Naomi Powell

Last updated

Naomi Powell
Naomi Powell 3 (cropped).JPG
Powell with Heart of Midlothian in 2024
Personal information
Date of birth (1999-01-10) January 10, 1999 (age 26) [1]
Height 5 ft 4 in (1.63 m) [2]
Position(s) Midfielder
Team information
Current team
 Portland Thorns
Youth career
Orlando City ECNL
Carolina Rapids
College career
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
2017–2021 NC State Wolfpack 21 (0)
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
2021–2023 Nottingham Forest 60 (?)
2023–2024 Hibernian 28 (1)
2024–2025 Heart of Midlothian 14 (2)
2025– Portland Thorns 0 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of July 24, 2025

Naomi Powell (born January 10, 1999) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a midfielder for Portland Thorns FC of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). She played college soccer for the NC State Wolfpack before starting her professional career abroad with British clubs Nottingham Forest, Hibernian, and Heart of Midlothian.

Contents

Early life

Powell grew up in Charlotte, North Carolina. [2] She is one of two children born to Elise Powell and English soccer coach Darren Powell. [3] She played club soccer for Orlando City SC's Elite Clubs National League squad, where she was named to the 2015 ECNL interregional All-Star team. [4] Powell also played for the Carolina Rapids, where she helped the team to one youth division title. [5]

College career

In her freshman year with the NC State Wolfpack, Powell played in 11 games. [2] She started her career off on a positive note, recording an assist in her debut against Oregon on August 17, 2017. [6] She would go on to tally two more assists as a rookie, generating a college-high sum of 3. [2] Powell did not play in 2018 before rounding out her NC State career with a total of 10 more appearances in her final two seasons. [2] In an April 2021 match against Boston College, she played a career-high 47 minutes in her one and only career start. [2]

Club career

Nottingham Forest

Powell, who had been named to the ACC Honor Roll in 2018, [2] moved to England and continued her studies at the University of Nottingham after leaving NC State. On July 2, 2021, she signed her first professional contract with nearby club Nottingham Forest of the FA Women's National League North. [7] In her first season with the club, Powell contributed to an FA League Cup campaign in which Forest advanced to the fourth round of the competition before being eliminated by Manchester City, 8–0. [8] During the second round of the cup, Powell also scored a goal to help Forest beat the Wolverhampton Wanderers. [9]

Powell went on to play two more seasons with the club. In her final campaign with Forest, she helped the team win the FA Women's National League Cup and the FA WNL North title. [10] Forest subsequently went on to play against Watford in a bid for promotion to the Women's Championship, [8] but they were ultimately beaten and forced to remain in the English third tier. [11] Across three seasons, Powell ended up recording 60 appearances for Nottingham Forest. [12]

Hibernian

On July 29, 2023, Powell signed a one-year contract with Scottish first-division side Hibernian. [13] [14] She netted her lone goal for the club in the second game of the season, scoring a free kick in a victory over Montrose. [15] The goal was an omen of things to come, as Powell soon proved to be effective in setting up goals. [16] She ended up totaling 10 assists in her single season at Hibernian, [17] many of which came from set piece situations. [16] Ultimately, Powell ended up contributing to a Hibernian fifth-place finish, [18] the same place in the table as the season prior. [19]

Heart of Midlothian

In July 2024, Powell joined Hibernian rivals Heart of Midlothian. [19] [20] She recorded 2 goals in 14 Scottish Women's Premier League appearances. [12] [21] Despite having inked a two-year deal, [20] Powell ended up leaving Hearts after only one year of play. Her official departure was announced on June 5, 2025. [21]

Portland Thorns

Powell returned to the United States and joined NWSL club Portland Thorns FC on July 23, 2025. She signed a short-term contract with the team lasting through August 2025. [12]

Honors

Nottingham Forest

References

  1. ↑ Naomi Powell at Soccerway
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Naomi Powell - 2020-21 - Women's Soccer". NC State University Athletics. Retrieved July 25, 2025.
  3. ↑ "Nashville Soccer Club Names Darren Powell Academy Director". Nashville SC . March 5, 2025. Retrieved July 25, 2025.
  4. ↑ Jhamie, Chin (December 2, 2015). "Three ECNL Players Named To Interregional All-Star Team". Orlando City SC . Retrieved July 25, 2025.
  5. ↑ Fehlman, Jeremy (February 27, 2017). "Wolfpack strengthens roster with new additions". Technician. Retrieved July 25, 2025.
  6. ↑ "Wolfpack Opens Season With 4-1 Win Over Ducks". NC State University Athletics. Retrieved July 25, 2025.
  7. ↑ "Naomi Powell signs for Forest Women". Nottingham Forest Football Club. July 28, 2021. Retrieved July 25, 2025.
  8. 1 2 Taylor, Paul (October 15, 2022). "Nottingham Forest Women hope for record 10,000 crowd for Derby game at City Ground". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved July 25, 2025.
  9. ↑ "Forest Through In FA Cup". The Nottingham Sport. December 6, 2021. Retrieved July 25, 2025.
  10. ↑ "Hibernian Women sign Naomi Powell from Nottingham Forest". OneFootball . July 24, 2025. Retrieved July 25, 2025.
  11. ↑ "Watford return to the Championship with 1-0 win over Nottingham Forest". The FA Women's Leagues and Competitions. Retrieved July 25, 2025.
  12. 1 2 3 "Portland Thorns Sign Midfielder Naomi Powell to Short-Term Contract". Portland Thorns FC . Retrieved July 25, 2025.
  13. ↑ "Powell signs for Hibs after impressing on trial". Extra Time. July 29, 2023. Retrieved July 25, 2025.
  14. ↑ "Naomi Powell Signs For Hibs". Hibernian FC. July 29, 2023. Retrieved July 25, 2025.
  15. ↑ "SWPL: Wins for Rangers, Glasgow City & Celtic on second weekend of term". BBC Sport . Retrieved July 25, 2025.
  16. 1 2 "Naomi Powell". Hibernian FC. Retrieved July 25, 2025.
  17. ↑ "Olid expects 'seamless' switch for Powell". BBC Sport . July 1, 2024. Retrieved July 25, 2025.
  18. ↑ "SWPL - Season 2023-24". Scottish Women's Premier League . Retrieved July 25, 2025.
  19. 1 2 "Post-split games 'massive' for Hibs - Powell". BBC Sport . March 13, 2024. Retrieved July 25, 2025.
  20. 1 2 "Powell's Hearts switch". Hearts FC. Retrieved July 25, 2025.
  21. 1 2 "Hearts women confirm quartet of departures". BBC Sport . June 5, 2025. Retrieved July 25, 2025.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.