Kenni Thompson On Bournemouth Podcast
Kenni Thompson, the Bermuda women’s national team footballer, has joined Premier League star Justin Kluivert on a podcast about playing for English club Bournemouth.
Thompson became the first international to play for Bournemouth’s women’s team when she joined from Spanish side Eibar in January last year; meanwhile, Kluivert, the son of Netherlands legend Patrick Kluivert, has scored 12 goals for the men’s team this season.
The pair were guests at Bournemouth University to record a special one-off podcast, with Thompson, 24, sharing her memories of transitioning from the Basque Country in Spain to Dorset on the South Coast of England.
“I left Bermuda, my home country at [the age of] 11 and I’m now 24, so I’m getting used to it,” Thompson told Bournemouth University.
“It gets easier each time but there are still little things and being away from family is always difficult. But Bournemouth was really easy for me to settle into, we’ve got a lot of great people around the club that helped me to find a flat and adjust.
“Everyone talks about the beach in Bournemouth and it’s not as great as the ones I have in Bermuda, but little things like that were big for me to be able to get down to the beach and have a little reminder of home. That’s amazing to have.”
Thompson also highlighted the influence of her father, Kenny Thompson, who serves as North Village’s coach and an assistant coach for the Bermuda men’s national team, in shaping her football career.
“It’s been difficult. I haven’t lived with my dad since leaving the country and I was really young, so we really haven’t spent as much time together as we’d like,” Thompson said.
“But over the years the little time that we have you make it count. With him being a football guy as well, that’s usually what the talking points are.
“When I was home over Christmas, I was training with him instead of by myself, which is something that makes it a little easier. It’s great knowing I have the support of my family no matter what.”
Last season, Bournemouth’s women’s team narrowly missed out on promotion to the third tier of the English pyramid, despite an impressive unbeaten record of 19 wins and three draws.
They have made a strong start to this season, winning all 11 of their matches and sit second in the league.
“Everyone is really happy and obviously our aim is to get promoted,” Thompson added.
“We know from last season that the way to do that is to win every game. It’s been difficult with a few bumps, with games being called off and not been able to get into a rhythm. We’d like to be playing week in and week out.
“It’s not just the heartbreak [of last season] that’s driving us; it’s us realising that we need to be at 100 per cent in what we do to achieve, which means every game at the end of the day.”
