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JUST 400 people paid 20p each to file through the turnstiles at a kids’ foot­ball ground near Glasgow to see history being made.Exactly 50 years ago, England’s women footballers played their first ever international with the official backing of the game’s governing body.
Exactly 50 years ago, England’s women footballers played their first ever international with the official backing of the game’s governing bodyCredit: Mirrorpix
That match set the Lionesses off on the long road that has led them to Sunday’s Euro 2022 final at WembleyCredit: Getty
In that debut game against Scotland at the Ravenscraig Stadium in Greenock, England won 3-2 and set off on the long road that has led the Lionesses to Sunday’s Euros final at Wembley.
Although striker Pat Davies scored twice to wipe out Scotland’s 2-1 lead, the final score was almost irrelevant.
What DID matter that Saturday afternoon in November 1972 was that this game signalled the end of half a century of hurt for women who had been BANNED from playing football.
A hundred years ago, most UK towns and cities had women’s football teams and many of those female players were international superstars.
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On Boxing Day morning of 1920 a capacity crowd of 53,000 crammed into Goodison Park, Liverpool, to watch two of the country’s most exciting women’s teams play a charity match to raise money for wounded war veterans.
‘ABSOLUTE OUTCRY’
That record-breaking crowd was far bigger than Liverpool or Everton men’s teams were getting — and the Football Association was worried.
Former women’s footballer Gail Newsham, 69, of Preston, Lancs, says: “That match sent shock waves through the football establishment.
“Despite being factory workers, one of those women’s teams — Dick, Kerr Ladies from Preston — played 67 games of football in a year and almost 900,000 people came to watch them.
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new Brazilian girlfriend, 35, days after divorce
“Back then women players were the superstars of the day because they played exciting football.
“Fans wanted to be pictured with them and get their autographs, the selfies of that time.”
Then, almost a year after that famous Boxing Day match, the game’s ruling body, the FA, banned women from playing on any grounds operated by the Football League.
Gail says: “Imagine saying to today’s incredible Lionesses after Sunday’s game at Wembley, ‘right that’s it you’re not playing anymore. You’re banned’.
“Whatever you’d done, it didn’t matter. Nobody was going to care or remember. That’s what happened to those famous female footballers.
“If the same thing happened today there would be an absolute outcry. But back in 1921 life was very different for women. What drives me mad is the injustice of it.”
It had all been so different, when four years earlier the matron of a military hospital asked women workers at William Dick and John Kerr’s munitions factory in Preston to raise money for veterans with a Christmas concert.
The factory girls had a better idea — a charity football match against women from a nearby foundry.
Incredibly 10,000 fans turned up at Preston North End’s Deepdale ground to see Dick, Kerr Ladies beat Arundel Coulthard Foundry and raise the equivalent of £50,000 for wounded soldiers. It was the start of an amazing run of 200 games without defeat, as the women footballers took not only Britain but the world by storm — they even became the unofficial England team.
Gail tracked down former players and fans for her book about the Dick, Kerr Ladies Team, In A League Of Their Own.
Imagine saying to today’s incredible Lionesses after Sunday’s game at Wembley, ‘right that’s it you’re not playing anymore. You’re banned’.Gail Newsham
She says: “I met two elderly gentlemen who had seen the Dick, Kerr Ladies play — one during the general strike and the other remembers seeing a night match by search light in 1920.
“They both told me it wasn’t about women running around in shorts or anything like that. They just wanted to see a good game of football.
“The most outstanding player was the team’s first captain, Alice Kell, who was a defender in the Bobby Moore mould and a great figurehead for the team. The women looked up to her.
“All those years later, that old man still remembered Alice Kell’s name.
“Florrie Redford was the centre forward and she was naturally gifted, could kick with either foot. She scored 170 goals in 1921.
“She was probably the most famous woman footballer of her generation.
“Everybody talks about Lily Parr but before her came Jenny Harris, a very small girl but a fantastic player. She could dribble from one end of the pitch to the other and score goals.
“Those women players would be absolute superstars today.”
But the Boxing Day game at Goodison Park sealed their fate.
The FA’s council ruled that football was “quite unsuitable for females and ought not to be encouraged.”
Despite women playing soccer for years doctors on the FA’s payroll decided: “Football is a rough game and is more harmful for women than men.”
