A year ago today, Hannah Power was named City Women’s captain after years of brilliant service to the Club.
Her leadership and guidance proved vital as the Bluebirds won the Adran Premier and the Bute Energy Welsh Cup in the 2024/25 season.
That leadership came from the sidelines, as Hannah gave birth to her first child in February. Having returned to full training, the defender has set her sights on being back in competitive match action.
“I’m so pleased to be back,” Hannah began. “When I gave birth to my daughter, one of my first thoughts was when could I be back with the team.
“Working hard in pre-season and performing at the level that I am currently, I’ve been really pleased. Everyone has been so welcoming and supportive, so it’s nice to be back around the girls.
“Everyone in the squad is so together. We’re teammates and we’re so close, so it feels like I’m around my family. There are a few players that I haven’t played with before, so it’s nice to be back showing them that I can support them on the field.”
City Women head into the 25/26 season on the back of winning the Adran Premier for a third consecutive season, as well as the Bute Energy Welsh Cup for a fourth successive year.
Reflecting on her important contribution, Hannah continued: “I tried to be there in the best way I could. It was a completely different role to what you would think a captain’s role would be; I couldn’t lead on the pitch, so I had to be supportive off the field. I tried to be there for them in every game and be a presence in training. I’m glad that I was able to be around the girls and support them.
“I was really proud of the resilience that the girls showed throughout the season. They had to fight and come back in a few games, it was special. They overcome those hurdles to win the title and the cup, which is a huge achievement.
“It was also amazing for me to see how many fans we had coming to the games. The support from the sidelines was incredible and I’m looking forward to this season where I’ll be able to play for them and they’ll get to know me as a player."
The Bluebirds will compete in the UEFA Women's Champions League first qualifying round at the end of this month, facing Athlone Town from the Republic of Ireland.
With this being our third successive campaign in Europe, the side will look to build on previous learnings for this season.
“I’m grateful to be in the running to play in the Champions League," Hannah added. "Last year, the girls dealt with the challenge well against some strong teams.
“We’re working really hard in training. The coaches are pushing us to our maximum and we’re reaching levels that we haven’t previously. Hopefully, this is the year that we go to the Champions League and see real progress.
“We feel ready to compete. If I compare now to even two years ago when we went to Lithuania, we’ve got so much more experience at that level, which will help us this year to prepare both mentally and physically.
“You feel a range of emotions, but you have to manage it, you have to stay calm and composed. The first five minutes of a game at that level can feel like a whirlwind, but our past experience will help us to be mentally strong and embrace it.
"We know that it will be difficult, but every one of us will have the support of our teammates and we’ll have the support of the fans, so we have a good platform in place to be able to compete.”