Welcome to The Dripping Pan for today’s FAWNL League match against Plymouth Argyle.

Here is your complimentary e-programme

Lewes FC Women 2025/26

Hello and welcome to the Dripping Pan to see the Rooks face off against Plymouth Argyle.

This weekend we’re celebrating 140 years of Lewes Football Club! That’s 140 years of passion, community and history coming together. And today promises to be an exciting game against Plymouth Argyle. Last season, we were pretty evenly matched, with both teams winning at home. And Plymouth Argyle sits just above Lewes in the table currently, at third.

Today, mapped out!

We are delighted to have Chuckaburger as a guest food option at the game today!! Do try them out at Gate A at the far end of the pitch.

Interview with Captain Maddie Brant

We sat down with our captain, Maddie Brant to ask her a few questions.

1. How did you come to start playing football? Please tell us a bit about your introduction to the sport as a child, and playing for Rutgers etc.

I joined an after-school football club when I was five and absolutely loved it. My mum tried to stick me in dance with my older sister, but soon learned I belonged on the pitch with the boys! I joined my first grassroots team, South Park Colts, when I was 6 or 7. Then joined my first girls team, Gillingham, at U10s. I also played for Millwall, before signing for Chelsea Women in 2014, where I stayed until I committed to Rutgers University in the USA. I finished my college career at Iowa State and even spent a summer playing in Northern Ireland with Larne FC before joining Lewes last season.

2. 2025/2026 is your first season as Captain of Lewes FC. What does the captaincy mean to you?

It means a lot. Lewes is such a special club, with values that really resonate with me. To be trusted with the armband is a huge honour. I see it as both a huge privilege and a responsibility- not just to lead on the pitch, but to represent the club in the right way off it.

3. We are celebrating 140 years of Lewes FC this weekend, can you tell us what made you want to play for Lewes in the first place?

For me, it was the club’s identity and values. Lewes is community-driven, inclusive, and ambitious, which makes it stand out. After playing in the U.S., I wanted to return home and be part of something meaningful, and Lewes felt like the perfect fit. I was also drawn to the challenge of re-building a team that had just been relegated, I wanted to be a part of the fight to get Lewes back to where it belongs, in full-time professional football.

4. Where do you hope to see Lewes strengthen this season?

I think our biggest growth will come from building consistency. The squad is already stronger than it was this time last year, and with the quality we have, we’re pushing to be competitive every week and fight for that top spot in the league.

5. Women’s football has become a lot more popular in the past few years, with England’s success internationally really driving that forward. What do these changes mean to you and to a team like Lewes. What do you hope that the community can do to further support football?

It’s been incredible to see how quickly the women’s game has grown. In the five years I spent at university in the U.S., football in England had developed so much that it was almost unrecognisable when I came back. More people are watching, engaging, and supporting women’s football, which creates so many opportunities for clubs like Lewes to showcase what we’re about. Community support is a huge part of that growth. Turning up on matchdays, bringing friends and family, and engaging with the players makes a real difference. One of the things I’ve loved most about Lewes is getting to interact with fans, and building relationships with the people that support us week in week out- it’s so special.

6. What are your hopes and aspirations for yourself and the team this season?

Personally, I want to grow into the captaincy and be someone my teammates can rely on both on and off the pitch. For the team, the aim is to push for promotion. With hard work, togetherness, and belief, I think this group is capable of achieving something really special.

Why the Eye?

“What a beautiful ground!” we hear you cry as you walk into our historic stadium. “The state of the art pitch, the rolling South Downs in the near distance, the gardens, the old flint wall, the warm welcome, but… hang on a second! What is that? What is that great big… eye? Over there in the far-right corner. There’s a massive blue, eye-lashed eye with red eyeshadow on it. What’s that doing at a football club?”

Great question… and we’re happy to answer.

The eye is the pop art symbol designed by local feminist artist Charlotte Colbert, of our ‘See Us As We Are’ campaign. Lewes FC is a unique football club, uniting profit with purpose and seeking to use football for social change. When, in 2017, we became the first club in the world (pro or semi-pro) to split resources equally between our men’s and women’s teams, we started to campaign to raise awareness of gender inequalities within the male bastion of football.

So, in 2024/25 we are drawing attention to the fact that women are not small men. Women footballers are women playing football. They need boots and equipment made for women; they need a league structure that helps ALL women footballers; and their fans want a stadium experience that is different from men’s games.

Our eye is a portal, as imagined by the artist, through which to envision a new utopia. A world in which we can see through both the male gaze AND the female lens, and not allow one to dominate the other. Enjoy the view!!

