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Marie Hourihan takes charge at Plymouth

Plymouth Argyle have named Marie Hourihan as the new Head Coach of their Women’s team, as announced on the club’s official website.

Hourihan joins Argyle from Stoke City, where she managed the FAWNL Northern Premier Division side for two years. In the 2024-25 season, she led Stoke to a commendable third place finish in the league - the highest in the club’s history - and guided them to the FAWNL Cup final, where they were defeated 3-1 by champions Nottingham Forest.

Prior to her tenure at Stoke, Hourihan managed London Bees for one season, securing a ninth place finish in the Southern Premier Division, just above Argyle, who finished tenth.

Hourihan brings a wealth of experience from her distinguished playing career as a goalkeeper. Beginning at Watford in 2004, she played for several clubs across England and Scotland. Her time at Birmingham City was particularly notable, where she won the FA Cup in the 2011-12 season. A subsequent move to Chelsea saw her narrowly miss out on the WSL title in 2014, finishing behind Liverpool on goal difference. However, in 2015, she was part of Emma Hayes’ Chelsea squad that clinched both the FA Cup and WSL title. Hourihan later joined Manchester City in 2016, adding another FA Cup, a WSL title, and a WSL Cup to her accolades.

Internationally, Hourihan earned 24 caps for the Republic of Ireland, making her debut in a 0-0 draw against Hungary while at Manchester City.

Speaking to the Plymouth Argyle website, Hourihan expressed her enthusiasm: “I’m absolutely delighted [to be here]. I'm really looking forward to getting going now, immersing myself in Plymouth and at Argyle, and embracing this new challenge. In terms of the process of bringing players in and meeting everybody here at the club, it’s starting to become real now, and getting exciting. I’m looking forward to getting to work with the players and getting back on the pitch.”

Christian Kent, Executive Lead for Women’s Football at Argyle, added: “We’re delighted to welcome Marie to Argyle Women, after an extensive process, following the conclusion of last season. Marie demonstrated throughout the interview process her thirst for success, drive to develop young players through our pathway, and experience within the game so far, as ways of developing the team, in line with our strategy. She also joins Argyle after an outstanding season with Stoke City, which saw her be amongst the nominees for the division’s Manager of the Year.”

Hourihan’s appointment signals an ambitious step for Argyle Women as they aim to build on their recent campaigns with her proven leadership and extensive experience in the women’s game.