Abbie McManus: Former United defender explains incredible career change

Manchester United Women have seen their season come to a bit of a halt.

After a historic run in the Champions League and reaching their first-ever League Cup final, the Red Devils’ campaign has stalled.

They were eventually knocked out of Europe by Bayern Munich 3-5 after a brave effort in Germany. Marc Skinner’s side were also eliminated from both the FA and League Cup by Chelsea.

Despite being in the Champions League spots all season, their recent downturn in form has seen them drop into fourth in the league with only three matches left to play. As usual, there has been much change in the squad, with numerous players leaving and joining the club.

One former player, Abbie McManus, who played for both United and Manchester City, has given an interview to the club site about her recent career change.

She played for the Red Devils between 2019 and 2021 and then made 174 appearances for the blue side of Manchester.

McManus had to retire from football in 2023 after suffering a nasty leg break whilst playing for Leicester City. Her career has taken an interesting turn, as she trained to become a firefighter for Greater Manchester Fire & Rescue Service.

Speaking to the club’s official site , she explained, “I miss football massively, don’t get me wrong, but everything I miss about it – the routine, the training, being around people as part of a team, the banter… there’s all of that in the fire service. There are so many parallels between what football and this gives me. In football we’d go to hospitals and work in the community. We do all that now, but instead of representing our football club it’s all about keeping the community safe.”

She admitted that she has always had an interest in joining either the fire department or the police, but that the police involved too much paperwork for her liking.

McManus stated that she did try to get back to full fitness to continue her playing career, but being told her time as a footballer was over “was a bitter pill to swallow but thankfully I can still walk and run. After I had the bad news I had a decision to make. I decided to visit some local fire stations. I researched, I asked some questions, I applied, and I got in.”

Interestingly, former United striker Jess Sigsworth has also joined the fire and rescue service after retiring from professional football.

McManus explained, “obviously Jess and I played at United and Leicester together, and I remember we openly had a conversation at United years ago, saying, ‘We’ll join the fire service one day!’ as it’s something we were both interested in.”

The former defender revealed that she can still sometimes scratch the football itch when she plays for the fire department’s team.

She added, “the team is going to Spain in April, where they’ll play the police, the army… so there’s still football as a part of being a firefighter. The service is supportive of it.”

McManus also admitted that despite her work obviously taking priority, she will still watch United and City games and has even done some commentary work on both teams.

Commenting on Jess Park, another player who has played for both clubs, she asserted, “Jess Park has settled in so well; she’s been United’s standout player this season.”

Reflecting on her time at the club, she claimed, “we were a proper family. We all dug in, and we had such togetherness to help each other.”

She also revealed her close contact with United star Ella Toone and explained, “Ella and I are close friends, and that’s something I’ll cherish forever. She moved house recently and I was round, helping her drag suitcases into the loft once we’d emptied them!”

Source: Wikipedia

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