Gillian Coultard
Encyclopedia
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. She is one of only eight footballers (Bobby Moore
, Billy Wright, Bobby Charlton
, David Beckham
, Rachel Yankey
and Kelly Smith
are the others) to have reached over 100 caps
for England, and she was the first woman and amateur player to have done so.
initially, though moving back to sweeper towards the end of her career, made her international debut in a 3–1 win over the Republic of Ireland
in 1981, at the age of 18. She went on to score 30 goals at international level, a rate of one every four games, including a pair in England's first ever World Cup
finals match, a 3–2 win over Canada
in Sweden
, in 1995. England were knocked out at the quarter-final stage by eventual tournament runners-up, Germany
. Coultard had also been part of the England squad which finished runners-up to Sweden
in the first UEFA final
in 1984, losing the final on penalties
.
Coultard won her 100th England cap in a 4–0 win over Scotland
at Almondvale Stadium in August 1997. That October, before a 1999 World Cup qualifier against Holland
at Upton Park
, she was presented with a silver cap by Sir Geoff Hurst in recognition of the achievement.
In the early stages of England's successful 2001 UEFA Women's Championship qualification
campaign Coultard remained captain of the side. Coultard's 119th and final cap came in a 1–0 win over Switzerland
in May 2000. She was later a non-playing member of the England side which suffered their record defeat – an 8–0 loss away to Norway
in June 2000. In October 2000, 37-year-old Coultard announced her international retirement in order to concentrate on a coaching role in the National Women's Football Academy in Durham
.
finals during 24 years with Doncaster Belles. Joining as a 13-year-old schoolgirl, she eventually made over 300 appearances and became a key player in the side which dominated women's football in England. She retired from club football at the end of the 2000–01 season, making an emotional farewell appearance for the Belles against Charlton Athletic
in May 2001.
Coultard fitted in four training sessions and a match every week, despite her full–time job on the production line at a Pioneer
factory in Castleford
. She used her annual leave from work to play for England and rejected several offers to join semi-professional clubs in Belgium
, Italy
, Sweden
and Finland
.
and radium therapy
. On October 19, 2006, she was inducted into the English Football Hall of Fame
. Coultard managed the new Hartlepool United Ladies team in 2008–09.
Women's football (soccer)
Women's association football has been played for many decades, but was associated with charity games and physical exercise in the past before the breakthrough of organized women's association football came in the 1970s. Before the 1970s, football was basically seen as a men's game...
player, and former England captain. She is England Women's
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...
most capped international, with 119 appearances; she is also the highest capped outfield England international ever, with only goalkeeper Peter Shilton
Peter Shilton
Peter Leslie Shilton OBE is a former English footballer who played as a goalkeeper. He currently holds the record for playing more games for England than anyone else, earning 125 caps....
gaining more with 125. She is one of only eight footballers (Bobby Moore
Bobby Moore
Robert Frederick Chelsea "Bobby" Moore, OBE was an English footballer. He captained West Ham United for more than ten years and was captain of the England team that won the 1966 World Cup...
, Billy Wright, Bobby Charlton
Bobby Charlton
Sir Robert "Bobby" Charlton CBE is an English former professional football player, a member of the England team who won the World Cup and Ballon d'Or for European Footballer of the Year in 1966...
, David Beckham
David Beckham
David Robert Joseph Beckham, OBE is an English footballer who plays midfield for Los Angeles Galaxy in Major League Soccer, having previously played for Manchester United, Preston North End, Real Madrid, and A.C...
, Rachel Yankey
Rachel Yankey
Rachel Abba Yankey, MBE is an English football player. She plays for the English side Arsenal, and for the England national team. She plays as a left-winger or forward, and wears the number 11 for Arsenal and England. She is of Ghanaian descent, from her father's side.Yankey is the most-capped...
and Kelly Smith
Kelly Smith
Kelly Jayne Smith, MBE is an English football forward currently playing for Boston Breakers of Women's Professional Soccer and is a member of the England women's national football team.-Youth and university:...
are the others) to have reached over 100 caps
Cap (sport)
In sports, a cap is a metaphorical term for a player's appearance on a select team, such as a national team. The term dates from the practice in the United Kingdom of awarding a cap to every player in an international match of association football...
for England, and she was the first woman and amateur player to have done so.
International career
Coultard, a midfielderMidfielder
A midfielder is an association football position. Some midfielders play a more defensive role, while others blur the boundaries between midfielders and forwards. The number of midfielders a team uses during a match may vary, depending on the team's formation and each individual player's role...
initially, though moving back to sweeper towards the end of her career, made her international debut in a 3–1 win over the Republic of Ireland
Republic of Ireland women's national football team
The Republic of Ireland women's national football team, selects players from both the 350 Women's Football Association of Ireland teams, in 21 affiliate leagues throughout the nation, and the international women's football community. The WFAI was founded in 1973...
in 1981, at the age of 18. She went on to score 30 goals at international level, a rate of one every four games, including a pair in England's first ever 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...
finals match, a 3–2 win over Canada
Canada women's national soccer team
The Canada women's national soccer team is overseen by the Canadian Soccer Association. The team reached its all-time high of 6th in the March 2011 rankings. The team reached international prominence finishing in 4th place at the FIFA Women's World Cup 2003, losing to their archrival American team...
in Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
, in 1995. England were knocked out at the quarter-final stage by eventual tournament runners-up, Germany
Germany women's national football team
The German women's national football team represents Germany in international women's football and is directed by the German Football Association . The team – informally called West Germany in English – played its first international match in 1982...
