Throughout her professional soccer career, Jess Fishlock has shared the pitch with countless players both at a club and international level. In the NWSL, she’s played at least one regular season minute with 137 Reign teammates, but just two of those players have shared the pitch with her for Wales – Lily Woodham, who played for the Reign from 2024-2025, and current teammate Angharad James Turner.
James-Turner and Fishlock share a special bond, as they’ve battled alongside each other for well over a decade. Long before James-Turner joined the Reign, she played for the Welsh women’s national team alongside Fishlock, a player renowned for her ability to help others improve their game. While James-Turner made her Wales debut in 2011, Fishlock first played for the senior national team in 2006.
“It's been a really cool experience,” said James-Turner. “I think I was 16 or 17 coming into the national team environment when we first played for Wales together and we’ve been there together ever since.”
The two have seen many iterations of the Cymru squad, including the iconic 2025 group that brought the nation to their first major tournament, the EURO finals, where Fishlock scored a record-breaking goal.
“I've learned a lot from her. Something about Jess is she's always coaching. She's always wanting more, wanting players to be better and she sees the potential in you.”
Through a laugh, James-Turner added, “And sometimes she nags at you.”
“It's a good thing that she's doing it though because she knows that you know you can go to another level and that's the exciting thing about being around her. She’s the ultimate professional.”
Anyone you ask will tell you the one trait that sets Fishlock apart on the field is her ability to simultaneously act like a player and a coach. Her soccer IQ is second to none, allowing her to not only make real-time decisions for herself on the pitch, but to influence her teammates as well.
That trait has helped make her such an influential figure in Seattle Reign FC history, molding the club into what it has become today. She came to the NWSL as one of just four European players as the NWSL kicked off, confidently charting new territory in the game, and changing it forever when she made her debut in 2013.
Since then, she has helped the club capture three NWSL Shields (2014, 2015, 2022) and reach three NWSL Championships (2014, 2015, 2023), in addition to compiling an individual resume of seven-time NWSL Best XI First Team and Second Team selections and the 2021 NWSL MVP award.
It’s clear that throughout her entire career, Fishlock has set the standard for competitiveness, professionalism and leadership and in the process, defining what it means to play for the Reign.
“Players like Lu and Jess have left their legacy on this club,” said James-Turner. “They've created an environment here that not only is safe but also is competitive. I think the younger kids coming through are really exciting and they bring the bundle of energy that maybe us older ones don't have but they are able to do that because of foundation built by those more experienced players.”
Fishlock’s final season was unique, as she has reflected on several times throughout the year. This is the first season that she has been able to focus solely on club play, as she has already retired from international play with Wales, and it is also one of the first seasons in Reign history that features a squad made up of predominantly young players, as opposed to league veterans and household names.
Though she’s no longer the young newcomer on the squad, Fishlock has fully displayed her sustained excellence this season, as illustrated by her most recent broken record. At the end of September, she became Reign FC’s all-time goalscoring record, passing fellow Reign OG Megan Rapinoe with 52 goals scored. She also holds the club record for assists (32) and has made 231 NWSL appearances, all with the Reign.
Now, as her final regular season match approaches, fans across the league, as well as her teammates, prepare to recognize all of her accomplishments and indelible legacy that she has left on the game.
“To represent Wales and Seattle for 13+ years is an incredible achievement. She'll be missed both at Seattle but in the women's game across the world too. She's been an ally for a number of things but the legacy she will leave, especially at this club, speaks volumes of the person and the player that she is.”