The 25-year-old goalkeeper arrived at the Joie Stadium towards the end of last season as an emergency loan signing and impressed sufficiently for Gareth Taylor to make her part of his squad for the upcoming campaign and beyond.
Startup joins from Brighton, having previously had spells with Charlton, Chelsea and Liverpool – the latter being during a loan spell.
Now, she can’t wait to get going and challenge the keepers already at the Club.
“It feels great, I’m really excited to be back. A bit longer this time, hopefully, and I’m excited to see what’s next really,” said Startup.
“To be honest, I didn’t really know that was going to be on the table. There was no expectation of that when I came [for talks].
“I just knew that when the opportunity arose, I really enjoyed my time here and I felt really welcome, valued and I settled into the team well.
“So, when the opportunity did come up [to sign permanently], it was a bit of a no brainer, really.”
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Capped by England U17 and U19s, Startup has been looking to kick on and challenge the best in order to progress her career further.
Being among some of the best players in Europe will undoubtedly forward her cause, though she admits she enjoyed her time and life in Brighton.
“There’s always a bit to think about,” she said.
“It’s a big move just in terms of moving away from home. I’ve been at Brighton for a long time, and I enjoyed my time there.
“But I was ready to kind of change my environment a little bit, I think I learned a lot while I was here on loan in that short period.
“So, I’m really excited to see how much I can keep going now [I’ve agreed] an extended period as well. I think it’s the right time to switch up environment and move on a bit.”
Startup also says boss Gareth Taylor has played a pivotal role in her decision to move north.
The City boss chatted about the possibility of her becoming a permanent member of his squad previously and she is looking forward to this new chapter in her career.
“We spoke a lot during the loan period and he was great touching base with me and catching me up with what City have been doing all that season, what their expectations were of me,” she said.
“I felt up to speed pretty much straight away, I kind of felt as if I had been there the whole season and it was similar towards the tail end of trying to figure out what would be the next steps.
“The communication was there throughout and that was heartening to me.
“When he reached out with the intent to bring me back here at the tail end of that loan, I took it as a huge compliment first and foremost.
“That [the Club] had seen something in me and wanted to bring me back in, meant so much.”
