EXCLUSIVE: Elise Clayton on her lifelong love for Swindon Town and Women’s FA Cup hopes | OneFootball

Elise Clayton (Swindon Town FC)

Elise Clayton has spent her whole life in Swindon, and grown up as a fan of the club.

It’s no wonder that the midfielder got a little bit choked up after she was part of the Swindon Town side that beat fellow tier-four side Leafield Athletic 3-2 to reach the fourth round of the Women’s FA Cup.

“I just was so overwhelmed with everything. Obviously you go through 90 minutes of one of the toughest matches I’ve ever played in, and then to get the reward that we got, knowing that we’re now going to be in the draw with some of the biggest teams in women’s football, but also it just felt like a great way to show how the season has gone so far.

“I’m just so proud to be playing with Swindon and getting the opportunity to start in that game – it was just so much pride, so much shock!” 

Swindon team spirit: “Unbelievable”

The scoreline doesn’t quite tell the whole story of the game. Leafield went 2-0 up in the first half before a second-half Annie Colston hat-trick put the Robins through to the next round – with her third goal coming in the final seconds of additional time.

And the teenager says that when they went in at half-time there were no recriminations and there was no shouting or finger-pointing – simply reassurance from manager Richard Wood and coach Kieran Beesley that there was plenty of time in the second half to turn it round.

“We didn’t do anything overly tactical, we didn’t get information drilled into us. They were trying to reinforce the fact that we need to just keep the belief and be patient – and I think that was one thing we did really well.

Elise Clayton (Swindon Town FC)

“Even after Annie scored the first goal, we kind of said, like, ‘Now be calm. We don’t have to score again in the next five minutes. We’ve still got time.’

“Everything was all over the place when we went in the changing room [at half-time]. They did a really good job at just calming us back down and then we were able to go out, relax and play our real football.”

That real football has taken them to second in the FA Women’s National League Division One South West, with ten wins out of ten matches, and two games in hand over current leaders Moneyfields.

“The togetherness of the group this year, it’s unbelievable.

“When things are tough, we can all just lean on each other and get through it together, which showed yesterday.

“We like to celebrate each other and each other’s wins and not just the goals – the defence, the midfield, the goalies, everyone. Everyone feels very special within our group.”

Clayton: I never expected to play for Swindon Town

Clayton is also a huge fan of her Swindon Town team-mates, describing Colston as her “idol”, but enthusing abour every single one of the squad who have helped her make the transition to senior football.

“Being able to play for Swindon is such an achievement. It’s something that obviously I hoped would happen. I’ve played for Swindon my whole life, but to be in the position I’m in now at the age I am, I could never have expected. It never crossed my mind.

Elise Clayton (Swindon Town FC)

“With my first season with the devs, I didn’t even think that I could be here where I am now. But I think a lot of my success this season has come from the people around me, and the girls, they’re such a good group. They’ve helped me develop so much, not just as a footballer, but as a person. I’ve got so much more confidence from them and they make me feel really, really special.

“The quality of the players we’ve got, Taylor [Macdonald], Lacy [Liggett], Helena [Diaz-Butcher], Sahara [Osborne-Ricketts] in defence, some of those girls are a joke! That’s just to name a few of them. Turning up to training, seeing those kind of players playing, it’s incredible.”

Elise Clayton: I want a home tie in the fourth round

Immediately after the win over Leafield, Clayton said she wanted a home tie in the next round – and her mind hasn’t changed.

“I wouldn’t say no to playing at the Emirates or Old Trafford or somewhere like that,” she admits, “but obviously I’m a Swindon fan. The County Ground for me is my favourite stadium in the world and to play there and to have that amazing opportunity potentially to play a WSL team, the memory of that being at the County Ground.

“The County Ground, a big attendance – that would be really special.”