At home with Anna Filbey…and her new puppy Lexie!

In an exclusive catch up with Welsh international Anna Filbey, we find out how she is coping while staying safe at home, looking after a new furry friend, keeping fit and social distancing from her team-mate and best friend Rianna Dean…

What’s a typical day at home been like for you during lockdown?

Anna: “I’ve been getting up really early with my new puppy Lexie, not out of choice of course, but because she won’t sleep in the kitchen so now, she sleeps in my room. She’ll howl when she wants to get out the cage, so I’ll let her out, weigh her food for the day then spend some time in the garden with her. I’ll then pass the puppy duties over to my boyfriend while I do my home fitness programme." 

How did it come about you getting a puppy?

Anna: “We sadly lost my other dog Prince last month, before we got Lexie. I’ve had a dog since I was six years old so I just couldn’t imagine life without one. After Prince passed away, the house just felt so empty, so we started to have a look online at litters and we found one located around two hours away in Cambridge. It was a litter of 13 but there were only four girls left. When we got there, Lexie came over to us straight away and sat on our feet while the other puppies were playing around, it was as if she had chosen us specially to be her owners."

We want to know a little more about Lexie, what is she like?

Anna: “Looking after a puppy, it does sometimes feel like I am a new mother because they are like babies. When we first got her, she was only eight weeks and up every hour of the night. My mum and dad are still going to work so I took on the responsibility of getting up with her, taking her out and cleaning up all her mess. It’s been a good distraction for me though, she’s keeping me busy and taking my mind off things. I’ve always found that having a pet around is so good for your mental health too and I really appreciate having her, especially in tough times like these.” 

What’s your set up like at home…do you have much space to have a kickabout?

Anna: “I live at home with my mum, dad and my boyfriend in Hayes. There’s a park right by our house, so it’s been perfect for me when going on runs and doing some of my training sessions. The Club have been great and sent us some equipment, so I am pretty much set up to just crack on with everything at home.”

How are you finding your fitness programme?

Anna: “It can be quite tough doing it on your own and keeping yourself motivated, I’ve been getting my family members involved to help keep me going and when I am doing my core workout, Lexie will be all over me.”

The work continues🙌🏼Some clips of my session today💙 It was a tough one😅 pic.twitter.com/Ts011USbgU

— Anna Filbey (@Anna_Filbey99) March 28, 2020

How often are you in touch with your team-mates?

Anna: “We’re all keeping in contact as much as possible. Obviously, we have a group chat, and we’ve been having group video calls too, as well as playing PS4 together. We’ll also see each other on some of the virtual training sessions we’ve been doing.” 

How much do you hear from the coaches?

Anna: “We’ve been split into groups and each group has a video call with one of the coaches which is nice. I’ve got Karen (Hills), Ash Neville and Siri Worm in my group. When we were on a video call with Siri the other day, she was drawing a photo of the stadium for Spurs Art Challenge on social media. It’s nice to keep in touch with everyone and see what they’re all doing to keep busy.”

How have you been keeping in touch with other family members and friends?

Anna: “My brother and sister live around the corner from us with our nan and grandad, they moved in with them to help out. I’ll Facetime them at least once a week, same with my little nieces and grandparents too.”

Has it been hard being away from your best buddy Rianna Dean?

Anna: “It’s been a real struggle if I am being completely honest. We just made a TikTok account before lockdown but we haven’t been able to make any new videos for that so that’s been a bit gutting. We text pretty much the whole day and Facetime in the evenings. She just made me buy a Nintendo Switch so I can play Animal Crossing with her which I am not to keen on but she really likes it so I just got it for her. We’ve both said we miss each other too, obviously!”

Any plans for future content for your joint TikTok account?

Anna: “Yes, there’s a few funny ones we’ve seen that we’ll do when things get back to normal, but the fans will have to wait and see. Stay tuned, they’re on the way!” 

We heard about Rosella Ayane and Becky Spencer hosting nightly quizzes for the squad, how did you get on in that?

Anna: “Our name was ‘You thought we had no chance’ because we had a group of three, whereas everyone else had four members in their team. It was Rianna (Dean), Pep (Chloe Peplow) and I in our team so on paper we looked like we had no chance, but we came fourth overall which isn’t too bad. Unfortunately, we had some points deducted too but the quiz was a great laugh and the girls put so much effort into it. I think my highlight was having to guess whose body parts belonged to who. It was hilarious.”

What are you missing most about football?

Anna: “Just being out there and actually playing the game. Also, I miss being around the girls a lot, with all the banter. I don’t stop laughing with them. I feel like I am always smiling when I am with the team. We’ve got a funny group of girls!”

Have you been watching anything interesting on TV, any recommendations?

Anna: “A lot of people have suggested I watch Tiger King on Netflix but I have just been re-watching all the Marvel films…I am a bit of a geek. Love a good Marvel film.”

Reading any books/ listening to any podcasts?

Anna: “I am going to listen to Peter Crouch’s podcast as I have heard that’s really good.”

Learning any new skills during lockdown?

Anna: “I’m still studying, I am doing a Level 3 Extended Diploma in Sport and Exercise Science. It’s a lot of assignments but I’ve been managing to get through them during this time which has been good.” 

Finally, when we come out of lockdown, what’s the first thing you want to do?

Anna: “Go for a Nando's with Rianna (Dean).”