The most outstanding player was the team’s first captain, Alice Kell, who was a defender in the Bobby Moore mould and a great figurehead for the team. The women looked up to her.Gail Newsham
Dr Elizabeth Sloan Chesser even said: “Women may receive injuries from which they may never recover.”
Banned from playing at league stadiums, women’s teams were reduced to doing so in parks and rugby grounds.
Gail says: “Rugby grounds opened their doors to them and they would play on pitches that the FA had no jurisdiction over. But the FA still kept rearing their ugly heads throughout the history — they would try to prevent games from going ahead.”
Dick, Kerr Ladies team owned their own ground and managed to continue playing until 1965. They even travelled to America to play and they won tournaments in Europe.
WASHED IN A POND
Watching Dick, Kerr Ladies in the early Sixties, legendary manager Sir Matt Busby described Val Walsh as one of the best players he had ever seen. He would have signed Val to play for Manchester United if she had been a man.
Other clubs like Heys from Bradford, Huddersfield Atlanta and Manchester Corinthians Ladies Foot­ball Club defied the ban on women’s football on FA-affiliated grounds.
Percy Ashley, a Bolton Wanderers scout, set up the Corinthians in 1949 so his deaf daughter, Doris, a gifted player, could play and socialise with other women.
Conditions were so primitive at their home ground in Fog Lane Park, Didsbury, that women players washed in a nearby duck pond because there was no running water in the unheated changing rooms.
But by touring Europe the team won more than 50 trophies by 1970, and raised £275,000 for charity.
Gail grew up playing football with boys in the street but was not allowed to play in matches until the FA lifted their ban in 1971.
She says: “When I first started, we used to play at a pitch where the changing room was an old chicken hut and there were panels missing so the wind and rain came in and the toilet was a rusty oil drum.
“But we didn’t mind. We’d play anywhere. We really did it for the love of the game.”
The year after Dick, Kerr Ladies team finally quit, England’s men won the World Cup in 1966, inspiring more women than ever to play.
In 1967, BBC worker Patricia Gregory was watching Spurs parade the FA Cup at Tottenham Town Hall and wondered why she had never seen girls playing football.
Unaware of the FA ruling on women playing football she founded the Women’s Football Association and five years later the ban was lifted – allowing that first ever official female international to happen.
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Gail says: “Here we are 50 years on and I believe the Lionesses can do it on Sunday. I can’t put into words how wonderful it will be.
“It’s like, we are picking up now where the Dick, Kerr Ladies left off in the 1920s.”
Dick, Kerr Ladies from Preston played 67 games of football in a year and almost 900,000 people came to watch themCredit: Getty
Jeannie Allott scored the first goal of the 1972 Scotland game at just 16 years of ageCredit: Mirrorpix
Florrie Redford was the centre forward for Dick, Kerr Ladies and she was naturally gifted, being pictured here on Joan Whalley’s leftCredit: Getty More

AS Euros fever grips the nation, England’s women’s team are training for glory ahead of Tuesday’s semi- final against Sweden – at a resort in South West London.On the banks of the Thames, with more than 25 acres of ­landscaped grounds, the exclusive Lensbury Hotel is in Teddington, which in 2021 was named the best place to live in­ the capital.
The footballers have a diary room in their hotel like Big BrotherCredit: Getty
The stars are staying at the exclusive Lensbury Hotel is in TeddingtonCredit: Getty
When training is done, the Lionesses play cards, watch Love Island and share problems in a Big ­Brother-style Diary Room, where staff encourage them to offload what is on their minds.
And in a more literal reinterpretation of Sir Alex Ferguson’s “hair-dryer” treatment, super sub and Man Utd forward Alessia Russo, 23, is also the team hairstylist.
Midfielder Jill Scott, 35, said: “Alessia is doing my hair and she is doing a really good job. I keep saying to her, now that we’ve won our matches, I’ve got to keep my hair like this. I keep pestering her.”
The camp is clearly paying off, with 23-year-old Georgia Stanway’s extra-time winner on Wednesday seeing off pre-tournament favourites Spain in the quarter-finals.
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Arsenal forward Nikita Parris, 28, said: “We’ve got unbelievable facilities — pitch, gym, relaxation room and the diary room. It’s class.
“The relaxation room is the main room for most people. In there we’ve got darts, pool, table tennis and the basketball machine.
“On days off we get to relax, wake up a bit later, come and go as we please.”
