Hartford Athletic’s W League team is getting ready to kick off their inaugural season in just a few short days. It’s a sprint of a season – 10 games in just 40 days – that will see the club take on Vermont Green, New England Mutiny, AC Connecticut and the Hudson Valley Crusaders in the Northeast Division.

In advance of the season, Hartford Athletic manager Danny Barrera was in a positive mood as he takes another step in his coaching journey. 

“I know it's been a lot of fun," he told The Blazing Musket. "Anytime you wake up and and have to hit the field is a good day for me. So it's a lot of fun.”

Putting a team together for the first time is not easy, but the Hartford manager was clear about what kind of players he was looking for, saying “once you transition as a coach, you kind of end up attracted to the players you played like.” For Barrera, who was the USL Championship assists leader and a first-team all-league selection in 2021, it was pretty clear what that meant.

“I want total football players, if you want to call it that, athletes that are comfortable with the ball at their feet," he said

Finding those players required sifting through hundreds of options, “watching a ton of games,” and reading “a ton of emails".

"I think a lot of players see where this organization is going to take the women's team into a Super League, into a professional atmosphere in the next couple years," he said. "So I think it's just a good place to get your foot in the door.”

Players like midfielder Logan Nicholson were certainly attracted by that possibility. Following a college career split between the University of New Hampshire and the University of New Mexico, Nicholson has been trialing with USL Super League teams, and saw Hartford as a possible stepping stone on the way to a first pro contract.

“I think obviously the resources here at Hartford, that they have the men's pro side is, you know, I think great for a pathway to be able to have a women's professional team here in the future. And I think obviously here that's the goal and they're trying to create a professional environment, which they have so far and it's been an awesome experience.”

And for Nicholson, at least, there’s a hope that getting her foot in the door with Hartford now might even lead to a professional future here, once that Super League team is launched.

“[B]ecoming a potential professional team in the future, it's a good opportunity to kind of prove yourself now and in hopes that you can again, like maintain a connection and come back in the near future," she said.

Another player who sees the opportunity in Hartford is defender Domi Richardson, who brings a significant amount of professional experience to the side. Richardson played in the NWSL from 2014-2022, starting her career with the Houston Dash after attending an open tryout. She subsequently signed for FC Kansas City, and then made over 40 appearances for Sky Blue/Gotham FC. In 2024, Richardson was one of the first-ever signings for the Tampa Bay Sun, and made five appearances for the club as they went on to win the USL Super League.

Whereas Nicholson is looking for a first pro contract, Richardson is emblematic of those veteran players with pro experience who are hoping to make another run at a pro contract, with the W League’s summer season giving them a perfect chance to draw attention. Speaking to the media after training last week, she emphasized her desire to keep playing at the highest level, and the role she hopes a stop in Hartford will play in that journey.

“I'm just looking to continue my career and this is hopefully a stop that will help with that," she said. "I just am looking to stay fit and keep my name in the mix, looking forward to, you know, the next pro season that's coming up.”

For Barrera, these veteran players are also a critical ingredient for a successful team that is otherwise largely composed of college players.

"They're crucial to the team," he said "They kind of give us that validity as far as you know, for other players that they can learn from. I mean, having veteran players is key. They have been in these environments, you know, countless years. So they can give the other players little tips here, they can communicate, they can be leaders, they really push the team forward as far as continuing to portray the message that I'm I'm giving. They, they also are total football players as well. So they they understand what I'm asking and they can get the other players on board to execute the game plan.”

Richardson echoed that sentiment, noting that there’s a natural leadership role that comes along with being a veteran.

"I think with experience, you're kind of like put into that role," she said. "It's nice to be, you know, looked up to in some ways because of my experience. But yeah, I think I'm just happy to be here and mesh with the team in any way that I can and provide insight where I can.”

That insight can be critical with so little preparation time. The short W League schedule makes for a particular kind of challenge. With the season opener against Vermont Green now looming, Barrera is focused more on getting things right with his club, rather than worrying too much about the opposition.

“It's obviously a really short preseason, so it's not a lot of time to just get everybody on the same page and, and know what I'm asking for. But like we talked about before, the veterans helped a lot in that. I'm focused on what we have to do. And I think if we execute our end and we worry about ourselves, we'll be fine.”

Tuesday night will show exactly what this team intends to do, but both Nicholson and Richardson emphasized that the team intends to be attacking.

“I think we're going to have really a lot of attacking minded people that have creative flair and have the ability to go forward with pace," Nicholson said.

That’s a good fit for this league, where the 2025 season saw nearly four goals per game, more than USL League Two, and far above the goalscoring output of the men’s USL Championship of the women’s USL Super League. 

Richardson returned to the idea of players who want the ball at their feet, also emphasizing an attacking mindset in the side:

“I think the team that Danny put together is everybody really wants to play with the ball at their feet, and that's the style that I really like. So talking to him and seeing everybody that's out here and knowing that we want to play that way, possess the ball and attack and go forward together as a group is really what keeps me here and makes me want to play.”

An attacking mindset will take you far in this league, particularly as the abbreviated schedule makes it extremely difficult for a defense to gel in any meaningful sense. And attacking football on warm summer nights is simply more fun to watch than just about any alternative, and should position Hartford well to contend for the playoffs in their first season.

There may be more to come in the future. The idea of a women’s professional team in Hartford has everyone’s attention. But the focus for now is on just ten games and with 500 season tickets sold, there will be plenty of eyes on the side when they take the pitch on Tuesday.