Leicester Women’s manager, Willie Kirk, will be absent from the sidelines for the team’s FA Cup quarter-final match against Liverpool this Saturday, amid an ongoing internal investigation. The probe is focused on allegations of a relationship between Kirk and one of his players, leading to his current suspension.
The club, in a statement to The Guardian, mentioned that Kirk is cooperating with the club’s internal investigation, the results of which will be revealed in time. In his absence, assistant manager Jennifer Foster and first-team coach Stephen Kirby will oversee the team’s performance in the upcoming FA Women’s Cup tie.
Kirk, who transitioned from the role of director of football to manager since joining Leicester in 2022, has made significant contributions to the team. Despite a challenging start where his team did not secure any points in the first six games under his leadership, Kirk managed to guide Leicester to a 10th place finish in the Women’s Super League. The team is currently positioned seventh in the league standings for the 2023-24 season.
Before his tenure at Leicester, Kirk had a diverse coaching career starting at Livingston in Scotland as an under-14 coach in 2006. He progressed to coaching the under-17 team, before moving to Hibernian in 2009 as under-17 coach and eventually leading the women’s team in 2010. During his four years at Hibernian, he secured both the Scottish Cup and Scottish League Cup.
Following his time at Hibernian, Kirk had a stint at Preston before joining Bristol City in 2015, where he experienced both relegation and promotion. His coaching journey continued at Manchester United’s newly established team in 2018, and then at Everton later that year, until his departure in October 2021, paving the way for his role at Leicester.
