MANCHESTER — Lauren Hemp marked her 200th appearance for Manchester City at age 26 with a player-of-the-match display in a 3-1 victory over newly promoted Birmingham City last Sunday as City opened the defence of their Women's Super League title. The England international, who joined from Bristol City in 2018, became only the fourth player in City history to reach 200 appearances, following Steph Houghton, Keira Walsh and Demi Stokes.
Hemp has scored 74 goals in those 200 appearances and has created more chances from open play than any other player in WSL history, sitting second on the league's all-time assist charts while only Khadija Shaw has scored more City goals in the professional era. Against Birmingham she registered 16 touches in the opposition box and more entries into the final third than any teammate besides Gracie Prior. Individual honours include a record fourth PFA Young Player of the Year award in 2022 and three PFA Team of the Year selections. "Just give her the ball and something happens!" City manager Andree Jeglertz said after the win.
Jeglertz said Hemp "already has a legacy" and praised her enduring love for the game. "What I feel is fascinating with Lauren is that if you come and watch one of our training sessions, you see she has the same enjoyment for playing football that she shows in games," Jeglertz said. "I really hope she never loses that. She is always kicking a ball, she is never too tired to do anything and she wants to be there. She loves football. That shows young players what it's about. They need to love to go to work. It's not just a job, it's an identity. What she has done for the club in 200 games... she is still pretty young. She can play many more games here. That's amazing that she has a legacy already." During eight years at City she has helped the club lift six major trophies, including a domestic double last season with a first WSL title in a decade and the Women's FA Cup. She was awarded an MBE in 2024, signed a three-year contract extension that year, and played a key role in England's back-to-back European titles under Sarina Wiegman.
Supporters view the milestone the same way. Jayne Comer, secretary of the Manchester City supporters club and a season-ticket holder for more than 10 years, called Hemp a "legend" who remained fiercely loyal when she could have signed for any team in the world. "She is absolutely loved by us all. She remained fiercely loyal to the club, when, let's face it, she could have signed for any team in the world," Comer told BBC Sport, adding she first saw Hemp play away at Bristol before her move and "you could see what a talent she was. She just oozed potential." City continue their WSL campaign away to Aston Villa on Sunday at 18:30 BST.