Sunderland Women's next steps and summer recruitment plans revealed after hugely successful campaign

Mel Reay says Sunderland are hoping to make early additions to their squad this summer but expects it to be a far quieter off-season this time around.

The Black Cats finished second bottom of the Championship in the 2022/23 campaign, leading to a major squad overhaul as the club also transitioned to a hybrid model. That allowed the club to agree professional contracts and therefore recruit players from outside the north east region.

It proved to be a transformative move, as Sunderland built a team that pushed all the way for promotion to the WSL this season. Reay's team ultimately finished third, finishing their campaign with a 0-0 draw at Crystal Palace on Sunday. Reay is already expecting an even tougher division next season, with relegated Bristol City joining newly-promoted Newcastle United and Portsmouth in what looks like a strong field of teams.

The Sunderland boss says the club is in a good place and so while there is no need for a major overhaul, there is a desire to try and strengthen the squad this summer.

"We've got a marvellous platform to build on," Reay said.

"I think the team has to evolve, there's always going to be a little bit of movement but I'm hoping that it won't be as busy as last summer - I would like a holiday this summer! We'll look to add to the team, I think that's important. There has to be competition for places and there might be players who want to go elsewhere and that's football, it's a business at the end of the day. We'll see what happens in the summer but hopefully we can get things done nice and early.

I think there was always going to a massive overhaul last summer as we transitioned into the hybrid model and being able to offer full-time contracts, because no one had one. So this is summer isn't going to be as busy. We want to evolve and better, and we haven't got a bottomless pit of money to spend - so we're going to have to be savvy with it. We want to bring in extra additions to push us that little bit higher up the league."

Sunderland will progress with their hybrid model next season, though they are likely to continue moving towards professionalism. Reay expects any new arrivals to come on pro deals and some of the club's younger players will also begin to move towards their first professional contracts as they finish education.

Sunderland, as Reay alluded to in the previous answer, are unlikely to be one of the league's top spenders but the head coach believes they will have what it takes to remain competitive.

"The players that we are going to potentially bring in will be full-time players," she explained.

"Just because we use the word hybrid doesn't mean that players miss loads of sessions, they're predominantly here for on-pitch things and when it matters. So we don't want to shoehorn a word onto what the squad is - I'll bring in players that add value to the team."

While there may well be interest in some of Sunderland's star performers over the course of the campaign, Reay told The Echo that she was 'very confident' that the club could keep the core of this campaign's team together. The head coach has said earlier this season that much of the squad is already under contract for the new campaign.

One of the benefits of the move towards professionalism is a much improved programme in the off season.

"We've started the process of looking ahead with the players, we'll be all at the end of season club awards on Thursday and then they're free to have their two-week summer holiday," Reay said.

"They'll then have an off-season programme to follow from then on, so there's not a lot of time off for them. They'll keep themselves ticking over."

One of Reay's key goals next season is to retain the spirit and atmosphere that she has said was crucial to the club surpassing most outside observer's expectations for the campaign. That will be central to any recruitment that does happen, and a key reason why any changes to the squad are expected to be minor rather than major.

"Being really with a clear with our vision and purpose [has been key]," Reay said.

"Getting a group of players buying into that really helped, bringing really good people together and having that togetherness, where everyone had each other's back - that helped us get through some tough moments. The team spirit and the friendships they built put them in good stead for the season. It's been a massive transformation, turning the team hybrid was massive - I think everyone has seen what a difference having professional contracts and recruiting from further afield makes. It's been an exciting season for us."