AN international women’s footballer is being investigated for allegedly conning parents out of thousands of pounds for coaching sessions that never took place.
Welsh star Natasha Harding, who played for Manchester City, Liverpool and Aston Villa, is accused of taking hundreds of pounds for one-to-one training with youngsters – but never carrying out the classes.
GettyNatasha Harding in action for Manchester City in 2015[/caption]
GettyHarding was capped 103 times by Wales[/caption]
Angry parents claim Harding, capped 103 times by Wales in a star-studded career, owes them £45,000 in refunds.
Harding has apologised for the cancelled sessions but said it was “unavoidable” and “beyond my control”.
She said she is “devastated” over the situation and has agreed to pay refunds.
There are 27 “victims” including whole teams of young girls, who are said to have handed over as much as £1,200 each without getting anything in return.
Individual sessions for kids aged between eight and 15 cost £30 an hour, but many parents were buying multiple classes and some included whole squads of hopefuls.
Now the South Wales football community, where Harding began her career, fear the ex-striker has deliberately taken their money and has no intention of giving it back or holding any of the coaching sessions.
A WhatsApp group was created by outraged parents, after they realised more and more alleged victims were owed hundreds of pounds by Harding.
A source, whose 12-year-old daughter was due to train with the ex-pro, told The Sun: “She promises a lot to the kids, my friend’s daughter is autistic and she kept asking when she was going to see Natasha.
“She spent £900, she would add on dietician and gym plans but never actually got anything.
“She has repaid small amounts now that she knows we are putting up a fight to get our money back.
“But the parents who are owed more than £1,000 have got nothing back.”
After retiring from professional football last year Harding, 35, started offering out days where children could participate in private sessions.
According to sources, the sessions grew in popularity and Harding started block booking for up to £360.
OUT OF POCKET
A lot of the children who booked onto the sessions play for academies in Gwent, South East Wales, or The South Girls’ Development Centre.
Their parents are fearful that speaking out could affect their children’s future football careers.
The anonymous source added: “She is putting fear into us because she is perceived to control the football world, she’s got contacts everywhere.
“My daughter ended up having zero sessions, I couldn’t get her to commit to a date and it took me weeks to chase her for a refund.
“People are realising she has purposefully taken money with no intention of giving it back.”
The promised sessions were supposed to start in June 2023 and when they began to be cancelled many gave Harding “the benefit of the doubt”.
But now parents are exchanging up to 90 messages a day on a specially set-up WhatsApp group as the missed thirty-pound sessions have begun piling up.
Reported excuses include Harding telling parents she had two car crashes in three weeks, alongside two car breakdowns and one car “blow out”.
Harding, Welsh Footballer of the Year in 2016, has been reported to Action Fraud, and the National Fraud and Cyber Crime Reporting Centre.
It is understood parents have also reported her to Gwent Police and Gloucestershire Police.
STAR’S APOLOGY
Harding, 35, who lives in Stroud, Glos, has apologised and blames circumstances beyond her control for the missed coaching sessions.
She told The Sun: “I offer my apologies to those affected whose sessions I could not complete.
“This was unavoidable, and it was never the intention not to fulfil the sessions.
“Because of circumstances beyond my control, which was always made clear to parents, I had to cancel some sessions after initiating and completing others.”
Harding, now a TV commentator on the women’s game, added: “I’ve been trying to expand my small academy and was unfortunately let down by additional coaches, my car being written off and the second car breaking down.
“When without a car I caught a two-hour train to sessions to avoid cancellations, lugging my equipment with me and needing taxis.
“However, this was not sustainable.
“The academy’s purpose is to provide detailed technical coaching to young boys and girls and provide them with opportunities I never had, with the cost below alternative coaches to give equal opportunity without barriers, prejudices, or preferences.
“I’m devastated that I haven’t been able to finish the session blocks, and I’ve always been upfront about the problems I’ve faced that are beyond my control.
“We agreed on refunds for those sessions and I have paid them.
“The majority of parents have been incredibly understanding and I have received a huge amount of positive references and I continue to work hard, delivering local sessions.”
A spokeswoman for Action Fraud confirmed a complaint had been made about Harding.
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