Harkin About With Mr Mann

Lyndsey Harkin, captain and stalwart of newly-promoted Women’s Super League 2 side, Nottingham Forest Women, was the first, main feature interview, in which I conducted after joining the Nottingham Sport back in the summer of 2020. A lot has changed since then.

Moving forward to the present day and it seemed only logical that catching up with the Forest captain again, should become that of my ONE THOUSANDTH ARTICLE and, perhaps fortunately, as it panned out, the recently concluded 2024/25 FA Women’s National League campaign has been one of those great one’s for a player who has donned the famous Garibaldi on more than 325 occasions (370+ career appearances), spanning some two decades, and counting.

THE EARLY YEARS

Harkin, then playing under her maiden name of Cunningham, would see her Forest career start in late September 2005, in a Reserve League Cup clash at home to Blackburn Rovers, with her league bow coming a few weeks later, on 10 October, away to Aston Villa.

She was a teenager back then, a raw, sixteen-year-old, who’d make eight appearances in that first season, including the full ninety minutes in each of the last four games of the 2005/06 season.

Those early years with her home-town club, like the majority of her career in Red, have been lined with silverware, she helping the Reds lift the Nottinghamshire FA Women’s County Cup on four occasions (2006, 2007, 2009, 2010), before being snapped up by Doncaster Rovers Belles.

“I was 14-years-old when I started here, and playing in the first team at a very young age. It’s something which isn’t allowed these days, so yes, I’ve seen a lot at the club.”

There was also the small matter of the 2007/08 season, undefeated champions of the then, FA Women’s National League Premier North Division, one of only two occasions the Reds have achieved such a feat – more on that shortly…

During her five seasons with the Belles, and whilst growing into the courageous, heart-on-sleeve captain we see today, she was part of the side that were back-to-back runners-up in the Women’s Championship (2015 and 2015), before heading home after the latter.

ON NATIONAL TEAM DUTY

Harkin has also donned the shirt of her national team as well, appearing for England at U19, U20, and U23 level, the former which would see her, in 2010, be an U19 European Championship runner-up, losing 2-1 to France, in Skopje, Macedonia, playing the full ninety minutes in the final.

Team-mates for the Reds legend on that June afternoon (FIFTEEN YEARS AGO THIS WEEK) included Lucy Bronze, Jordan Nobbs, Demi Stokes, and Toni Duggan, to name a few; qualification for which saw England finish as runners-up on the first qualifying round Group

Six (behind Norway), top Group One in the second qualifying round, before the tournament itself saw them qualify for the knock-out stages as runners-up to Germany in Group A, then defeat the Netherlands, 5-4 on penalties (following a goalless draw) in the semi-final.

In the final itself, England #10, Jessica Holbrook, gave them lead midway through the first half with Rose Lavaud (currently playing for Dijon FCO) levelling minutes later; the French took the title with the winner coming ten minutes into the second half via a French history-maker in Pauline Crammer.

SHE’S COMING HOME

Her return to Nottingham though coincided, over the past decade, with more, and bigger silverware, as the club chased the dream of promotion; five more County Cup victories (2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2022) were ascertained, as well as the catalyst of recent successes, the 2022 FA Women’s National League Plate.

Over the past decade, since her return to the club, Harkin has witnessed many changes, both on the field, and behind the scenes, as the club she knows and loves continues to go from strength-to-strength.

Alongside those County Cup successes, and the League Plate, Harkin, and Forest, in the past three season, have done the double, twice, winning the FA Women’s National League Northern Premier Division, and FAWNL Cup, in both 2023, and 2025, the latter of which would finally see them gain promotion, to the newly-named, WSL2.

THE 2024/25 SEASON

An ever-present for the Reds, one of four to play in all 32 games (league and cup), Harkin finished the season with a second, league and cup double.

What was different to the 2022/23 season, promotion was achieved by winning the title, and not by having to navigate a North-South play-off also.

This was a season which began with a 3-0 win away to Stoke City, score five or more goals on numerous occasions, put nineteen past Long Itchington in the Women’s FA Cup (Bridget Galloway and Freya Thomas both bagged five apiece), and finished with a 7-2 win, at the City Ground, against West Bromwich Albion (Melissa Johnson grabbed four).

“There’s been a lot of ups and downs, but to seal the title, with promotion, was important.

“When we won the league a few years ago, that helped us to push on, and it’s been amazing what the club has done over that time.

“It’s been extra special to have gone undefeated and the win against Wolves (6-1 away back in September) proved to be the difference in the end, although not the defining moment of our season.

“Winning the double was really nice, and the icing on the cake, and, although the goal was promotion, we just looked at each game as they arrived.

“We do pride ourselves in clean sheets (there’s been 21 in all competitions this past season) and Emily Batty winning the Golden Glove again, she’s a rock. We like to defend from the front and move through it as a team, which has worked well for us.”

TWICE UNDEFEATED, TWICE PROMOTED

As a teenager, back in the 2007/08 season, Harkin and Nottingham Forest were promoted as undefeated champions; fast-forward seventeen years and they replicated that feat, earning promotion as undefeated champions.

The only defeats registered came in cup competitions, Forest exiting the League Cup to Sunderland and the FA Cup to Friar Lane & Epworth, back in 2007/08, and to Newcastle United in the FA Cup in 2024/25.

In the former of those two campaigns, Cunningham, as she was then, played 21 games in all competitions as the Reds posted a title-winning record of P22 W18 D4 L0 GD+54; the season just finished would see her play 32 games (all comps) as her side registered a title-winning record of P22 W18 D4 L0 GD+71.

“I noticed that record, of the 2007/08 and this past season, and it’s crazy that they’ve both come out the same. Add to that I guess we don’t like NE teams either,” smiled Harkin, with a nod to the fact that the Reds lost to Sunderland and Newcastle, in cup competitions, in those two seasons.

The 2007/08 season saw the Reds finish three points ahead of runners-up ODH Lincoln, who lost the title on the final day as they fell to a 2-1 win against third-placed Sunderland, and Forest won 5-1 at home to Sheffield Wednesday; in 2024/25 a sense of deja-vu was witnessed, this time finishing three points ahead of runners-up Wolverhampton Wanderers – in both seasons the champions had 58pts, the runners-up 55pts.

“The support from the club has been truly amazing. We’re developing as a fully professional club and, to see that, with the fans we have here, has been incredible to see, an amazing feeling. The day we won the league, and promotion, was a big day for the club as a whole (the men’s team were at Wembley, on FA Cup semi-final duty).

“This is up there with what I’ve achieved in my career, and it’s nice to have that promotion as well, to top it all off.

“Next season will be a challenge for us, but it’s exciting times ahead in what will be a very competitive league.

“But winning this, and getting promotion, it’ll take a while to sink in but it’s a relief that we’ve finally done it.”

STARTING OUT – A CAPTAIN’S TALE: PART ONE (read here)

COMING HOME – A CAPTAIN’S TALE: PART TWO (read here)

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