Norwich Women start well and look to boost profile

Eloise Morran came on as a second-half substitute against Real Bedford after recovering from a hamstring injury

Norwich City Women are hoping for more opportunities to play at Carrow Road as they look to win promotion.

Only the champions of Women's National League Division One South East go up and last season they were second, behind AFC Wimbledon.

Andy Cook's fourth-tier side though are top of the table - and unbeaten - after the first seven games of the current campaign, the latest being a 0-0 draw with Real Bedford.

"We're building something good here and were just going to keep working on that process," he told BBC Radio Norfolk.

Cook was at Carrow Road on Saturday to see the men's team as they beat Hull City 4-0 and also to spend time with Norwich members to spread the word about his own side.

"I was there in the Gunn Club just letting people know what's happening with the women's team, where we are at the moment.

"I met some great people, there was a couple from Colorado in attendance here," he said following Sunday's game at The Nest, their home ground in Horsford.

"They're from Colorado, Norwich City fans, they watched the men and came to watch us. It's reaching right around the world, which is fantastic."

They played at Carrow Road for the first time in April 2023 after becoming fully integrated with Norwich City FC the previous year.

League games against QPR and Cambridge United were staged at Carrow Road last season but their only appearance there so far in 2024-25 was for a WNL Cup game against Ipswich Town, who are a level higher up the women's pyramid, which they lost 4-0.

No return visits are scheduled at the moment but Cook said: "It would be huge [to play there more often]. It's something that no doubt [general manager] Flo [Allen] is looking at and how we can move things forward."

Real Bedford could be the biggest threat to Norwich's chances of promotion - a club boosted in April by news of a $4.5m (£3.4m) bitcoin investment from the USA.

"Bedford came, they set up well, there were some good individual moments from them, but we matched them across the pitch," Cook said.

"Only one goes up and it is fine margins when you're in a league like this. I've worked in these leagues now for five years and know the times you need to kick [on] and the times you need to have a draw, the times you need to make sure you're consistent in what you're doing. That's exactly where we are right now."