Chatham Town Women’s side face Birmingham City Women this weekend at St Andrews for a place in the Quarter Finals of the Adobe Women’s FA Cup, with the home side coached by a former Gillingham Women’s player and coach.

The Chats under Keith Boanas have made history with their FA Cup run and are the lowest ranked side left in the competition come face to face with a City side managed by Amy Merricks, who in 2014, made her coaching bow with Gillingham Ladies, who evolved into Chatham Women post pandemic thanks for the intervention of Chats Chairman Kevin Hake.

But as KSN found out this week in an exclusive interview with the Birmingham coach, she hasn’t forgotten where it all began…

“When the draw was made, I couldn’t quite believe it!” she admitted when we spoke. “I wasn’t actually watching it (the draw) as my head was in footage and work as I haven’t watched any draws this year and waited to hear. It was my wife who messaged me and said, “you’re not going to believe it, you’re not going to believe it – you’ve got Chatham Town!” I am from the county, we live in Kent so it does feel very close to home, so I guess you could say shock, excitement that type of response!”

Merricks then admitted to knowing some of the opposition, “I know Grace Coombs really well but haven’t played with her – but have played against her. I have played alongside Amy Russ at one point.”

“It was Gillingham who gave me the start in my coaching career, firstly as player-coach and I do have a really sad story of one day I was bold enough to put myself on the pitch thinking I could do a better job, and I really couldn’t,” she admitted laughing. “After that game I never did it again and became just a coach. So, I suppose you could say that I ended my playing career as a player at Gillingham and next day started my coaching in the same place!”

“I love everything that the Club is about, it gave me a lot! I volunteered for a year and at that point, players were paying to play! I was brought in and was given the opportunity to coach the reserve side and support the coaching first team. I was actually looking back in my pictures and actually have some County Cup Final winning pictures. Back then you didn’t get paid and wouldn’t have imagined to be in the position that I am now! It was balls in the car; washing the bibs; working late until ten or eleven o’clock but we all loved it and all wanted to make Gillingham the best it could be at that point.”

“The way that Chatham embraced the old Club… you have to take your hat off to them as remember this was before the Lionesses first won the Euros. Whilst others can’t keep carrying the ship in the Women’s games, someone else is at the moment and is ready to run with it and you can see that in Chatham Town today. I have been analysing them and have been really impressed by the backing that they have and the fan base that they have. Not only that but the facilities that they have; having Keith in charge I think is statement for them as a team.”

“Whilst there maybe isn’t such a great story in terms and backing and investment, and someone ready to pick it up and see the opportunity within the Women’s game and where it could go which I think is a really nice and positive story in Chatham Town.”

The Chats head to the Midlands on Saturday as massive underdogs as their hosts are currently second in WSL2 and aiming for promotion into the expanded Women’s Super League for next season, and the Blues coach was clear that “We want to win both competitions – the League and the FA Cup. There isn’t a choice in the matter for me as both competitions really matter, and I came to Birmingham because I am a winner and I want to win. I came to this Club because of the ambition, and I believe in the group that we’ve got, and I believe that we can do both!” 

With Birmingham announcing this very week a takeover involving Lioness, TV pundit and Strictly winner Karen Carney and former World Tennis Number One and Grand Slam Champion Kim Clijsters, it really just shows the size of the task ahead of the Chats as they arguably go to try and pull off one of the biggest shocks in Women’s FA Cup history!

But we all know about shocks in the Greatest Cup Competition of them all don’t we? The Chats weren’t “expected” to beat AFC Wimbledon in Round One or Exeter City in Round Two – both Clubs in a higher League – but they did… 

They couldn’t do it again, and make it the hat-trick of all hat-tricks could they?

 KSN would like to put on record our thanks to Tristan Hall of the media team at BCWFC for helping to arrange this interview.