- West Ham United Ladies have now joined the West Ham family at the Club
- Former Ladies team manager Julian Dicks thinks the move will be only positive for the side
- The ex-Hammers left-back believes problems the team formerly faced will no longer exist
Following the news that West Ham United Ladies will now be run in-house at the Club, Hammers coach and former Ladies team manager Julian Dicks expressed his delight at the move.
The Hammers side, who currently play in the FA Women’s Premier League Southern Division, enter the West Ham family during FA Girls’ Football Week and will now run alongside the rest of the Club’s teams.
Former Hammers left-back Dicks, who coached the side during the 2014/15 season before joining Slaven Bilic’s first team backroom staff, thinks the move will be a huge positive for the Ladies.
He said: “For me, it’s fantastic news. It can’t not be a positive move for them. Taking them in house, sorting all the problems they have faced out, it will all help.
“I tried to get it to happen two years ago [when I was coach], but the timing wasn’t right. It’s brilliant news now, especially for the girls, and they’ll get looked after now.
“Any problems they were experiencing should now be solved because they will have professional people running the team. It’s not just about chucking money at it; it’s about doing things right, getting the right kind of players and the right kind of staff in.”
The Ladies have endured a tough start to the season this campaign, winning just one of their ten matches, but Dicks believes the move can be a turning point for the side.
“There’s no reason they couldn’t go on and play in the Super League. For me, even when I took over, it’s about progression and getting the right players in. It isn’t going to happen overnight, and like most things in football, it will take time.
“It could take two, three or five seasons, but it’s about progression every season. As long as they do that, the future looks bright.”
During his time overseeing the Ladies outfit, Dicks admitted he faced difficulties which he hopes can now be solved under the new setup.
“There were problems I encountered,” he continued. “For every 5,000 men that play football, there are probably five women.
“There are plenty of teams looking for their signature. It’s difficult to attract the better players. With the squad I had, we finished sixth and it was fantastic.
“When I was coach, of course this was something I would have liked to happen in that time. We spoke about it when I first took over. It will be much easier [now].
“Taking them in house, sorting all the problems like the pitches they play on, the facilities they train in and the coaches to take them to games, it will all help. It’s fantastic news.”