She joined Stourbridge Ladies at the beginning of the season and striker Mill Rogers has already had a massive impact on the squad.
After watching her dad play football on the weekend, to playing football with her younger sister in the garden, at the age of six Mill Rogers finally began playing football.
She attended a weeks long coaching course where she was the only girl there and instantly got player of the week. A future star was found. Early on she did begin training with Lichfield but at that time she was quite a shy girl so she gave up.
But she missed it too much, so when she was 12 she got stuck into competitive football. Her career began at Wyrley Juniors U12S. In her very first game despite being nervous her side won 11-0 and she scored seven goals.
Mill remained at Wyrley for around two seasons and she ended up being top goalscorer with 52 goals in one season before moving to West Bromwich Albion RTC.
After attending the first day of Albion trials, Rogers nearly gave up because she was so nervous and believed she wasn’t good enough. But she said going back for that second day was the “biggest and best decision” she ever made.
At The Baggies, she played for the U16S before moving into the development side and eventually she moved into the first team at the age of 16. On her first team debut she of course scored and she described it as a “worldie”.
Another fun fact about her playing career is at under 16S level she played West Midlands County football where her and her side won the regional league and cup final. Mill of course scored one of the penalties to win the cup.
After two seasons playing with Albion’s first team Rogers decided she needed to move to a side that would help her develop more as a player, so she moved to Stourbridge Ladies under manager Andy Fisher and main coach Mike Harris.
Rogers said: “I spoke to Andy and Mike in advance about joining Stourbridge, they both convinced me that it was the best club for me. I knew and they knew I needed to be at a club that would help me develop as a footballer especially with me only being 18.”
Her first season with The Glassgirls is coming to an end, and for Rogers it’s certainly been a memorable one. She has scored 14 goals in 20 appearances in the league (so far), has grabbed a few assists, has scored key goals in cup games and more importantly has been an integral part in her sides promotion and title push.
Manager Andy Fisher said: “For me Mill Rogers has been the catalyst to our excellent season, we knew straight away what we were getting with Mill as soon as we signed her, she is an incredible footballer.
“She has really excelled this year and in such huge games has been instrumental. Not only on the pitch but off the pitch too, Mill is a great character and personality.”
Rogers added: “It’s been a great season for me, I’ve loved every minute of it. Getting to know all the girls and enjoying their company both on and off the pitch has been amazing.
“The most memorable moment of the season for me was scoring against Tier 3 side Derby County in the FA cup, in fact the whole game was memorable for me as we beat a tier 3 side to get through to the next round of the FA Cup. It was an amazing day and a brilliant evening.”
Stourbridge Ladies have achieved so much this season already. They had a record breaking run in the FA Cup, can secure promotion and the title if they beat Lye Town this Sunday and have a league cup final to look forward too.
Upon reflection Mill said: “This season we have improved so much as a team but until we get that promotion, title and league cup win it doesn’t mean anything.
“That being said, we have played some fantastic football week in week out and I feel I’ve improved massively as an individual too.
“In terms of next season I hope to kick on even more and continue to improve and develop as a footballer.”
Sporty AF 