When the University of Derby women’s futsal team sealed the title in March against Nottingham, Jess Smithurst could barely remember anything in the celebrations afterward.
Now ahead of her final year as a student and player at Derby, Smithurst is hoping that her final year will be one that won’t just include futsal honours but also victory on the wider pitch.
As the Derby women’s team kick off their season at home to Warwick University today in the Midlands tier 2 of BUCS, the first’s vice-captain was speaking about her aspirations before the opener.
Against a backdrop of Storm Boelo’s windy conditions during her side’s final training session on Monday afternoon, down on the Kedleston lower pitch, she had just one thing on her mind.
She said: “We (Derby) want to win the National Cup because we’ve placed second in the National Cup for two years in a row.
“So obviously, in my final year of uni, if we could win that, it’d be great.”
The team has faced major changes during the academic break, as not only the typical first-years coming through one door and third-years leaving through another, but also a new head coach.
For a lot of teams, a new head coach can be one of the unfamiliar, yet for Smithurst it’s the exact opposite in fact; for the majority of the team, including Smithurst, they’ve known Mike Noon, the new boss, since their college days.
She said on her time with Noon: “The college team, probably three or four years, and then a lot of them, we played through external football clubs as well; we’ve all played together growing up, for Derby.
“We all played at college together, so we’re quite a strong and tight-knit group, so it should be a successful season.”
For Smithurst herself, she credits Noon as a huge reason for even enrolling at Derby to begin with, where she currently studies Physical Education, Physical Activity and Sport.
“Mike was quite influential in my enrollment here. It was just a natural progression for me and my education to come here.
“I knew a lot of the players and obviously got a scholarship here as well, so it was a good opportunity for me.”
That familial setting will be key; however, as following on from last season, they have dropped from tier one down to the second.
With just two wins last season, Noon will be hoping to create a winning feeling within the group, something that the team appeared to be very confident with.
Smithurst said: “He understands the game, which is a massive part for me, and I think he’ll play his strongest side.
“He’s not scared to upset people and make them sit on the bench, and he demands a lot from us and our attitudes have to be spot on, he’s a good manager.”
Like a lot of her teammates, Smithurst is a Derbyshire native coming from the town of Belper just seven miles north of Derby, upstream on the River Derwent.
The middle child of three, and being the only girl, her two brothers are footballers and she herself has followed in their footsteps. Constantly playing sports, she wanted to be like her idol growing up, Liverpool’s Steven Gerrard.
She said: “Every day of the week I’d be doing something sport-related.
“I’d always choose to do ball sports; I always did that after school clubs and all of that.”
It was not just ball sports either accomplishing a black belt in jiu-jitsu, Smithurst believed it plays a huge role in her discipline on the pitch.
“Jiu-jitsu helps massively with my discipline and knowing when to retaliate and when not to retaliate.
“So your mental resilience to stay concentrated and everything like that, I think that’s played a big part in my development.”
For Smithurst, eleven-a-side isn’t her only focus.
A starter for the women’s futsal team, playing as a fix, which is the position within the sport that is the most defensive outfield position and the key in conducting attacks.
The indoor sport saw more joy than football, where the intensity and real need for the five players is something Smithurst thinks is the real difference-maker.
“In futsal, if someone’s not tracking their runner, you’re going to get caught out, it’s very easy to get caught out in futsal compared to football.”
Last year, her side ended the season in a dramatic back-to-back tussle with local rivals Nottingham to not only be declared queens of the East Midlands but also of the northern futsal division.
Smithurst scored the crucial winner in the first game at home, before a tense draw away saw her side seal not just local pride but the title itself.
“So to obviously win at home in the penultimate game, it was a big achievement and obviously it meant the spirits were high.”
A gleeful moment during her second year, a delighted Smithurst recalled most of the action, apart from the post-match celebrations themselves, as she chuckled over the glory.
“I think we went to the pub and I can’t really remember what happened after that.”
For Jess Smithurst, though, this season and year will be one she hopes to remember in her farewell tour, and for the title to be joined by cups as well.
