EXCLUSIVE: Wales’s Olivia Francis on what attracted her to sign for Plymouth Argyle | OneFootball

Olivia Francis (Plymouth Argyle/Jack Tyler)

Wales international Olivia Francis says she’s settling in well at Plymouth Argyle – and it’s showing on the pitch, with her goalscoring account for the season well and truly open.

The 19-year-old has scored two goals in her seven appearances already as she gets used to life in the FA Women’s National League Southern Premier – but she says assists mean just as much.

“I set a few targets, goals and assists, hoping about 20 across the whole board with that – goals and assists together, that’s what I’ve sort of aimed for in previous seasons,” she tells SheKicks.net.

Olivia Francis: Her breakthrough season

Francis first rose to prominence as a schoolgirl playing for Pontypridd United in Wales’s Adran Premier, before a move to Manchester United.

“When I joined Pontypridd, that was just after Covid, 2020, so I was really young, probably a bit low in confidence after lockdown, wanting just to play regular women’s football. I felt like playing at Pontypridd was the best club at that moment. That season probably was a bit of a breakthrough.

“That was really what got me to my move to Man United, and that was a massive deal.

“That was amazing. Moving away at 16,17, living in a host family with a completely different group of girls, home was four or five hours away, was a really big challenge. I think my journey at Man United was very like up and down, but I guess that’s every footballer’s journey.”

She then enjoyed some time in the third tier with Liverpool Feds on a dual registration, before signing for Argyle this summer.

“I’ve moved away from home since I was about 16, 17, so travelling, I think that’s what I really like about what football brings as well. The moment I came down to Plymouth, it really attracted me, not only just the club, but the city itself.”

Olivia Francis (Plymouth Argyle)

Francis is one of the newcomers to the squad under recently-appointed head coach Marie Hourihan, and adds: “We’ve got a really fresh new squad in this year. So there’s been quite a lot of new faces there – me being one of them – which is quite nice.

“There’s a range of different characters in the team. I’m probably one of the youngsters in the team, me and Ella [Stephens] being the youngest. And then you’ve got the likes of Giota [Papaioannou] and Rosh [Roisin Kivel], who have got those qualities of leadership. They lead by example.”

Breaking into the Wales squad

With no under-21s or under-23s in the Wales women’s set-up, Francis now needs to set her sights on Rhian Wilkinson’s senior team.

“I appreciate how difficult it is to break into a senior national women’s team at the age of 19! I’ve had a bit of moments in that. I’ve had a bit of a glimpse being a training player. I’ve been on the bench. Being in that environment, I know what sort of what sort of player I need to be to compete for starting positions, playing minutes.

“I’ll take every opportunity that comes. If the opportunity comes, it comes, and I’ll take it with two hands, but if it doesn’t, I just know to keep on working hard in the background.”

Watching Wales in the Women’s Euros over the summer was, she says, a “massive moment” for her and for the entirety of the country.

“It’s been a long time coming. So I’m really glad that the girls got to show what they’ve got on the big stage – and that’s where Welsh women’s football belongs as well.”