Alessia, who scored the goal of the tournament so far in the 5-0 drubbing of Northern Ireland, said: “After training we recover, have lunch, then enjoy each other’s company.
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“We play cards, sit in the sun, get a coffee. There’s a group of us who play cards. It’s a nice way to switch off and play a game called Trump, which gets really competitive.”
It’s her first major tournament with England, helped by the presence of clubmate Ella Toone, 22 — the duo combining for Ella to score the crucial equaliser against Spain.
Alessia said: “Being on this journey with my best friend makes it all that little bit more special.
“Tooney’s an absolute doughnut, she has me in hysterics. I think we balance each other out quite nicely.”
Winger Lauren Hemp, 21, is the queen of the dartboard, dominating at the squad’s favourite game, Around The World, according to Man City teammate Chloe Kelly.
Chloe, 24, said: “I’ve been practising because Hempo flies away with the win every time.”
Chelsea teammates Bethany England and Jess Carter, 24, have been going head-to-head at pool.
Bethany, 28, said: “My competitive edge is quite extreme. I will get a face on if I lose.”
Players recover from matches with yoga classes, ice baths and visits to the cryotherapy chamber.
The team have conceded just once during their march to the semis, but their secret weapon might be a touch simpler — match-winner Georgia’s heroics were fuelled by a classic dinner.
She said: “My pre-match meal is a bit of a superstition, but it’s got to be beans on toast. But sometimes, when we go abroad, it’s really hard to get the beans and they end up being kidney beans, so sometimes I have to go without.”
Their success has prompted a rush for tickets to the semi-final, with an extra 2,000 tickets selling out in ten minutes on Thursday morning.
Re-sale websites are offering £15 tickets for as much as £850.
Those who do have tickets shouldn’t worry if they hear Swedish songs after the game, as Abba are a fixture in England’s post-match celebrations.
Captain Leah Williamson, 25, is the squad’s designated DJ, including on the long coach rides back to Teddington after games — with communal singing at the tops of their voices until the early hours.
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Sun;font-size:18px;line-height:1.333;font-weight:700;letter-spacing:0%;font-stretch:normal;display:inline;}.css-i1acvs:hover:not(:disabled){-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;}NAME GAME .css-8h3gc3{margin:0;padding:0;color:rgba(34,37,38,1);-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;font-family:The Sun;font-size:18px;line-height:1.333;font-weight:700;letter-spacing:0%;font-stretch:normal;display:inline;}.css-8h3gc3:hover:not(:disabled){-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;}We named our son a strong, manly name but family laughed in our face at it
As well as Abba’s hits, Proud, by Heather Small, and songs from the musical Grease are on the playlist.
Defender Millie Bright, 28, said: “Some players text r­e­quests from the back of the bus. We like the singalong vibes.”
A cryotherapy chamber helps the players to recover between gamesCredit: Getty
England’s women’s team are preparing for the European Championship semi-finalCredit: Getty
England face Sweden in the semi-final on TuesdayCredit: Getty
Beans on toast is a staple snack for the footballersCredit: Getty More

I THOUGHT it was all over. England’s Euros dream was dying at around a quarter to ten on Wednesday night. Spain had been all over us and when they went ahead, they looked certainties for the semi-final. Yes, I thought it was all over.
Ella Toone celebrates scoring a late equaliser against Spain, keeping the Lionesses in the gameCredit: AFP
Ella scores in the 84th minute to send the game into extra-timeCredit: Getty
Georgia Stanway’s stunning strike wins the game for England in extra-timeCredit: EPA
 But, what about England’s women? To keep channeling Kenneth Wolstenholme’s famous commentary of 1966, did they think it was all over?
Did they hell. The Lionesses had other ideas.
On came Alessia Russo and Ella Toone, and everything changed. With just six minutes left, in came the cross and the magnificent Russo somehow got to it ahead of the three defenders around her.
Knock down. Toone. Bang. Equaliser.
