Jemma Louise Connor-Iommi (born 28 May 1985) is a

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of Athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Coac ...

and former player. She most recently played as a defender for

London Bees London Bees is an England, English women's football (soccer), women's football club affiliated with Barnet F.C. They play in the FA Women's National League Division One South East, the fourth tier of the Women's football in England#Pyramid, Engl ...

. Connor-Iommi was born in England but represented the

Republic of Ireland Ireland ( ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 Counties of Ireland, counties of the island of Ireland, with a population of about 5.4 million. ...

at senior international level.

Club career

After two years at the national academy for women's football in

Gateshead Gateshead () is a town in the Gateshead Metropolitan Borough of Tyne and Wear, England. It is on the River Tyne's southern bank. The town's attractions include the twenty metre tall Angel of the North sculpture on the town's southern outskirts, ...

, 18-year-old Connor-Iommi went to

America The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

on a scholarship in 2003. She returned home six months into the four-year course due to a weight problem. Connor-Iommi lost and played for

Doncaster Rovers Belles Doncaster Rovers Belles Ladies Football Club, previously Doncaster Belles, is an England, English women's association football, women's football club that currently plays in the , the fourth tier of women's football in England. The club's admi ...

then West Bromwich Albion Ladies. She joined

Premier League The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...

Birmingham City Birmingham City Football Club is a professional football club based in Birmingham, England. Formed in 1875 as Small Heath Alliance, it was renamed Small Heath in 1888, Birmingham in 1905, and Birmingham City in 1943. The team compete in the ...

in 2008 but continued to appear for West Bromwich Albion (then called Sporting Club Albion) in the

Midland Combination The Midland Football Combination was an English football league covering parts of the West Midlands. It comprised five divisions, a Premier Division, Divisions One and Two and two Reserves Divisions. The league was one of three official feeder l ...

. She also played

futsal Futsal is a variant of association football played between two teams of five players each on a court smaller than a football pitch. Its rules are based on the Laws of the Game (association football), Laws of the Game of association football, and i ...

for Team United Birmingham. With Birmingham City inactive until the

FA WSL The Women's Super League (WSL), also known as the Barclays Women's Super League for sponsorship reasons, and formerly the FA WSL, is a professional association football league and the highest level of women's football in England. Currently oper ...

started in spring 2011, Connor-Iommi joined

Nottingham Forest Nottingham Forest Football Club is a professional association football club based in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English football. Founde ...

in the 2010–2011

. In 2012–13 Connor-Iommi captained Nottingham Forest while also working as a manager in a school. When

Oxford United Oxford United Football Club () is a professional association football, football club based in Oxford, England. The club compete in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football league system, English football. Founded as Headingto ...

were elected into

FA WSL 2 The Women's Super League 2, also known as Barclays Women's Super League 2 for sponsorship reasons, is a professional football league in England, operated by WSL Football. It is the second-highest division of women's football in England. The div ...

in 2014 Connor-Iommi signed for them. After playing in every match for Oxford, she joined WSL 2 rivals

ahead of the 2015 campaign. In June 2016, Connor-Iommi returned to West Brom as a development manager.

International career

Connor-Iommi was eligible to play for the

Republic of Ireland women's national football team The Republic of Ireland women's national football team () represents the Republic of Ireland in competitions such as the FIFA Women's World Cup and the UEFA Women's Championship. The team played in their first World Cup at the 2023 FIFA Women' ...

through her Irish father. She was called up for the first time in May 2008. She then went on a tour to America that autumn. In October 2008 she participated in

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

's Euro 2009 play-off defeat by

Iceland Iceland is a Nordic countries, Nordic island country between the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between North America and Europe. It is culturally and politically linked with Europe and is the regi ...

, under the name ''Jemma O'Connor''.

Personal life

Tony Iommi Anthony Frank Iommi Jr. (born 19 February 1948) is an English musician. He co-founded the pioneering Heavy metal music, heavy metal band Black Sabbath, and was the band's guitarist, leader, primary composer, and sole continuous member for over ...

is Jemma's mother's cousin. In 2009 Connor-Iommi worked as a warrant officer, which she described as: "knocking on offenders' doors and hoping not to get your head kicked in".

References

External links

Nottingham Forest
profile
FAI
profile {{DEFAULTSORT:Connor-Iommi, Jemma Living people 1985 births Footballers from Sutton Coldfield British people of Irish descent Republic of Ireland women's international footballers Republic of Ireland women's association footballers FA Women's National League players Women's Super League players London Bees players Birmingham City W.F.C. players Doncaster Rovers Belles L.F.C. players Nottingham Forest Women F.C. players Republic of Ireland women's futsal players Women's association football central defenders Women's association football midfielders Oxford United W.F.C. players 21st-century Irish sportswomen