Exeter City Women have completed a sixth signing of the Summer as young forward Connie Pengelly rejoins the Grecians from Torquay United.
Pengelly hit an impressive 39 goals in 45 appearances after moving up from the Girls Development Centre in 2020, including winning the National League Golden Boot in 2022.
A move to the Yellows followed in November of last year, Pengelly striking a further ten goals in eleven appearances as United won promotion to the National League.
City Managers Abbie Britton and Aaron Wakley are pleased to see the return of a player with such huge potential, Britton added. “We have had a very honest conversation with Connie. Her growth and maturity in embracing those chats is a credit to her. We are a different group of players to that of a year ago, with a different criteria in what we look for in a new signing, but the door was never closed for Connie and we made that clear when she left.”
Wakley, who also worked with Pengelly during her time at the Women’s Football Academy at Exeter College, emphasised the work ahead for City’s returning forward. “Connie can be whatever she wants to be, her potential is nowhere near being reached at present and we want to help her get there. However, there is a lot of hard work needed in the next few months to get Connie to where she needs to be to fight for a place in this team.”
Britton added. “The short-term work for Connie can lead to big long-term gains. It’s time for Connie to take control of her career and push herself, because we all know the ability she has and getting her to that level is exciting for us as a coaching team and should be exiting for her as well.”
The Grecians are blessed with options in forward positions and that competitiveness will only benefit both the team and the individuals involved. “We have the current leading scorer at this level in the country in Sarah Stacey, Jenna is an outstanding young player, Tash Knapman’s career record is unrivalled at our level, Amber has the versatility to play up front whilst we see a lot of potential in Matty (Franchi.) Getting into the squad is Connie’s first challenge, but we will work with her and Robbo (Strength and Conditioning Coach George Robinson) will help her build her fitness levels. I believe that there is only one club Connie wants to play for, we had a fantastic chat with her, with positives and reflections from all of us, now is her moment to fulfil the potential we have always seen in her.”
Pengelly will feature for City in this evening’s friendly at Liskeard, but will serve a three-match suspension at the start of the season and will then be available for selection across all competitions for City in 2023/24.