Sophie Whitehouse Reflects on WSL2 Golden Glove Season
sophie whitehouse capped a strong season by winning the WSL2 Golden Glove, then pointed straight to Charlton Women’s defensive record and one final game that will decide who takes the last WSL place for 2026/27. The goalkeeper said her award and the team’s push sit together, not apart.
Whitehouse and Charlton’s last test
“Obviously, it's been a really good season for me personally, but we have one more really important game to top off the season, so we're looking forward to that,” Whitehouse said. That last match now carries the weight of the club’s promotion chase after Charlton have spent the season on the brink.
The keeper added that her own form has been tied to the group in front of her. “But yes, it's been a really good season. I've been really happy with how I've performed, and as a team, defensively this year, we've been really, really solid, and that kind of helps me perform at my best if the defensive lines are performing at their best.”
Charlton Women’s quarter-final run
Charlton also reached the FA Cup quarter-finals this season, and Whitehouse said that run showed how far the side went beyond league results. “We got really far in the FA Cup this year. We got to the quarter-finals, and for me, coming from when I played at Lewes, we started this campaign called the Equal FA Cup, which is driving to make the prize money the same for both the men and the women.”
She drew a direct line from that run to the club’s standing in the competition. “Getting to the quarter-finals just shows what we're capable of as a team and that we kind of deserve the same as the men in the prize money.”
Leadership from the Charlton No. 1
Whitehouse was not just Charlton’s number one goalkeeper. She said she also handled a leadership role, captaining the side in a few WSL games and in the FA Cup quarter-final. “It's been really nice to be in a leadership role this season, and I'm really proud to have captained the team in a few of the WSL games and the quarter-final.”
That season, she said, was shaped by the goalkeeper department around her, with Neil Moore and Anna Pederson central to the work behind the scenes. “I don't think I would be where I am right now without them, and the season that I've had comes down to the season that we've had as a goalkeeper department and unit.”
Whitehouse praised Pederson’s support and her training-level output, saying, “She's been so supportive of me this season, and it's so nice to have that.” She added: “She celebrates everything.”
“You can hear her the whole game, and she's also performed really, really well when she's played and made some top saves, which I see every single day in training.” That leaves Charlton with one league game to finish the job after a season in which Whitehouse’s saves, the back line’s consistency and the club’s cup run all fed into the same promotion push.
