Defender signs terms at Madejski Stadium
We are pleased to announce that defender Bethan Roberts has signed her first professional contract with Reading, which runs until the summer of 2023.
18-year-old Roberts has spent almost half of her life on the development pathway with the Royals – she joined our Regional Talent Club system as an under-10, honing her skills on the training field through the age-groups and eventually working her way ever-closer to the first-team setup.
And then last season, when fans returned to Madejski Stadium to see the Royals take on Bristol City in December, she debuted from the bench by replacing an icon of women’s football in Fara Williams for the final 10 minutes of the game, still aged 17.
Her first start came away at Aston Villa the following month, playing over an hour in a 2-2 draw at the Banks’s Stadium. She would go on to make another substitute appearance and three more starts before the season’s end, all before her 18th birthday.
Impressing domestically in either of the full-back positions meant that she was also elevated to the Welsh senior squad in April – she was on the bench for games against Canada and Denmark, in which her clubmates Rachel Rowe, Tash Harding, Lily Woodham, Jess Fishlock and Angharad James were all involved.
And to cap an impressive breakthrough season for the defender, Roberts can now consider herself a fully-fledged member of Royals’ senior team after putting pen to paper on her first pro deal.
Kelly Chambers, manager of Reading FC Women, said: “I am over the moon to offer Bethan her first professional contract; she has definitely earned it. Bethan is a player that has been through our pathway from the bottom up… this is exactly what our pathway is about and it’s great to see Bethan follow the footsteps of the like of Emma Harries and Grace Moloney.
“She is a great young player and last season she developed leaps and bounds. She is a fast, technical player whose attributes fit our style of play. I can’t wait to continue working with Bethan and see her grow even more.”
