Olianna’s goal

Olianna Bishop, one of Barbados’ most prolific and skilful defensive female footballers, has her sights set on playing professional football in England.   

The 17-year-old Bishop currently resides in Surrey, England, and her foundation in football was laid at the age of 10 years old when she made the Barbados Under-17 team.

Fast forward years later and Bishop is hoping to one day sign a professional contract with one of the top women’s football clubs in England. While she is not yet certain which one it will be, for certain her hard work and commitment to the sport is bearing fruit.   

“Currently I have a dream of becoming a professional football player here and playing at the highest tier of women’s football which is the Women’s Super League (WSL) and also to fund and create a foundation and facilities for the development of female football in Barbados. To accomplish this, I have smaller goals that I will look forward to accomplishing throughout my first year here,” Bishop told Barbados TODAY.

From her younger days of playing football in the streets with her male cousins to representing Vauxhall Primary in the National Sports Council BICO football competition where she captured the Best Female Player Award on two consecutive occasions, Bishop has had a passion for football. She wants to see women’s football grow and develop in Barbados where young girls can dream and aspire to be just as great or even better than their male counterparts.

Since moving to England, Bishop, an aspiring sports therapist, recognised what having access to resources can do for the development of athletes. Therefore, she shared her thoughts on ways Barbados can attract more young females into the sport.

“Well seeing what access to resources can do for the development of players here in England, I think that could be a possible implementation to start with but we (coaches and players) know these resources require funding. Multiple and even better facilities could help the efficiency of training and also see more friendly matches happen so that the girls are always competing and gaining experience which is essential for their development.

“Another important factor is changing the outlook of how women’s football is perceived. I think that a lot of positive support and encouragement instead of negative would see that more girls would love to be involved in the sport and therefore the growth and development in this country would be better.

“ Introducing football to more girls in primary school could be beneficial because they would more likely hone their skills at a younger age rather than having to start to develop it later in their teenage or even early adulthood. An increase of involvement of football in younger girls essentially so that as they get older footballing basics and experience would already be instilled,” Bishop explained.

The talented defender who is capable of providing her services in the defensive midfield also touched on the differences regarding women’s football in developing countries like England where the female side of the sport is far better executed compared to a small island like Barbados.

“… The awareness and inclusion of female football is better executed and in so doing the number of facilities, teams, coaches are key to the development of younger players and opportunities for female players and developing their abilities. With the likes of football academies, girls as young as toddlers are likely to be more developed and go to higher ranks than those who didn’t get those opportunities due to how early they started,” she said.

Bishop was part of the Barbados senior national women’s team for the just concluded second leg of the Concacaf World Cup Qualifiers where the Lady Tridents, unfortunately, lost 2-0 to host El Salvador and a crushing 3-0 defeat to Belize.

As a defensive player, Bishop spoke about how she has grown in confidence playing that position. “For me, I was able to tap in and explore a more attacking role though I am more of a defensive player and it helped build my confidence.”

“Also, with a lot more access to facilities and coaches, I think I have gained more knowledge and an insight into how some professional teams operate,” she added.

A proud Lionel Messi supporter and former member of Pinelands Youth Soccer Academy, Bishop has won multiple trophies with the boys’ team and was recognised not as a female player but just as a player which for her brings a sense of appreciation looking back on those years.

A well-mannered and disciplined athlete, Bishop expressed pride in her achievements to date and told Barbados TODAY: “My recognition has enabled me to accomplish one of my most memorable achievements to date and that was being selected to be a part of the Barbados U17 women’s team at age 10.

“At such a young age being surrounded and nurtured by players who are more developed than you and a team that is structured in the growth of everyone has helped me to increase my potential to this day and has been very impactful in my footballing journey.”

morissalindsay@barbadostoday.bb