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Sun;font-size:24px;line-height:1.1666666666666667;font-weight:400;letter-spacing:0%;font-stretch:semi-condensed;padding:1px 0px;}.css-1x7hydu::before{content:”;display:block;height:0;width:0;margin-bottom:calc(-0.24520833333333342em + -0.5px);}.css-1x7hydu::after{content:”;display:block;height:0;width:0;margin-top:-0.2333333333333334em;}.css-1lobn43{display:inline;font:inherit;margin:0;color:rgba(0,0,0,1);}.css-1lobn43 svg{fill:rgba(0,0,0,1);}READ MORE ON THE LIONESSES.css-1gojmfd{margin-bottom:16px;}.css-gmec1d{display:-webkit-inline-box;display:-webkit-inline-flex;display:-ms-inline-flexbox;display:inline-flex;height:auto;-webkit-align-items:center;-webkit-box-align:center;-ms-flex-align:center;align-items:center;-webkit-align-content:center;-ms-flex-line-pack:center;align-content:center;-webkit-box-flex-wrap:nowrap;-webkit-flex-wrap:nowrap;-ms-flex-wrap:nowrap;flex-wrap:nowrap;-webkit-flex-direction:row;-ms-flex-direction:row;flex-direction:row;-webkit-box-pack:start;-ms-flex-pack:start;-webkit-justify-content:flex-start;justify-content:flex-start;margin-left:calc(-20px/2);margin-right:calc(-20px/2);}.css-fh9577{display:-webkit-inline-box;display:-webkit-inline-flex;display:-ms-inline-flexbox;display:inline-flex;margin-left:calc(20px/2);margin-right:calc(20px/2);}.css-65fvqt{max-width:302px;max-height:294px;}.css-1exhbll{box-sizing:border-box;overflow:hidden;background-color:rgba(237,245,242,1);-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;position:relative;display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;-webkit-flex-direction:column;-ms-flex-direction:column;flex-direction:column;max-width:302px;max-height:294px;}.css-bk55po{box-sizing:border-box;display:block;position:relative;margin-bottom:0;}.css-1shocxe{box-sizing:border-box;}.css-1a2irou{box-sizing:border-box;padding:0;}.css-1a2irou 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.nk-headline-heading{color:rgba(71,30,121,1);}.css-1uyse24:before{content:”;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;left:0;overflow:hidden;position:absolute;z-index:1;}.css-n392go{border-width:0 1px 1px 1px;border-style:solid;border-color:rgba(155,201,183,1);padding:12px;max-height:104px;min-height:98px;}.css-1p5s3t0{padding:0;border-width:0 1px 1px 1px;border-style:solid;border-color:rgba(155,201,183,1);padding:12px;max-height:104px;min-height:98px;}.css-124tga5{overflow:hidden;-webkit-line-clamp:3;-webkit-box-orient:vertical;display:-webkit-box;word-wrap:break-word;line-height:1;}.css-5jzxpx{overflow:hidden;-webkit-line-clamp:3;-webkit-box-orient:vertical;display:-webkit-box;word-wrap:break-word;line-height:1;}.css-i1acvs{margin:0;padding:0;color:rgba(34,99,73,1);text-transform:uppercase;-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;font-family:The Sun;font-size:18px;line-height:1.333;font-weight:700;letter-spacing:0%;font-stretch:normal;display:inline;}.css-i1acvs:hover:not(:disabled){-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;}ENGLAND 2 SPAIN 1 (AET) .css-8h3gc3{margin:0;padding:0;color:rgba(34,37,38,1);-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;font-family:The Sun;font-size:18px;line-height:1.333;font-weight:700;letter-spacing:0%;font-stretch:normal;display:inline;}.css-8h3gc3:hover:not(:disabled){-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;}Stanway SCREAMER sends
Amex wild as Lionesses roar into Euro semis
 Love it, love it, love it.
If this match represents a tipping point for women’s football, it was at this moment that it started to tip. 
Fifteen minutes later the process was complete. When Georgia Stanway advanced with the ball down the middle of Spain’s half, those supporting England would have fallen into two camps. 
There were those thinking, for God’s sake, don’t waste your time having a pop from there. 
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In this camp were supporters unfamiliar with the work of Ms Stanway. 
In the other camp were those who knew exactly what she was capable of. 
They screamed, SHOOT! And shoot she did. If the net hadn’t caught it that ball would still be travelling. What a strike.
I don’t think women’s football in this country will ever be the same again.

I’ve been banging on about the women’s game to my best mate for a while now. He’s not been having it.
 Yesterday, when I opened my mouth to ask him if he’d watched the Spain game, he cut me off mid-sentence. “Ok OK,” he said. “Now I get it.”
