Mary Earps says she ‘learned some tough lessons’ from book backlash | OneFootball

Mary Earps said she has “learned some tough lessons” and understands why there was such strong condemnation of comments made in her autobiography last year.

The former England goalkeeper told the Guardian the “last thing she wanted to do” was hurt Sarina Wiegman and she is grateful to have had a chance to meet up with the Lionesses head coach and have a “really positive conversation” since the release of her book in November, which led to a huge backlash.

Comments in the autobiography about Earps’ former England teammate Hannah Hampton, whom Earps said had been “rewarded for bad behaviour” by Wiegman, dominated sports headlines for several days after the book was serialised by the Guardian. The Chelsea manager, Sonia Bompastor, was among those to respond by criticising Earps for “not showing respect” to a manager or teammate.

“That was kind of my first rodeo with ‘cancel culture’, and 0 out of 10 – would not recommend to other people,” Earps said. “I take full responsibility for the book and the things that happened around the book.

“I took some time out to really reflect on the whole situation and there were clearly things that I could have done better. There were some tough lessons learned. I’m human. I’m not perfect, I’m still learning. I’m still growing as a person. I want to use those lessons going forward.”

Earps, who also spoke in her book about personal topics such as being bullied at school, was particularly criticised for her words about Wiegman, who made her England’s No 1 in 2021. “I have an incredible amount of respect for Sarina, always have, always will,” Earps said. “Sarina and I have spoken. I’m sure you’ll understand that I would want that conversation to remain private. But yes, we spoke, we’ve met up. It was a really positive conversation. And I’m really grateful to Sarina for that opportunity for us to speak.

“Ultimately, now I’ve had some time and distance from it, I can understand it [the backlash]. Now I can see things for what they are. [At the time] it felt like: ‘All right, I’m retiring internationally and then I go on to the next thing.’ And it felt like the next natural progression [to write the book] but I think I had my blinkers on. Now, with time, I’m more removed from it, I can see it, for sure.

“In a weird way it’s a compliment for how much the game has grown and it’s a compliment that people hold me to a high standard. Ultimately, life is about lessons and growing and constantly striving to be the best version of yourself.”

The Paris Saint-German goalkeeper was speaking after the official opening of a community football pitch, named the “Mary Earps pitch”, at Calverton Miners Welfare FC, in her home city of Nottingham. Hundreds of young players turned up to mark the occasion and Earps was swamped with requests for autographs and pictures after cutting the ribbon and joining in with a training session.

The pitch was funded in large part by a £660,000 grant from the Premier League, Football Association and government’s Football Foundation, which launched the Lionesses Futures Fund in 2023 after Earps and her England teammates triumphed on home soil at 2022’s European Championship. It has funded 35 new 3G pitches which will prioritise access for women and girls through reserved peak-time slots and female-only evenings. Earps’ pitch, with help from the Nottinghamshire FA, was also funded by the club, Nottinghamshire county council, Calverton Parish Council, Gedling Borough Council and the Thomas Farr Fund, and it holds a special place in Earps’ heart, because she competed in summer football tournaments at Calverton in her early teenage years.

Earps, who played 53 times for England and kept 26 clean sheets, said it was “amazing to have a pitch named after me here”, close to where some of her family live, and described the bustling turnout as “surreal”, saying: “One of my priorities has been to do more stuff at home. When you go away, you realise how much that matters to you.”

Earps, who saved a penalty in the 2023 World Cup final, said there were plans “in the works” with the FA to celebrate her retirement, which was revealed in a shock announcement before last summer’s Euros, and that she was “super-excited” about them. She is approaching the final four months of her contract with PSG, whom she joined after leaving Manchester United in 2024. Asked about her contract and what the future holds, she replied: “We’ll have to wait and see, won’t we? I’m not too sure yet. I know I’m really enjoying Paris.”

Discussing her PSG spell more broadly, she said: “I’ve loved it. I was taken completely out of my comfort zone and challenged, and that was exactly what I wanted. I was so petrified of potentially stagnating and not learning and growing. I’m learning a lot.”

Header image: [Photograph: Fabio De Paola/The Guardian]