'No-one expected this' - Crystal Palace reach WSL

The Women’s Super League will have a new name among its ranks next season after Crystal Palace rubber-stamped promotion from the Championship on the final day of the season.

The Eagles were all but sure of their place in the top flight thanks to a 2-0 victory at relegated Lewes that put them three points clear of second-placed Charlton, with an overwhelming advantage in goal difference.

On Sunday, that place was sealed with a goalless draw against Sunderland in front of a club-record 6,796 crowd at Selhurst Park.

It has been a historic season for Palace and one that even their captain admits has surpassed expectations.

"At the start of the season there were a lot of changes," Palace captain Aimee Everett told BBC Sport. "Honestly, I don't think anyone expected this would have been the outcome, but this is what everyone wanted to achieve."

The changes saw the arrival of a new manager, Laura Kaminski, and a head of women’s football, Grace Williams.

Williams, who is celebrating a second successive promotion having overseen Bristol City’s Championship title last year, was much more confident than Everett that Palace would see the job through.

"It's better to sit comfortable and know what you are doing as a team is correct," Williams told the BBC’s Women’s Football Weekly podcast. "You want to lead, and a lot of that comes from the players. Even if the other teams are winning, we just have to keep winning ourselves.

"There hasn't been a question that we aren't going to win the league. I would love to tell you there has been pressure, tears, highs and lows – but we just come in on Monday looking to the next game."

Palace's promotion caps a remarkable rise – and it has not always been smooth.

Founded in 1992, the team played in the regional divisions of English football until the restructuring of the league pyramid in 2018 when they were elected into the Championship along with Manchester United, among others.

The early years of Championship football were not easy. On the pitch, the team struggled to compete in their debut 2018-19 campaign as they won just three of 20 league matches to finish second bottom.

From 'Harry's Heroes' to record breakers

Elise Hughes (left) is one of several young players who have fired Crystal Palace to promotion

Annabel Johnson is Palace’s longest-serving current player, having joined in 2019, and she remembers an extremely different environment when she arrived five years ago.

"Since I've joined, the club is unrecognisable. We trained two nights a week, and had to stop when the floodlights turned off at 10pm," Johnson told BBC Sport. "We only had one gym slot a week.

"The backing and structure from the club has grown massively. You have to be careful when the club takes over and you get integrated with the men; you can't just click your fingers and everything changes. Gradually I've seen the club getting better, and that will continue into the future."

Off the field, the club made headlines for the wrong reasons in 2018 with reports of some female players being told to come up with £250 each in sponsorship or risk being let go.

While the club said the sponsorship was not a prerequisite to play for Palace, the issue rumbled on enough for men’s first-team star Wilfried Zaha to get involved with "a substantial financial contribution".

That season also saw Palace's women feature as opposition to a men’s England Legends team for the ITV series "Harry's Heroes". An England team featuring retired former players David Seaman, Paul Merson and Matt Le Tissier, managed by Harry Redknapp, beat Palace 1-0 thanks to a Merson goal.

After those rocky early days, Palace became a staple of the second tier. Before stepping up a gear in 2023-24, they finished seventh, fourth and fifth in the previous three seasons.

The promotion campaign has been hard fought. After a single week at the top after three games, Palace did not reach the summit again until the 20th round of fixtures - with two matches remaining.

They are nonetheless deserving champions.

"With football you go week by week, so you don't go crazy with the records," said Johnson, who was speaking before the Sunderland game.

"But it has been so positive, and when the final whistle goes we will appreciate it."

Kaminski sends Eagles soaring to success

Going forward, Palace blew teams away, scoring 55 goals in 22 games. Wales international Elise Hughes has been the star with 16 strikes.

Hughes' crowning as the Championship's top scorer, however, was spoiled when she suffered an anterior cruciate knee ligament injury against Charlton in Palace's penultimate game, condemning her to months on the sidelines.

"We were all gutted to hear about Elise's injury, but we are happy and proud of the season she has had," said Everett.

Palace's achievement is even more impressive given the issues of their previous season when former manager Dean Davenport left the club.

Davenport had been manager for 10 years, overseeing the club's rise.

He was suspended, alongside two other members of staff, in March 2023 following a complaint about conduct and officially departed two months later.

Kaminski has succeeded in taking Palace to the next level.

This is the first time she has been a boss at senior club level, having spent five years in charge of the England Under-19 team and been assistant manager when Tottenham were promoted to the Women's Super League.

She joined Palace from Charlton, where she also served as assistant manager, and has now beaten her old employers to promotion.

Next season will be a different challenge entirely, now the big time beckons.

As Bristol City's struggles proved, it can be tricky for promoted teams to survive in the WSL.

"It's a big jump in the league, we have to respect that, so we will look into what those challenges are," Williams said.

What is clear for now is that this vibrant Palace side have earned the right to take on any and every challenge that stands in front of them.