Here come the girls!

The Women's Super League kicked off last night. At 5.30 Chelsea took on Arsenal in front of the TV cameras and a crowd of over 2000. Arsenal bagged the three points with a 1-0 victory over their London rivals. While that was going on I travelled to Sincil Bank, home of Lincoln City FC, to watch Lincoln Ladies take on their 'local' (as in 40 miles away) rivals Doncaster Belles.

Lincoln City are struggling in League 2 at the moment (they should never have got rid of ace ex- Huddersfield Town manager Pete Jackson so readily) and their ground could do with a bit of TLC. Nevertheless I find the old terraced housing that surrounds Sincil Bank comforting, a throw back to times when football was a game for the working classes located in the heart of their community. I'm all for a bit of nostalgia - and humour. I loved the fish and chip shop on the corner called the 'Back of the Net.'

There was an air of excitement outside the turnstiles. A quick survey of the queue showed a fair mix of people - male and female, young and old. I bought a programme - £1.50 - and liked the fact they were giving away postcards of some of the players with them. I got England international Sophie Bradley.

At the turnstiles I flashed my season ticket with pride (£24) and my daughter and her boyfriend paid their £6 entrance fee. Once inside, all the fans were ushered into the main stand - there is no need for segregation at women's matches. The crowd is neither large enough not ugly enough to warrant it. We found seats towards the back and above the half way line.

We could have done with a few drums and a 'singing end' to keep the momentum going but we did have a Donny Belles fan with a handbell (bell - Belles - gerrit?). Everytime it rang I thought lessons had ended or we were at a boxing match. I hope Arsenal fans don't bring a cannon (though Everton can bring toffees...)

Then the two teams emerged into the cold night air and the applause of the 742 crowd.

Guess who the ref was? Sian Massey, the fourth official caught up in the Richard Keys/Andy Gray sexism row (see earlier blog). Anyway, that small distraction aside, the match began. Doncaster Belles came out the stronger and looked more assured on the ball and in set pieces. Lincoln took longer to settle. Sue Smith and Jess Clarke got plenty of the ball but were thwarted by a solid Belles' defence.  Belles pushed and pushed and Vicky Exley deservedly scored just before the end of half time.
 Bringing on Sophie Walton after the break seemed to add that bit of impetus to the Imps. The second half was much more lively and both sides played some great football. My daughter, who'd watched the Chelsea v Arsenal match on TV, said they were just as good as the London teams. Casey Stoney (ex Arsenal) began to exert her influence with some beautifully controlled crosses. Sue Smith came closest to scoring the equaliser and keeper Kay Hawke pulled off an absolutely brilliant save towards the end to prevent Belles going 2-0 up.

So Belles drew first blood and took the three points but Lincoln Ladies have absolutely nothing to be ashamed of; they showed great potential. Ace captain Megan Harris and her team can hold their heads high and go into the next match full of confidence.

 Lincoln Ladies

Post-match post mortem

 Read the full match report on Lincoln Ladies website or Doncaster Belles'

Helena Pielichaty 

  

Women's Football - WSL

Tomorrow, Wednesday 13th April 2011, is a momentous day in the history of football. It's the day the new Women's Super League is launched. At 5.30 pm Chelsea take on Arsenal at the Tooting and Mitcham FC ground and at 7.45 Lincoln Ladies play Doncaster Belles at Sincil Bank. The Chelsea Arsenal match is live on ESPN.

The intitiative shows that, over a hundred years after Nettie Honeyball organised the first women's match between London North and London South, the FA is finally taking women's football seriously.

Nettie Honeyball, in full kit, organised the first games between two women's teams in 1895 to show that women were more than 'mere ornaments.'

        The super league will run for two years in the first instance and consists of 8 teams. The teams have been selected not only for their standard of football but also because they proved they can be commercially viable. Four players on each team will be paid up to £20,000 each. Top international players have been shared out between the clubs in an attempt to pool the talent so that no one team dominates. Whether this works or not waits to be seen. Arsenal Ladies have reigned supreme for a long time in the women's game with Everton chomping at their heels.

Tomorrow I'll be using my season ticket (£24.00) to watch Lincoln Ladies take on Doncaster Belles. Manager Rod Harris's Lincoln have the ebulliant England international Sue Smith on board as well as Jess Clarke, Casey Stoney and Sophie Bradley.  This is on top of an already decent squad who have been going from strength to strength over the years.

England midfielder and now Lincoln Ladies player Sue Smith

I really hope the WSL gets the attention and credit it deserves. Signs in the media are good and with the Women's World Cup coming up at the end of June things could be really exciting. England Women recently beat the USA 2-1. As the USA are ranked no.1 in the world that's a terrific boost ahead of the campaign.

Even better, I think, is that women's football has been filtering through to girls' magazines. In the current edition of Shout (#471) there's a double page feature on Liverpool's Hanna Keryakoplis. How brilliant is that? Women footballers in there between Lady Gaga and the Snog, Marry or Avoid quiz! Dead right too. Sports women have always been the healthier alternative to cat walk models and pop stars as far as role models go. I'd much rather have my daughter impressed by someone who looks good because she trains hard and is fit than because she's been airbrushed to fake perfection.

So I hope you'll all be following the women's game and supporting your local side whether they're in the WSL or not. The Premier League (National Division) still contains plenty of top teams. Huddersfield Town Ladies (North-East PL Division) for example were the half time guests on the pitch at the Galpharm on Saturday as they've recently linked up with HTAFC.

Nettie would be proud.

Helena Pielichaty http://www.helena-pielichaty.com/

Girls FC series for 8-11s out now