We discuss work, dealing with injuries and the Goalkeepers’ Union with shot-stopper Charlotte Oates...
The first question posed to Charlotte Oates makes her chuckle. We ask: “People often say that goalkeepers can be a bit mad, would you agree?”.
“Yeah, I think a little bit,” she laughs. “I have always said that you have got to have a bit of a screw loose to be in there, coming out, closing players down and to not be afraid of jumping into the wildest of tackles.
“It was only last Tuesday where it was dark, there was five minutes left of training, and the last shot I went out to save smacked me in the face – wet, freezing cold. It slapped me straight in the side of the face and it was just one of those moments where I thought, ‘Why am I laying here?’.
“But despite those things you go back for more and you love it. I think you have got to have an element of a bit of craziness – and I absolutely do! The love for the game keeps you going.”
Charlotte chats on the phone to us, ducking into a quiet area at work just hours before the Whites travel to face Doncaster Rovers Belles away from home in league action. It has been a long day for the 30-year-old teacher, whose morning started at the crack of dawn.
“I usually get into work at half-six just to get everything sorted, having all my meetings in the morning before the kids get into school. I am a PE teacher, but I am also a director of Key Stage 3 as well, so it can be pretty manic day-to-day.
“I travel 30 miles to work anyway to Boston Spa every day. So, fortunately, for training on a Tuesday and a Thursday, Thorp Arch is five minutes around the corner. But still, traveling and training for two hours after you have done a 12-hour day can be absolutely exhausting.”
The hours that go into representing the club and making it to training every week is what the FA WNL’s relentless schedule demands, though something that for Oates – always football-mad who recalls pleading with her mum to be taken to sign up for a team – is something she wouldn’t allow herself to give up.
“I had an injury at the age of 22 where I broke and dislocated my hip so I ended up having a year out and then I did my ACL twice,” Oates explains, proud that she is fortunate enough to still have the opportunity to actually play football.
“I had four years out completely. I was just recovering, reminding myself that I had to focus on my career because, again, it is one of those difficult things to balance both. Joining Leeds was an opportunity I didn’t want to miss and I have loved every minute. That adrenaline, all the hours that we put into these games, it all makes it worth it when you are on that pitch and you have got that 90 minutes ahead.”
Those tough setbacks and hours spent on the physio’s table seemed a million miles away from the initial youthful joy and excitement which saw Charlotte fall in love with the sport growing up.
“Everyone will laugh at this,” the goalkeeper adds, not giving any indication of where the conversation is headed. “I actually used to be a dancer! I don’t know how because I have got two left feet, but I used to commit sort of three, four nights a week to dancing.
“But then aged 11 or so, I realised it wasn’t for me… I really wanted to go play football. I joined my local club up at Howden Clough. I used to play outfield – it wasn’t until the age of 16 through school I found a love for going in net. I felt like I could contribute to the team better that way.”
Trials then followed aged 16 with Huddersfield Town, progressing through the youth system to help the Terriers achieve promotion into the third tier, before going on to join Bradford City where, in her stint with the Bantams, Oates was handed the captain’s armband.
Joining the Whites in the summer, the keeper’s impressive experience and leadership has seen her become an integral part of Simon Wood’s squad, as well as forming a close friendship with Carrie Simpson; both of whom are vying for the number 1 jersey on a matchday.
“She is brilliant and I couldn’t have asked for a better person to be working alongside,” she explains, offering an insight into the much-discussed Goalkeepers Union. “I have so much respect for Carrie as a goalkeeper and inevitably we are there to push each other as much as possible.
“We are mature enough and we have that experience to respect the decisions made by the manager because, like everyone else, we are fighting for the shirt. We are working hard in training to make sure that we are at optimal level to jump in at any point.
“We have both had injuries but it was nice knowing that we were rooting for each other and wanting each other back to our best. We want to succeed and help the team gain those three points every time we go out there.”
The early start paid dividends for Oates. The goalkeeper made a number of impressive saves in the Whites’ emphatic 6-3 victory over the Belles, as the team roared back to winnings ways and claimed the Derby Day bragging rights.
A Leeds fan growing up, being able to represent her childhood club brings enormous pride for the 30-year-old, not least after the injury setbacks and the gruelling day-to-day life in the classrooms.
“Having that badge on your shirt as you are playing is amazing.”
Charlotte and her teammates continue their FA WNL campaign this weekend with a trip to Durham Cestria. Read our match preview HERE.