We’ve all been on a journey with women’s football. Mine began on a school football pitch in the late Seventies.
We were around 12 years old, about to play an away game. 
The opposing team’s teacher called us over and told us gravely that there was a girl playing for them.
He actually asked us if we minded! 
We all looked at each other and shrugged. Er, no. Why would we?
And as soon as the match started, we never gave it a second thought.
On Wednesday night, I thought about that girl. I hope she was watching. 
Talking about the match on Radio 5 Live there was a breed of male I wanted to hear from: those who had been unsure — or even scathing — about women’s football but were now converts. 
They didn’t disappoint. Ok, hands up, was the general message. It was bloody amazing. 
A text from a man from Nottingham was a bit off message with that hoary old chestnut about the goalkeepers not being up to much.
I admit, that’s something I’ve grumbled about in the past. Not any more. 
Mary Earps and Sandra Paños, at opposite ends, were both just great.
More than seven and a half million watched the match on the box and even more on iPlayer.
Nottingham man can’t have been among them.
Perhaps he was one of the relatively few watching Love Island instead.
I loved the camera shots of the crowd. They were as special as the occasion demanded. 
There was joy, passion and sheer wonderment at the magnitude of what they were witnessing. Not just the result; all of it. 
Rampaging Russo
There was one guy celebrating with what looked to be a three-year-old daughter. Their smiles will stay with me for a good while. 
The din the Euros crowds have made has been as loud as you like, but obviously at a higher pitch than we’re used to.
At first this sounded a bit odd, but now it’s the deeper noise at the blokes’ matches which will sound a bit weird when the Premier League starts up again.
By then, will the Lionesses be European Champions? I’ve been disappointed too many times by every team I’ve ever supported to be counting any chickens. 
But at this moment I can’t imagine any team losing if it has the awesome Millie Bright at the back, the rampaging Russo leading the line and nine other legends swarming around them. 
There’s plainly something special about the coach too, and not just because two of her subs combined to score and change the game.
Sarina Wiegman radiates calmness as well as competence and confidence as coach.
Her demeanour reminds me of Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti: they just make you believe that everything is going to be alright in the end.
Her players are the real deal.
They have shown us they can both win at a canter and come from behind against amazing opposition.
They are ferociously talented with iron wills.
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Yet there is a delicious hint of innocence about them, too. Of course there is — this is new territory for all of them. And for all of us, too.
Together, let’s go all the way. 
Ellen White celebrates her side’s quarter-final victoryCredit: Getty
WE’RE IN THE SEMIS!
England v Sweden or Belgium
Tuesday, July 26, 8pm, Bramall Lane, Sheffield
(Sweden v Belgium, today, 8pm, Leigh Sports Village)

‘CROWD GO SO CRAZY’By Lianne Sanderson – former England player
PEOPLE have always been sceptical about the women’s game but this year has proved all the doubters wrong.
I’ve never heard a crowd go so wild when our team gets the ball, it is crazier than the cheers at men’s games. And it’s all been kept positive in the stands, we haven’t seen a single fight or violence so far.
Getting the girls to this point hasn’t been easy and Sarina Wiegman has been a key part of that. She’s the puzzle piece we’ve been missing.
We’re not the best team in the world, we’re ranked eight, but you wouldn’t know it from their Euros performances.
Games like the quarter-final this week showcase women’s football at its absolute best.
I can’t stand Sweet Caroline as a song, but if I get to hear it every time our Lionesses win, I’ll learn to enjoy it.

Hear Lianne commentate on all of the Women’s Euros England games on talkSPORT

‘EDGE OF OUR SEAT’By Jason Cundy – footballer turned radio host
ENGLAND’S win against Spain was football at its finest.
It had all the elements of unscripted drama from elite athletes that keep viewers on the edge of their seats.
They have lived in the shadow of the men’s game for such a long time and last night they dominated the back pages of the papers. 
For the first time ever, we’re doing phone-ins on the women’s game on talkSPORT.
Thanks to it being broadcast on terrestrial TV, more people than ever can see just how technical women’s football has become. From the way the players move the balls around in triangles to the standard of goalkeeping, it’s no surprise people are being won over.
 There will always be sceptics, but they’re outnumbered now.
It feels like we can win this tournament. It certainly feels like it is their time.

Jason presents The Sports Bar on talkSPORT 10pm-1am from Monday to Thursday More