LEWES FC SQUAD LIST

Manager Emma Byrne
GK Coach and Analyst Leah Samain
Sports Therapist Joshua Essex
Performance Coach Daniella Da Silva
Head of Women’s Football Lynne Burrell
Fan Engagement Manager Shrey Nilvarna
Performance Lead Ivi Casagrande

ABOUT OUR OPPOSITION

Plymouth Argyle Women Football Club are a women’s association football club located in
the city of Plymouth in the county of Devon in the South-West of England. They are also
known as ‘The Pilgrims’ and compete in the FA Women’s National League Southern
Premier Division. Plymouth Argyle Women are based at Coach Road (Newton Abbot), the
home of the Devon County Football Association.

The club was formed in 1975 as a result of a 5-a-side league at the Mayflower Leisure
Centre. Two teams merged in order to enter an 11-a-side football tournament in Newquay,
Cornwall with the team creating the name of ‘Plymouth Pilgrims’. Following the success of
the tournament, Plymouth Pilgrims played in numerous competitions throughout the
1970s and 1980s with the most notable achievement being reaching the quarter-finals of
the Women’s FA Cup in both 1976 and 1977.

The club name changed to ‘Saltash Pilgrims’ in the late 1990s and the early part of the year
2000 to reflect their home ground at the time – Saltash United’s Kimberly Stadium in
Cornwall. It was not until the 2001–02 season that the club, then competing in the SW
Combination League, were invited to compete under the umbrella of Plymouth Argyle F.C.,
and Plymouth Argyle Ladies were formed.

In recent years, the club has progressed both on and off the pitch, which is evident in an
improved financial position, an increased media profile which reflects the growing interest
in women’s football in the UK, and improved results on the pitch. In July 2020 the club was
brought under the umbrella of the Plymouth Argyle football in the Community Trust,
providing an organic ladder for players progressing through the trust’s girls Advanced
Development Centre as well as other commercial and community benefits.

In June 2021 the club officially rebranded from Plymouth Argyle Ladies to Plymouth Argyle
Women while rapidly increasing its links and relationship with the parent club. The club has
subsequently been awarded the FA Women’s National League Tier 3 Respect Award for
season 2021-22, and then the FA Women’s National League Tier 3 Club of The Year Award
for season 2022-23.

In October 2023, the board of Plymouth Argyle Football Club decided that the
management and ownership of Plymouth Argyle Women Football Club would transfer
from Argyle Community Trust (ACT) to PAFC effective from the start of the 2024/25
season. Plymouth Argyle Women subsequently won the FA Women’s National League Tier
3 Community Club of the Year Award, for all the efforts of the players, and staff in engaging
the club within its community.

PLYMOUTH ARGYLE SQUAD LIST

MATCH OFFICIALS

Referee Thomas Amber

Assistant Referee 1 – Thomas Broadfeet

Assistant Referee 2 – TBC

2025/26 FA Women’s National League South

FILMING AT TODAY’S GAME

Today there may be film crews in the ground, filming on behalf of Lewes Football Club and other media organisations. The filming is usually for Lewes FC marketing purposes, to show what a match day looks/sounds like and to generally promote what we do. Lewes Football Club respectfully asks for your permission to be filmed. If you do not want to be filmed, please let the crew know directly and they will oblige.  Thanks for your cooperation in helping to build a successful club.

CREDITS AND LEGAL

The FA Women’s National League South strongly supports recent FA statements that there should be a zero tolerance approach against racism and all forms of discrimination. Accordingly, any form of discriminatory abuse, whether it be based on race or ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender, faith, age, ability or any other form of abuse will be reported to The Football Association for action by that Association. (The FA 0800 085 0508/Kick It Out 020 7253 0162).“

Lewes 2000 FC Limited. Registered in England and Wales with Company Registration Number 03790979. Lewes 2000 FC Limited is 100% owned by Lewes Community Football Club.

Honorary President Terry Parris
Chair Trevor Wells
Directors Ben Hall, John Peel, Stan Lahood, Tom McJennett, Joe Short, Steve Watts, Trevor Wells.

Life Members
Peter Brook, Dorothy Brook RIP, Vic Blunt RIP, Pat Dartnell, Gary Elphick, Gordon Fowlie, Peter Hiscox RIP, Billy Nixon, Derrick Parris RIP, Terry Parris, Jimmy Quinn, P. Swaysland, Steve Ibbitson, Jason Hopkinson, Steve White, Martin Elliot, Kevin Fingerneissl, Kevin Powell, David and Barbara Arnold, Roger and Cathy Feltham, Ethel Treagus, Roy Dartnell RIP, Ron Moore, Derek Southouse, Ray Smith, Ken Carter RIP

Manager Emma Byrne
GK Coach and Analyst Manager Leah Samain
Head of Women’s Football Lynne Burrell

COO Kelly Lindsey
Fan Engagement & Operations Shrey Nilvarna
Facilities Manager Damien Watts

Golden Rook Rob Read

Web Editors Shrey Nilvarna
Progcast Editors Clare Boden
Club Photographer James Boyes & Cecily