Simran Jhamat rejoins Coventry United Women as Kira Rai ruled out of Derby County’s season-opener | Football News
Simran Jhamat has returned to Coventry United for the 2022/23 FA Women’s Championship season.
Sky sports news exclusively revealed Jhamat would be making an emotional return to Coventry United, where she had a six-month stint in 2020.
Sikh Punjabi forward Jhamat joins as a free agent after deciding to leave Bristol City Women at the end of last season.
Jhamat became the first South Asian Heritage player in Bristol City women’s history when she joined the club last year.
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And the 21-year-old is now expected to make her debut against her former club when they visit Butts Park Arena to play Coventry United in Sunday’s Championship opener.
“I’m delighted to be part of Coventry United and can’t wait for the weekend’s opener against Bristol City,” said Jhamat.
Hailing from Walsall, Jhamat was spotted at local club Sporting Khalsa at youth level before being signed on by the Aston Villa girls’ Center of Excellence, where she spent seven seasons before joining Liverpool in 2017.
She spent a year at Leicester City followed by a stint at Coventry United before moving south to Lewes before joining Bristol City for the 2021/22 season.
Jhamat has earned international recognition at various age groups of England youth and became the first Punjabi girl to score at competitive level for England U17s when she netted in a 6-0 qualifying win over Slovakia.
Rai retired in the season opener in Derby County
Kira Rai was ruled out in Derby County’s women’s season opener at home to Burnley with a knee injury.
Rai has looked good in pre-season but had to be substituted in last weekend’s friendly against Cardiff City when she fell awkwardly and an opponent landed on her knee.
Initial scans proved inconclusive as the injury requires further assessment.
Only speak to sky sports news, Rai said: “Let’s see how things go over the next few days and when I can get back on the pitch in a Derby County shirt.
“Obviously it’s disappointing to miss the big start to the new season but when I’m back I’ll be better and stronger – and I’m committed to doing my part to try and help Derby move up to the FA Women’s Championship .”
Rai, who turned 23 last month, is a product of Derby County Academy and first joined the club as an under-10 player, having started at local club Burton Albion. The attacking midfielder signed a one-year contract extension last month.
The Burton-born Sikh-Punjabi forward is an active supporter of the Sky Sports and Sporting Equals partnership and appeared in television commercials earlier this year to herald the game-changing development for British South Asians in football.
How Sky is trying to change something
The glaring lack of ethnic diversity at the top of women’s football was clearly brought into focus during the Women’s Euros as England fielded an all-white starting XI in all six games of the tournament.
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Sky Sports recognized and began taking action in 2020 as part of its £30m commitment to combat systemic racism and make a difference in communities across the UK to address the lack of diversity in women’s football.
Sky Sports has worked with dozens of current and former players from diverse ethnic backgrounds, trying to give them a platform to share their stories to spark the imagination and inspire the next generation of women footballers.
Talent has been identified and directly signposted to the Football Association and clubs within the framework of Sky Sports’ unprecedented commitment to the UK’s South Asians in football, which has also resulted in us dedicating a section of our website to raising awareness of South Asians in football and creating our own ongoing blog.
A number of elite and elite potential players and their families have also been supported with mentoring and access to off-field development opportunities.
Earlier this year, Sky Sports also partnered with Sporting Equals, the country’s largest sports competitions charity, where we supported participation across the country, including the development of the Seeing Is B believe event for the century-old West Londoner Sports club Indian Gymkhana.
British South Asians in Football
For more stories, features and videos, visit our groundbreaking South Asians in Football page on skysports.com and the South Asians in the Game blog, and keep up to date with Sky Sports News and our digital Sky Sports platforms.