Despite there being no local girls teams, Kirsty Tonner started her career at the age of nine on a local boys team.
She soon found herself playing for the Steel City Wanderers at the U12 level. This would serve as the spark in her interest in the game. However, she soon stepped away from football to pursue other hobbies such as basketball and skateboarding.
This didn’t keep the shot-stopper away for too long though, signing for AFC Dronfield in 2016. Since then she’s gone on to hone her craft at clubs such as Aston, Swallownest, Handsworth and now Wednesday Ladies.
When reflecting on her best moment during her career, she said: “Playing Rotherham United in the ‘Her Game Too Cup.’
“We got to play at the New York stadium in front of nearly 2000 fans.
“Rotherham were two leagues above us and we came away with a respectable 2-0 loss. I picked up player of the match and it was a really great experience all round.”
Recently, Tonner has taken on the responsibility of mentoring second choice keeper Skye Webster. She said: “We’ve been training together now since the start of last season, I would love it if she was the one to take over when I hang my gloves and boots up.”
When asked about her best friend in football, she said: “I have a mate called Chloe who I’ve played on and off with since I was about 15. Unfortunately, she’s retired now, but she’s still my go-to for match discussions and debriefs.”
She also has taken part in the ‘Rainbow Owls’ panel and discussed the challenges of being an LGBTQ+ person in football.
Away from football, the Wednesday goalie keeps herself occupied with her sausage dog named Slinky.
She has also been skateboarding since the age of 14 and takes an interest in basketball, darts and ice hockey. Recently, she’s taken up DJing, which she talked about, saying: “I do quite a lot of DJing at the moment, especially on the weekends, something that doesn’t bode well for those Sunday games.”
You can watch Tonner play at Wednesday Ladies next fixture, away from home, against Brunsmeer Athletic.