Defender (No longer at Everton)
Centre-half Fern Whelan was initially recruited during the summer of 2005 from neighbours Liverpool.
After a string of commanding performances in the Everton back-line during the 2007/08 campaign, she was crowned the FA Young Player of the Year.
Fern has featured for England right through from Under-15s to Under-23 level - captaining her country in the UEFA Under-19s European Championships, and during the Under-20s' World Cup in 2008.
Whelan came on as a substitute in Everton's FA Women's Cup win over Arsenal in May 2010, and in the following season Whelan featured heavily in Everton's 2010/11 Women's Champions League campaign.
She made her senior debut for England as an 87th-minute substitute in the 2-0 win over Sweden in a pre-World Cup friendly in May 2011, but was not named in Hope Powell's 21-women squad for the tournament in Germany.
In February 2012, Fern made the tough decision to go through with a knee operation which meant she missed the remainder of Everton’s 2012 campaign and competing for Great Britain at the London Olympic Games.
A qualified physiotherapist, Whelan departed the Blue Girls in 2014 to sign for WSL 1 club Notts County.
However, she returned to the Toffees in May 2017, after Notts were liquidated, making her second Blues debut in the 1-0 Spring Series win over Durham at the Select Security Stadium a day after joining, when coming on as a second half substitute for Kelly Jones.
Source : Everton Ladies Fc
