FOR Jenna Schillaci playing in a Tottenham women’s football side once seemed an impossible dream.
Today the retired former Spurs defender hopes the team can fulfil their dream of reaching a Women’s FA Cup final by beating Leicester.
A feat that would be a new milestone for the Women’s Super League side who have come a long way from the part-time club Schillaci joined 24 years ago.
Back then the team, whose players included nurses and teachers, used to train on a North London council estate and competed at an amateur level.
Reflecting on those days Schillaci, 40, who played for Tottenham for 12 years and once captained side, said: “My family are Spurs mad.
“My earliest memories are going down to White Hart Lane every other Saturday with my two brothers and just dreaming of one day playing as part of a team.
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“But back then, it wasn’t even really a dream because I never saw women’s football.
“It wasn’t visible for me, so it was like an impossible dream.
“When I used to go and watch the men’s (team), I would read the (matchday) programme before the game.
“I once saw a really tiny section about a women’s team, which I didn’t know existed, but I couldn’t join it until I was 16 years old.
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“I showed my dad and my mum and told them, ‘As soon as I’m 16, you’ve got to take me down there’ and they did that.
“They used to train on a Wednesday night on an estate in Tottenham and it was the last slot of the night from 9:00pm until 10:00pm, a bit late for a 16-year-old to be out.
“But I remember just turning up and absolutely, living my dream there.
“I would be running rings around the players. I was the youngest by about 15 years because it was a women’s team.
“For the warm-ups I recall jogging around the estate.
“I’m sure my mum used to follow us in her car, just to make sure we got around safely.
“But this was a dream come true and I couldn’t believe my luck that I was playing for Tottenham.
“And you’d play anywhere from muddy grassroots pitches to Hackney Marshes on a Sunday afternoon.”
Today’s FA Cup semis clash between Spurs and Leicester will be battled out at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
A stark contrast to the muddy pitches Schillaci and her old team-mates once competed on during the early stages of her playing career at the club.
Following the completion of a physical education degree at Greenwich University and stints at Queen Park Rangers, and Enfield Town, Schillaci returned to playing for the side in 2009.
She went on skipper the team, that once competed in the Greater London Women’s Football League, helping them rise up the pyramid to promotion to the WSL in 2019.
Since Schillaci’s retirement in June 2020, Spurs achieved their highest ever top-flight finish in fifth spot two years ago before avoiding relegation and finishing ninth last term.
This season has seen them flourish under boss Robert Vilahamn who took charge of the side last July, four months after the sacking of former manager Rehanne Skinner.
Under the Sweden-born head coach the team have achieved some new firsts.
These include beating Arsenal in a WSL derby and reaching the FA Cup semis for their first time in their history by defeating Manchester City.
And Schillaci expects the team will eventually challenge City and WSL giants Chelsea and Arsenal for the game’s biggest domestic honours.
She adds: “They had a tough season last year in a relegation battle and they survived that.
“When you look back at it from then to now it’s like a million miles apart.
“You’ve only got a look at the calibre of players at the club.
“You’ve got Bethany England, a Euros winner, a young Lioness in Grace Clinton, Celin Bizet and Charlie Grant.
“They’re really investing in the recruitment and they’re also going for younger players now and you can see the strategy.
“It’s incredible to see the rise and it’s down to a lot of people. It’s a really exciting time for the team.
“The infrastructure that they have there now and have had over the last couple of seasons, is probably one of the best in the country.
“And you’re seeing it this season with the team competing with the best.
“I think in a short period of time, they will become one of the best teams in the country.”
Four years after hanging up her boots Schillaci now works as operations manager in Tottenham Women’s Academy.
Among the players who have risen through ranks and could feature against Leicester today is England Under-23s starlet Jessica Naz.
The Spurs forward, 23, who has made 17 WSL appearances this term, helped the Young Lionesses to go unbeaten in the Under-23s European League.
Schillaci said: “Jess is a key example of one of our own, a local girl has been with us through our pathway, doing well on an international stage.
“I remember when she joined the club when she was 15 or 16.
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“She was a team-mate of mine for three or four seasons. She was a nightmare to defend (against) in training.
“For her to be there competing every day with world class players (in Tottenham’s first team) I think it’s pushing her on and her future is so bright.”
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