. Coultard had also been part of the England squad which finished runners-up to Sweden
Sweden women's national football team
Sweden women's national football team are a football team officially representing Sweden in women's football. They won the unofficial European Championships in 1984, a success the team has not managed to repeat, it has however won one World Cup-silver as well as three European Cup-silvers...
in the first UEFA final
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...
in 1984, losing the final on penalties
Penalty shootout (football)
A penalty shoot-out, referred to as kicks from the penalty mark in the Laws of the Game, is the FIFA official term for a method used in association football to decide which team progresses to the next stage of a tournament following a tied game...
.
Coultard won her 100th England cap in a 4–0 win over Scotland
Scotland women's national football team
The Scotland women's national football team represents Scotland in international women's football. They have yet to qualify for the final stages of the World Cup or European Championships and are currently ranked 23rd in the world and 14th in Europe....
at Almondvale Stadium in August 1997. That October, before a 1999 World Cup qualifier against Holland
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:...
at Upton Park
Boleyn Ground
The Boleyn Ground, more commonly referred to as Upton Park due to its location in Upton Park, London is the football stadium of West Ham United.-History:...
, she was presented with a silver cap by Sir Geoff Hurst in recognition of the achievement.
In the early stages of England's successful 2001 UEFA Women's Championship qualification
2001 UEFA Women's Championship qualification
The qualification for the UEFA Women's Euro 2001 was held between August 21, 1999 & November 28, 2000. The first-placed of the group stage qualified directly...
campaign Coultard remained captain of the side. Coultard's 119th and final cap came in a 1–0 win over Switzerland
Switzerland women's national football team
The Switzerland women's national football team represents Switzerland in international women's football.The team played its first match in 1972...
in May 2000. She was later a non-playing member of the England side which suffered their record defeat – an 8–0 loss away to Norway
Norway women's national football team
The Norway women's national football team represents Norway in international women's football. The team, controlled by the Football Association of Norway, are former European, World and Olympic champions and thus one of the most successful national teams...
in June 2000. In October 2000, 37-year-old Coultard announced her international retirement in order to concentrate on a coaching role in the National Women's Football Academy in Durham
Durham
Durham is a city in north east England. It is within the County Durham local government district, and is the county town of the larger ceremonial county...
.
Club career
At club level, Coultard won two National League titles and six FA Women's CupFA Women's Cup
The Football Association Women’s Challenge Cup Competition, commonly referred to as the FA Women's Cup, is the top cup competition for women's football clubs in England – designed as an exact equivalent to the FA Cup created 99 years earlier...
finals during 24 years with Doncaster Belles. Joining as a 13-year-old schoolgirl, she eventually made over 300 appearances and became a key player in the side which dominated women's football in England. She retired from club football at the end of the 2000–01 season, making an emotional farewell appearance for the Belles against Charlton Athletic
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 May 2001.
Coultard fitted in four training sessions and a match every week, despite her full–time job on the production line at a Pioneer
Pioneer Corporation
is a multinational corporation that specializes in digital entertainment products, based in Kawasaki, Kanagawa, Japan. The company was founded in 1938 in Tokyo as a radio and speaker repair shop...
factory in Castleford
Castleford
Castleford is the largest of the "five towns" district in the metropolitan borough of the City of Wakefield, in West Yorkshire, England. It is near Pontefract, and has a population of 37,525 according to the 2001 Census, but has seen a rise in recent years and is now around 45-50,000. To the north...
. She used her annual leave from work to play for England and rejected several offers to join semi-professional clubs in Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
, 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...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
and Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
.
Post retirement
In May 2005 Coultard was diagnosed with breast cancer, which was successfully treated with surgery, chemotherapyChemotherapy
Chemotherapy is the treatment of cancer with an antineoplastic drug or with a combination of such drugs into a standardized treatment regimen....
and radium therapy
Radiation therapy
Radiation therapy , radiation oncology, or radiotherapy , sometimes abbreviated to XRT or DXT, is the medical use of ionizing radiation, generally as part of cancer treatment to control malignant cells.Radiation therapy is commonly applied to the cancerous tumor because of its ability to control...
. On October 19, 2006, 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...
. Coultard managed the new Hartlepool United Ladies team in 2008–09.
Honours
- FA Women's Premier League National DivisionFA Women's Premier League National DivisionThe FA Women's Premier League National Division is the second level of the English women's football league pyramid. From 1991 until the introduction of the summer competition FA Women's Super League the National Division functioned as the top league in England. Below it are simultaneously the...
:Up until 1991, there was no top national division of English women's footballWomen's football in EnglandWhile women's football has been played in England for over a century, it has only been in the 1990s that the game has seen a large increase in female players, as well as in female spectators, culminating in England hosting the Women's European Championships in 2005....
; from then, until the formation of the FA WSL in 2010, it was the FA Women's Premier League National DivisionFA Women's Premier League National DivisionThe FA Women's Premier League National Division is the second level of the English women's football league pyramid. From 1991 until the introduction of the summer competition FA Women's Super League the National Division functioned as the top league in England. Below it are simultaneously the...
. The FA only took over the direct running of the domestic league structure from the WFA in 1993. 2
- 1991–92, 1993–94
- FA Women's CupFA Women's CupThe Football Association Women’s Challenge Cup Competition, commonly referred to as the FA Women's Cup, is the top cup competition for women's football clubs in England – designed as an exact equivalent to the FA Cup created 99 years earlier...
: 6
- FA Women's Cup
- 1982–83, 1986–87, 1987–88, 1989–90, 1991–92, 1993–94
- MundialitoMundialito (women)The Mundialito , was a global invitational tournament for national teams in women's football . Held on four occasions in the northern region of Italy since 1984, it was one of the most prestigious women's football events, prior to the advent of the Women's World Cup and Women's Olympic Football.The...
: 1
- Mundialito
- 1988
External links
- Gillian Coultard at The National Football Museum Hall of Fame Pages
- "First Female Centurion", Gillian Coultard interview at the FA website