'Delighted' - Mel Reay claims Sunderland Women summer signing is 'loving life' ahead of Newcastle clash

Sunderland Women’s head coach Mel Reay has admitted that she is “delighted” with the work that summer signing Jessie Stapleton has put in since arriving on Wearside.

The Republic of Ireland defender was on the score sheet last weekend as the Black Cats registered a 3-3 draw against Charlton Athletic, and helped Reay’s side to register their first win of the season with a 1-0 victory over London City seven days prior.

And looking ahead to a highly-anticipated Wear-Tyne Derby against Newcastle United on Sunday afternoon, the Sunderland coach has been quick to sing the praises of the West Ham loanee. Speaking in a press conference on Wednesday, she said: “I'm delighted. I think for someone so young, only 19, a centre-back, who has so much experience at such a young age, I'm absolutely delighted with how she's settled in.

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“I think it's really difficult when you're travelling from where you used to live in London and you're coming up to the North East. She's relocated. She's got herself a nice little flat in the city centre. She's really settled in. She's loving life as a Sunderland player. She's got great potential. I can see why West Ham really rate her, I can see why they've loaned her out to get more valuable minutes. She's putting in performances that we're all proud of.”

Reay also confirmed that Sunderland have no new injury worries heading into their clash with the Magpies. She added: “There's no fresh concerns. There were a few bruised bodies on Sunday [after Charlton]. It was such a competitive game. We'll nurse them little wounds and I'm sure we'll be fine for Sunday.”

This weekend’s fixture will take place at the Stadium of Light - one of four Barclays Women's Championship matches to be held at the ground over the course of the campaign - and looks set to break attendance records for the division. At the time of writing, Sunderland have sold approximately 12,000 tickets for the local clash.