A mini report from another hugely enjoyable players’ legends evening…
As I head to Germany to watch England take on their main European rivals, I am having a chuckle and smile reminiscing about Monday night and our second #SHEKICKSBACK evening, organised in conjunction with the Women’s Soccer Zone podcast.
If you haven’t attended one (our first was hilarious and informative in equal measure, with Kelly Smith & Pauline Boanas), and it’s likely you haven’t as only 110 or so lucky souls have done so, then you are probably wondering what they’re like and what goes on.
This week’s event was held in Cask Corner Dive bar in Doncaster, which was an oasis of cosy conviviality, amidst the downpour in the quiet town centre.
The audience – including four hardy souls who have attended both of our first #SKBs, namely Darren Gilham, Sarah Harrison, Tom Johnstone and Natalia Sollohub – bought drinks, had a chat and picked their seats in front of the small stage, in readiness for Kieran’s Theivam’s introduction to the evening.
We are going for a laid back, intimate and accessible vibe, so the stools we had to sit on weren’t ideal but it meant that all could see (thanks to feedback from our first night attendees) and by 7.40 we were in full flow, with Kaz Walker joining me for 30 or so minutes to talk about her career, how she started out, how she never really rated herself as a player but absolutely knew she could score goals (scoring with your first touch for England is a decent kick off!) what it was like being a Doncaster Belle, the crushing frustration of being left out of the national side by Ted Copeland for three years and then having to toil to change Hope Powell’s received perception of her when she took over and being handed the captaincy. Not only was Kaz ‘one of a kind’ on the field – many feel that England have yet to find a replacement for such a natural goal scorer who can dominate aerially and lead the attack – she is also a real character off it too and her many tales about team mates like her England roomie Sammy Britton and former Belle/England midfielder Chantelle Woodhead, going to press conferences in her pjs and other stories we simply can’t mention her, were entertaining all evening.
There’s a genuine warmth between team mates from the Belles and especially England, from the 80s/90s and early 2000s (not to say that team spirit does not exist today) that comes across in the way that they talk about one another and there was also a streak of mischief and fun that survives in the banter and stories they tell today. It was also clear to see in how happy our three guests were to see each other, particularly ex Leeds teamies Sue and Kaz, who haven’t got together for some years.
Sue Smith’s bubbly persona, the one you see regularly on BBC & Sky’s women’s football coverage, is just as amiable off screen too, plus she’s still a fine player, as Belles fans know only too well. She has an impressive club and England history, arguably never quite hitting the heights her undoubted talent deserved and deserves. She also has a raft of amusing memories of scrapes and mischief that herself and her partner in crime, Rachel Yankey, got up to on England duty when they were the babies in the squad in the late 90s and early 2000s. On one occasion some members of the team – they don’t know who it was to this day – emptied EVERYTHING out of their hotel room (beds and all) to teach them a lesson! You’ll likely have heard in the past day or two about her using a Rice Krispie square in her sock in La Manga when she realised she had only one shin pad but did you know that she was such a perfectionist on the pitch that she worked with a psychologist to learn to get over mistakes on the field more quickly during a game?
You see? It’s a mix of funny and honest.
After a quick break, the audience heard next from former England & Belles captain Gill Coultard about her views on the game and a bit about her experiences at the elite level before got all three u together for some further reminiscing, bouncing of memories and opinions around and taking questions from the floor.
I knew it was a good evening because there were grins all around the room and even the bar staff were captivated and laughing along. It is such a privilege to hear from such inspirational women and the audience always play their part too. They were an extra help when they joined in a cheery rendition of ‘Happy Birthday’ for Sue Smith who was celebrating another year on this earth, the following day (they had all signed her card as well!). When fans got pics and autographs from the players at the end, many of them got a slice of the cake that Kieran presented to Sue too!
It feels good to be part of such a wholesome event, albeit with its cheeky side, within such a great community/sport and to time, respect and recognition to greats of the game. And we were again able to make a donation to Breast Cancer Care.
We can’t wait for the next one. Hope you can make it along too! More details on the coming weeks but we are looking at the end of Feb.
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