Gilly Flaherty says if she could relive anything in her career it would be guiding West Ham United out of the 2019 FA Cup final at Wembley.
Flaherty was captain of the Hammers at the time, with the club reaching the finals for the first time in 2018/19. They faced Manchester City, who won 3-0 with goals from Keira Walsh, Georgia Stanway and Lauren Hamp.
Flaherty, who played for other clubs such as Arsenal and Liverpool, retired in 2023 and was named in the Women’s Super League Hall of Fame along with Alex Scott, Stephen Houghton and Rebecca Welch delivered a speech before the church.
Gilly Flaherty: ‘Had I started my career five or ten years later, my life would have been completely different’
The 33-year-old, now a pundit, said: “I would love to relive the experience of walking out at Wembley with West Ham when I was captain.
“Obviously the beauty of the FA Cup is the underdogs and I think that’s the typical story of West Ham United getting there [to the final] So I would love to do it again. “
Not only is this the Hammers’ first final, it’s also the first time West Ham United Women have played at Wembley.
Flaherty may not have won a trophy that day, but her silverware is packed with trophies.
She won a total of 22 trophies throughout her career. Flaherty was part of Arsenal’s golden era in the 2000s, which saw them win a quadruple in the 2006/07 season, including an unbeatable league run.
The former England defender says she has reflected on what it would be like to play at the top of her game if women’s football had higher standards, better pay and more recognition.
who is flherty four-four-two Perspectives, one of the best emerging experts, said: “Honestly, I think the first thing I thought about was, what if I started my career in five or ten years? When I was in What If I Now that I’m at my peak and we have what we have now, my life is going to be completely different.
“That’s just from a selfish point of view. I think I’m excited for the experience of young people, now they see the women’s game is professional.
“If you say ‘Oh, listen, we used to have three or four jobs, we used to train in the evenings and we were still expected to perform at our best in games,’ they’ll say you have one and now they all laugh, They know everything about the professional game.”
