1995 she controversially took over the England captaincy from Gillian Coultard

Gillian Coultard

Gillian Coultard is a retired English football player, and former England captain. She is England Women's most capped international, with 119 appearances; she is also the highest capped outfield England international ever, with only goalkeeper Peter Shilton gaining more with 125...

 and led the Three Lionesses into their first ever FIFA Women's World Cup

FIFA Women's World Cup

The FIFA Women's World Cup is an international association football competition contested by the senior women's national teams of the members of Fédération Internationale de Football Association , the sport's global governing body. The championship has been awarded every four years since the...

 appearance that year. She retained the captaincy for England's failed 1997 UEFA Women's Championship qualification

1997 UEFA Women's Championship qualification

The qualification for the UEFA Women's Euro 1997 was held between September 17, 1995 & September 29, 1996. The first-placed of the group stage qualified directly...

 campaign. In May 1997 Bampton made her final England appearance in a 6–0 friendly defeat to United States

United States women's national soccer team

The United States women's national soccer team represents the United States in international soccer competition and is controlled by U.S. Soccer. The U.S. team won the first ever Women's World Cup in 1991, and has since been a superpower in women's soccer. It is currently ranked first in the world...

 in Portland

Portland, Oregon

Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...

.

Playing style

Bampton was a tall, strong and industrious central midfielder. She characterised herself as "a box-to-box player" and said "I worked hard to win the ball, and I was always looking to make forward runs. I was not a natural goalscorer, but I did look to set up chances for others."