Ipswich Town Women’s manager Joe Sheehan says today is a day which has consumed his mind for four years, his side having confirmed the FAWNL Southern Premier Division title and promotion to the Women’s Championship with a 8-0 victory over Cheltenham at the Martello Ground in Felixstowe in front of a sell-out 2,000-plus crowd.
Sheehan’s team had effectively already topped the table and claimed promotion to the second tier for the first time in their history but this afternoon’s final-day win - plus second-placed Hashtag United’s 2-0 loss at Oxford United - formally confirmed that Town won the division by six clear points.
"Delighted, a day we’ve worked so hard for for so long,” Sheehan said, having been soaked in champagne by members of his squad as he spoke. "I’ve got a lot of gratitude to so many people that have helped behind the scenes and played a part but are maybe no longer part of this journey that I have huge appreciation for.
"Too many to name, but they know exactly who they are, the people who have supported us for so long and helped us get to this position.
"The burden that’s sat on my shoulders for so long trying to deliver this has been really difficult. Huge expectations on us and am finally thrilled that weight of expectation and that burden has now lifted off my shoulders and really excited now to prepare for the next challenge.”
He added: "It hasn’t been an easy journey, it’s been really tough, we’ve fallen short on a few occasions and there’s been so really low points with that, having been so close.
"But I think we’ve reset, we’ve stepped forward again, we’ve faced the adversity and kept trying to stay on the path forwards and I’m so proud of the staff, the players, the people that have supported us along the way who have played such a massive part and thrilled we’re now able to celebrate what we set out to achieve for so long.
"I wondered if it would ever come around. I’ve said before that for four years this day has consumed my mind every day for most of the day - what would it be like? What would we need to do?
"It’s been tough, it’s been really tough but I’m glad that the hard work of everybody involved, the performances of the players who have tackled every game with great attitude and application, have performed to a really good level, and I’m just so proud of them and so happy, so elated and excited for what next season’s going to look like.”
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The Women’s Championship has been the target since the takeover in 2021 with Town having finished third in their first campaign in the third tier, 2021/22, second on goal difference the following year and fourth last season.
"The club were really clear at the start of the season, this was something we had to achieve,” Sheehan continued.
"Every time we spoke to a player at the start of the season, the ones we were bringing in, it was really clear, that was the expectation, that was what we were setting out to achieve and we meant business this time around.
"And we’ve not looked back, really, Once the original conversations took place around what we were going to achieve, we never really spoke about it after that, we tackled on with the season and performed really well in all the games we played in and managed to pick up enough points which has allowed us to celebrate this moment, one we’ve worked so hard for and I’m so proud of everybody involved.”
Regarding today’s comfortable victory, he added: "The team were adamant they wanted to win the game, they wanted to go out with a bang.
"It was a good performance, a fun performance and delighted to score so many goals, perform well and I’m sure the supporters will celebrate the win as promotion to the Championship.”
Asked how he planned to celebrate, Sheehan said: "With everybody, with all the players, all the staff. We’ll leave here and go into Ipswich and hopefully have a really good evening, an opportunity to really celebrate this success because it’s been a long time coming, it’s something we’ve worked so hard for and I think we’ll absolutely make the most of it.”