Of all the accolades Phoebe Davies has picked up in her career – from the youth set-ups on Merseyside to her current club Wrexham – the cheer from the sidelines of “Come on, Mummy!” is the sweetest.
Phoebe’s three-year-old daughter Nansi is a fixture at the Rock – and she takes up her spot every home game to support the first-ever mum to sign a semi-professional contract with Wrexham.
“It wasn’t something that I thought I’d be doing now,” admits Phoebe ahead of this weekend’s schedule of matches celebrating the Her Game Too campaign.
“When I was offered the contract, I was obviously honoured and excited, but it wasn’t an answer I could give straight away, and that’s not because I didn’t want to do it, but I needed to speak to my family, because it’s not just me – I’ve got to make sure my daughter’s OK! Luckily I’ve got the support around me to make sure I can do something I really enjoy to the best standard.”
Phoebe signed for Wrexham in October 2022, signing semi-professional terms after their promotion to the Genero Adran Premier, and had been playing at a lower level after giving birth to Nansi. Heading off to training sessions in the evening after a sleepless night with a tiny baby had proved a real challenge, but now she is older and in a routine, everything is much more manageable for the family.
“I’ve had to work on not beating myself up or feeling guilty,” Phoebe says. “Training I can manage because I put Nansi to bed before I go, so she’s not feeling that I’m leaving all the time, and on a Sunday where possible she comes along to the majority of the games.
“But I’ve definitely had days and weeks where mum-guilt has taken over, and you see other families doing things and you feel guilty because you give so much to football, because you’ve got to at this standard. But I think on the whole I’m more mature now, I’m a few months into it, and I can control it a bit more and I feel more positive about everything.”
Ahead of a home match, they will head out for breakfast together before going to the ground, where Nansi will sit with her family.
“She’ll be bouncing, all wrapped up in coat and her hood, and she’s quite happy there for the next couple of hours. Quite a few of the fans recognise her now – I think she feels like a bit of a celeb!”
And playing in front of her daughter always gives Phoebe added motivation.
“When I was growing up, I was one of the only females who played football in the area. Now, she watches it and doesn’t see it as any different – it’s just people playing sport. She’s oblivious to the idea that not many women play football – it just doesn’t exist in her world.
“I do hear her sometimes, and she’s been known to tell fans, ‘That’s my mummy!’, which is obviously really cute – and makes it all very worthwhile.”
