Laura O'Sullivan

Laura O'Sullivan (born 23 August 1991) is a Welsh footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Cardiff City Ladies and the Wales national team.

Laura O'Sullivan
O'Sullivan in goal for Cardiff City against Lewes in 2016
Personal information
Date of birth (1991-08-23) 23 August 1991
Place of birth Wales
Position(s) Goalkeeper
Club information
Current team
 Cardiff City
Number 1
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2011–2017 Cardiff City
2017 Yeovil Town 0 (0)
2017–2018 Cyncoed Ladies
2018– Cardiff City 30 (0)
National team‡
2016– Wales 23 (0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 5 May 2020 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 12 April 2018

She began her career with Cardiff City, making her debut after converting to playing as a goalkeeper in 2015. In 2016, she made her international debut for Wales in the Cyprus Women's Cup.

Club career

O'Sullivan was a latecomer to football; owing to difficulties finding transport, she rarely played as a teenager, and briefly gave up the game, a decision that she later stated she regretted. Having only taken up competitive football on a regular basis in 2011, she began her career as a defender, playing for Cardiff City, but switched to playing as a goalkeeper after covering the position on several occasions as the team struggled to find a regular keeper.[1]

She adopted the goalkeeping position full-time in December 2014, and after impressing for Cardiff's reserve side, broke into the club's first-team squad. In her first senior year, she established herself as the club's first-choice goalkeeper and was given the Coaches' Player of the Year award at the end of the 2014–15 season.[1][2]

O'Sullivan joined FA WSL 1 side Yeovil Town on 17 September 2017, alongside Welsh international teammate Hannah Miles.[3] However, she was released by the club without playing a game in November that year, and subsequently joined Cyncoed Ladies in the Women's Welsh Premier League.[4]

International career

O'Sullivan was called up to squad training camps on two occasions before being handed her debut for the Wales senior side by manager Jayne Ludlow on 2 March 2016, during a 2–2 draw with Finland in their opening group match of the 2016 Cyprus Women's Cup,[5] less than 18 months after converting to playing as a goalkeeper.[1] She played in Wales' two other group matches against Czech Republic and Poland as they were eliminated in the group stage.[1] In October 2017, she was named 2017 Welsh Footballer of the Year.[6][7] She kept five successive clean sheets during Wales's qualification campaign for the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup, including a Player of the Match award against England on 6 April 2018.[4]

Honours
  • Cardiff City Coaches Player of the Year: 2014–15[2]
  • Wales Player of the Year: 2017[7]

References
  1. Matt Badcock (20 March 2016). "It's serious now for the Wales No.1". The Football League Paper. Retrieved 25 October 2017.
  2. Sian Matheson (18 June 2015). "The story of how a Cardiff carnival led to the creation of one of Wales' most successful women's football sides". WalesOnline. Retrieved 25 October 2017.
  3. "Yeovil Town Ladies: Wales' Laura O'Sullivan & Hannah Miles sign for WSL 1 club". BBC Sport. 18 September 2017. Retrieved 25 October 2017.
  4. Edwards, Luke (29 August 2018). "Wales goalkeeper Laura O'Sullivan marks unlikely rise to brink of World Cup - 'I go straight to training from the office'". The Telegraph. Retrieved 16 December 2018.
  5. "Wales and Finland draw thriller in the Cyprus Women's Cup". Football Association of Wales. 2 March 2016. Retrieved 25 October 2017.
  6. Wilf Frith (3 October 2017). "Laura O'Sullivan Wales Player Of The Year". She Kicks. Retrieved 25 October 2017.
  7. "Chris Gunter: Reading defender beats Gareth Bale to Wales player of year award". BBC Sport. 2 October 2017. Retrieved 25 October 2017.
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