Sky Sports News went behind-the-scenes at Brighton over the summer ahead of the Women's Super League season; Episode 1 airs ahead of Transfer Deadline Day and features new arrivals Danielle Carter and Rinsola Babajide, Maya Le Tissier, boss Hope Powell and head of recruitment Ron Thompson
Thursday 2 September 2021 10:15, UK
The sun shines over the Amex Stadium as Brighton's head of women's recruitment Ron Thompson tries to negotiate a transfer deal for a player.
Brighton are about to embark upon their fourth consecutive season in the Women's Super League, and Thompson knows their transfer dealings need to be right on the money if the club are to remain competitive in the top division of the women's game.
"The mission statement is to be the best we can be and get the best players that we can get up, and push on from there," he tells Sky Sports News, in the first of a four-part Brighton mini-series ahead of the new season.
"My job is looking at the recruitment of players, predominately into the first team, so that's looking at the squad we have and working with Hope Powell [Brighton Women manager] and the rest of the coaching staff to identify the areas of the squad that we want to improve.
"We are trying to find those players that not everybody is aware of - and that's the hard part because everyone's trying to do it as well, so we have to be better. We're a small club, so we have to be better than those that may not have to work as hard as we do to get a player in."
Working that little bit harder than others often involves putting in extra time with intermediaries and player representatives, but that's one aspect of the job Brighton's women's recruitment lead clearly relishes.
"It's all fun and games," Thompson says.
"I think that on the whole with agents, the ones that I've dealt with and the ones that I deal with, they are genuinely good people trying to do the best they can for their clients.
"We may not agree on everything, and we'll disagree in the negotiations around certain things, but [we always work to] get to the point where both sides are happy, and that so far we've been able to do working with the agents."
Two of the big-name arrivals at Brighton this summer are tricky winger Rinsola Babajide on loan from Liverpool, and ex-Arsenal striker Danielle Carter, who made a permanent move to the Amex after a 12-month spell at Reading.
"Rinsola was a player that we really wanted. We had lots of conversations with Liverpool [about her], " Thompson explains.
"Rinsola works for us because she gives us that little bit of an unknown, she'll do things that you're not really expecting, so that helps to throw the opposition off.
"We came to an agreement, an arrangement with Reading for Dan (Carter)," Thompson adds. "So we've gone down the transfer route with Dan and fingers crossed she'll be able to bring us some much-needed goals."
Carter brings a wealth of top-level experience to Brighton's squad, but the England striker knows she is in fresh surroundings and does not want to push her luck.
"I was at Reading for a year and now here I am at Brighton," says Carter as she sits on a deckchair on the beach.
"Regardless of experience, or where I've come from or what I've done, I'm new here. I'm literally the new girl. And I'll be quite quiet until I'm sort of settled I would say."
"There were a few other options both in England and abroad. But for where I was at, it was probably the case that I just wanted to stay in England. When I spoke to Hope and walked around the facilities, I thought this setup is very professional. I think for me, my goals are to stay fit and healthy and, ultimately, score goals - that's what I'm here for."
Carter and Babajide are also flatmates, and the Liverpool loanee says the pair already feel like they are in familiar surroundings.
"We're both having the same feel in terms of our experiences here, being obviously the newbies and stuff," Babajide says.
"But saying that, everyone's been very welcoming. I feel like I've been here for a long time as it is already because everyone's so nice and welcoming."
Sky Sports has announced a three-year deal with the FA to become the primary broadcaster of the Barclays FA Women's Super League from September 2021, becoming one of Sky Sports flagship offerings.
The deal will see Sky Sports show at least 35 games exclusively live per season and further strengthens the broadcaster's commitment to women's sport.
Sky Sports are recruiting for the best-in-class on-and-off-screen production team as part of the plan to align WSL with the broadcaster's other big sporting leagues and events.
The WSL will get the full Sky Sports treatment with lengthy build-ups and reaction to all live matches, plus daily news from the competition across Sky Sports News and Sky Sports' digital platforms.
Click play on the video at the top of the page to watch the first episode of Brighton: Beyond the Pitch, airing on Monday across platforms ahead of Transfer Deadline Day
