In honour of International Women’s Day, PUMA put together a series of events that celebrated the fierce combination of women and sport – and SheKicks were invited to get booted up and polish up those skills with Arsenal Ladies.
Here is how the day panned out from the moment KATIE MISHNER woke up with a buzz of excitement and nerves for the day ahead, to kicking about with a player who has picked up 160 caps for England, to getting the last train home after a surreal but super day…
8:35am
Getting up early and taking three different trains gave me a chance to tame the nerves and excitement. Not even spending five hours in A&E to find out I’d fractured a finger, the night before, could dampen my spirits for the day ahead.
10:35am
I arrived in London early – knowing that Arsenal’s training centre is in the middle of nowhere. Another train ride and one trip with an Uber driver who was convinced I am a footballer (I gave him five stars for flattery), and I had entered the world of the Gooners.
The complex is incredibly green and perfectly kept by a cluster of grounds people in matching Arsenal uniforms. After the taxi took me down the wrong road I had a better look at the endless view of training pitches. Finally, I was guided to a large, peculiar shaped building with wooden slats on the front, finished off with a neat Arsenal logo followed by the words ‘training centre’. Definitely in the right place!
Not pictured: someone’s Range Rover being washed, next to someone else’s Bentley
1:00pm
I made it inside just as the rest of the group was arriving, 15 women from different walks of life but all united by our love for thebeautiful game. From academy players to competition winners to the coolest five a side team you will ever meet, and of course a couple of us media folk. The pitch itself was a high quality 3G surface and from the entrance I got a peek of the impressive gym facilities.
We were joined by England’s most capped player EVER Fara Williams, Estonia’s worst nightmare Danielle Carter and the incredibly versatile Dutch international, Dominique Janssen. The trio would act as head coaches to their own five-a-side teams!
But first on the agenda was being fed and watered, then the exciting part – kitted out! Puma supplied everyone with extremely well co-ordinated green and black outfits. Honestly, I have never strayed from Adidas’ football range but to my own surprise, the boots fitted my strange shaped feet with comfort and the shorts felt lighter than the luminous green colour that I was decked out in.
Bright enough?
2:30pm(ish)
Now we all looked the part, it was time to try and play the part of footballers.
Almost like being back in the school ground, the three Arsenal players were invited to pick their team based on a quick introductory speech. I was selected by England’s most capped player, Fara Williams who referred to me as ‘Newcastle’. From this moment, team #WEDO was born.
Each group definitely had their own personality, with Team Dench, captained by Janssen standing out as the jokers quickly.
It all kicked off with a series of skill drills led by ex Millwaller Darren White. Covering mostly dribbling, turns and passing to cater for the differing levels of ability on the pitch. It was all fun and games until a level of competition was added, each race was weighted with points. Three for a win, two for runner up and one consolation point for the losers.
Team #WEDO won once or twice ending up with a grand total of nine points, but Dan Carter’s team were the ones to watch. Though, there were allegations of some cheating – the case against being led by my gaffer Fara …alas they were still crowned the winners with 11 points.
Fara Williams and Team #WEDO arguing that there was some cheating going on…
3:15pm
Warmed up and filled with that competitive edge, the session moved into something more akin to a game. There were four nets, two large, guarded by four mannequins and two small, defended by just one of the dummies.
Aim of the game: score in either of the nets, conceding a goal means you’re off. Simple, right? Well, the quick pace left a few of us scratching our heads (maybe it was just me) but Dan Carter’s team continued their winning ways. That was until I, Katie Mishner, worked my way into the smaller net and took them off the pitch. Sadly, Team #WEDO’s success was short-lived. The true battle was between Team Dench and Dan Carter’s lot.
However, we did have another win against the top team in which my goal was praised by Fara Williams. I think I hid it well but I am a terribly sore loser, and was gutted by our shortcomings. But I will always hold onto the small victory of being our only goalscorer.
Once it was obvious there was no beating Carter’s top dogs, the session turned into a free for all and we were joined by all three of the Arsenal Ladies. Obviously no one wanted to be responsible for injuring any of these players so it was fairly chill.
Highlights included me missing an absolute sitter and Danielle Carter managing a Giroud-esque scorpion kick – must run in the Gooner family, huh?
3:45
After the running around, the group was invited to pick the brains of the three players. With all 15 of us keen to gain an insight into the life of a professional footballers.
First up was all about the kind of train regime a pro footballer has to undergo to remain at the top. Dan Carter offered up a lot of advice about the range of workouts that she and the team have been doing in pre-season, explaining in detail what kind of movements to do with weights.
As role models for the young girls who want to play, we wanted to know who they looked up to – “my mum” was the unanimous answer. Dominique Janssen told us that her mum still has all of her boots that she had as a kid. While Dan Carter shared an anecdote about how her mum used to take her friends to training, if they had less supportive parents.
On a similar note, we discussed what empowerment means. The definition the players came up with? It’s all about being strong, determined and well, doing you, as Puma so aptly put it.
There were some more leftfield questions too, like what dinosaur would you be – all of three opted for the T-Rex!
Playing 20 Qs
4:30pm
It was time to head back to London and our chariot was none other than Crystal Palace’s old team bus! For someone who is used to being tucked away by the loos in a National Express coach, the upholstered seats and the working plug sockets, were a complete shock to the system.
The fact I looked like a tomato that had been dragged through several hedges did not diminish my sense of VIP-hood.
7:00pm
Once cleaned up, but still somewhat bedraggled in comparison to guests flooding into the east London studio, the party began. The exposed brick walls were decorated with pictures of female athletes, including Lioness Alex Scott.
The team had garnished the display of the new collection with an Arsenal shirt that read “DO YOU”, another nice touch.
In fact, this message could be found in every corner of the venue – whether it be the toilet mirror, the graffiti on the wall outside or the board the attendees were invited to sign with their own messages.
Not only that, but everyone there was a living example of the ethos: rocking their own styles, doing their own thing and having a good time. My favourite though, is this plaque. After reading it I walked away holding myself that little taller:
23:15pm
I tried my best to only stay for a short while and get back to Nottingham early. Alas, the temptation of a good party had me on the last train home.
3:00am
Flat out and still a little confused as to whether or not I had just imagined the day, I arrived home and fell asleep immediately.
Tickets are now on sale for the SSE Women’s FA Cup Final on Saturday 13th May at Wembley Stadium connected by EE. For the second consecutive year, kids go free to the final, tickets can be purchased here: https://ticketing.thefa.com/
