Linfield Ladies boss Phil Lewis has called on his squad to seize the opportunities that come their way this season as they seek to re-establish themselves as a Danske Bank Women’s Premiership force.

The Blues finished last season in an underwhelming fifth place following on from years of dominance of the women’s local game, as a series of player departures and injuries decimated their squad.

Lewis had to field a team comprised largely of teenagers last season but he has strengthened the ranks with seven close-season signings alongside the promotion of further teenagers.

“As soon as one or two move across the water, you become that little bit more vulnerable,” Lewis explained of the club’s much-changed squad in recent years.

“If you look at Glentoran, they have lost several starters from last season to sides across the water due to their successes.

“We are trying to get the girls to a standard whereby they can go across the water and create an international future – which is what Linfield have done continually over the years.

“But we believe we have improved and developed our squad in the past year and we will take it game by game and building a challenge.

“We aim to be in the top four when the split comes and you never know what happens in cup competitions.

“The girls in the squad will all have opportunities this season and they must be ready to take them.”

The Blues got their campaign off to a promising start with a six-goal victory over Mid Ulster on the opening matchday, with Rebecca Bassett grabbing a hat-trick.

Lewis explained: “We had scouted Mid Ulster and they went quite direct with lots of long balls, but once we got hold of the ball and settled into the game I thought we played well.

“Our superior fitness told as the match went on and we created plenty of goal scoring opportunities and managed to take quite a few of them.

“We enjoyed a strong pre-season and our new signings have settled in well into the season.”

Linfield may not be among this season’s title favourites but there are early signs that this is a stronger and deeper squad from last season, with more experience.

A lengthy injury layoff for Northern Ireland international midfielder Victoria Carleton is an early blow, but Lewis is adamant that the greater strength in depth will pay off this term.

“Last season we had to make three or four changes every week dye to Covid hitting us badly and having injuries, with Abbie (Magee, now at Cliftonville) and Ashley (Hutton) missing the entire season.

“We bedded in a few younger girls from the academy in at the start of last year then added to the squad by signing teenagers in the final months.

“This year we have looked to bring in a few more senior players to add experience into that squad.

“We will certainly be more competitive this time round and we have a deeper squad to meet the demands of the campaign.”