Winner by name, winner by nature – Leen Winner Ekwo has burst onto the DFC Women’s scene and has set her sights on cup and league glory.
Striker Leen, from Belgium, is one of the new faces brought into the team at the beginning of the season by co-managers Connor Dymond and Martin McCarthy and has hit the ground running.
And after playing for some of Europe’s biggest clubs she’s now determined to help her new team hit the same heights, starting with the FA Cup on Sunday.
She said: “I’m really excited. Our moto is ‘aim high’ and I believe we can go far in this cup. I want to face the bigger teams and we want to test ourselves against them.
“They love English football in Belgium so I have watched the FA Cup games over the years, but I thought it was only for the bigger teams. It’s nice to find out it is for lower-level teams as well and that you have the chance to play some big matches if you do well.
“We are all focussed on Sunday and hope we can put in a big performance.”
Leen started playing football when she was five with friends, moving on to play for a boy’s side at Belgium outfit Waasland Beveren. She moved into women’s football, playing for Sinaai Girls, then Anderlecht and Brugge.
She continued: “I played against Anderlecht for Sinaai and scored three goals and they asked me to join them. I was about 17. It is a massive club.
“But I didn’t enjoy it as much and signed for Brugge, instead. Then Covid hit and I made the decision to leave for a new country, signing for Shalke 04 in Germany.
“However, it was my dream to play in the UK, so I came across and have been here for the past few years.”
Leen trained for Dulwich Hamlet before signing for Whyteleafe, scoring 10 goals in three games. This led to a move to Bromley where she scored 43 goals last season.
Now, she is at Dartford, scoring eight goals already this season and terrifying defences with her pace and poise.
She said: “I’ve really loved it here. The players are lovely and I feel very comfortable with the team and coaches.
“We may only train a few days, but we are so strong. Physically and mentally.”
Leen is fiercely ambitious and has an inbuilt belief this is only the start of something bigger.
She added: “We’ve started really well and won all our games. I feel I have played well, but there is lots more to come.
“We want to be playing at a higher level and you can see and hear it in all the girls here.
“I have a big belief we will win the league and that’s our main aim.
“But for now, we are concentrating on Sunday. It’s an honour to be playing in the FA Cup and we want to go as far as we can in the competition and it starts here.”
Dartford Women take on Forest Green Rovers in the first round of the FA Cup on Sunday at Princes Park, 2pm KO. Please come along, bring a friend or your family – and support the team.
