RANGERS Football Club are delighted to announce the signing of Rio Hardy from Durham, subject to international clearance.
The forward becomes the second signing of the summer transfer window after the arrival of Michelle Colson earlier this month, as head coach Jo Potter boosts her squad further ahead of the league season getting underway on August 13.
The 27-year-old began her career at Blackburn Rovers where she enjoyed a successful youth career before she headed to America to study at the University of South Alabama playing college football.
Her form across the Atlantic earned her a move back to Europe as she joined Grindavik of Iceland where she finished as the side’s top goal scorer, scoring ten times in 15 games in her one season at the club whilst also picking up the player of the season award.
Hardy’s next move was to Cyprus to join Apollon Limossol where she featured in the UEFA Champions League, continuing her fine form domestically scoring 61 times in just 49 games before she made a return to her home country to join Coventry City.
Moving to her former club Durham in January 2022 the striker scored seven times in 19 outings in last season’s FA Women's Championship as they finished in seventh place. Hardy will now link up with Jo Potter’s side in Glasgow as the pair will work together once again having spent time together at Coventry as she joins the club for the upcoming season.
On signing for Rangers, Hardy said: “It is amazing, honestly it is an opportunity that I felt like I couldn’t turn down, it is a massive club and I am just really excited to be here.”
Women’s head coach Jo Potter also commented: “I am super excited to bring Rio in, she has got a lot of high quality attributes, her stature, strength, physicality and the ability to score all kinds of goals.
“She can use both feet, score headed goals as well which is very rare and she has got the ability to drop between lines and stretch the game, as an all-rounder it is a no brainer for me and I was just really keen to try and get her through the door.”