Aston Villa Women can confirm that four players will be leaving the club upon the expiration of their contracts this summer.
Jodie Hutton, Nat Haigh, Shania Hayles and Sophie Haywood are set to depart after making huge contributions during their time in claret and blue.
The quartet formed part of the Villa side that won the 2019/20 FA Women’s Championship, finishing unbeaten in a shortened 14-game season, before helping the club to establish themselves in the FA Women’s Super League over the past two seasons.
Hutton came through the ranks after joining at the age of eight, breaking into the first team as a teenager.
An all-action wide player with a wicked left foot, Hutton made a name for herself with a phenomenal 2018/19 campaign where she finished as top scorer with 11 goals.
Her fine form led to Hutton signing a professional contract with the club ahead of the title-winning season.
After completing a two-year sporting scholarship at Texas A&M University, Haywood chose to sign for Villa upon her return to the UK in the summer of 2018.
The winger, who became renowned for her skill and dribbling ability with the club’s supporters, helped Villa finish sixth in her first season before contributing several key goals and assists in their title-winning campaign.
Haigh and Hayles joined within weeks of each other in the summer of 2019 and immediately hit the ground running.
Centre-back Haigh formed a formidable partnership with Elisha N’dow in her first season before helping Villa to survive their first season in the top-flight.
The defender’s work off the pitch was also a highlight of her time at Villa, and she won the PFA Community Champion Award in 2020 for her work with Aston Villa Foundation.
Striker Hayles, who made the move from Birmingham City, made her mark in senior football at Villa, hitting the back of the net eight times to fire the club to the title in 2019/20.
Aston Villa would like to place on record our thanks and gratitude to the players for their commitment to the club, and we wish them all the best in their future endeavours.
