Northern Ireland Women v England (12/04/2021)

The match was organised as part of the Monarchy 1000 festival which saw a series of cultural and sporting events held in Bath to mark 1000 years since Edgar, the first king of England, was crowned in Bath in 973. At this point England already had three internationals under their belts against Scotland and France, winning all three games. But this match was only the second one hosted by the WFA in England (the first was against Scotland) . With a kick-off of 7.30pm the match was played under floodlights. It was the first time that either team had played under floodlights, which added extra excitement to the occasion. The Northern Ireland panel was made up of 15 players, seven of whom came from the Mayfair clothing factory team in Portadown. The Belfast Telegraph nicknamed the first Northern Ireland team that played against the Republic the ‘Petticoat International Panel’ due to the presence of the Mayfair players.

The rest of the team were made up of players from Albion (Ballymena) , Comber, Glenavon and Minerva. It meant that five out of the eight teams from the domestic league were represented in the national side. The team was managed by Carson Reid and his assistant , Chris Crouch. England won the match by five goals to one. The goalscorers for England were Jeannie Allott , Lynda Hale (2) , Pat Firth and Sue Lopez. The WFA match report described the Northern Ireland team as “plucky” and noted “their never-say-die tactics brought them their just reward when they scored midway through the second half”. The report went on to say “their sportsmanship, both on and off the pitch, won them a host of new friends”. The Northern Ireland goal was scored by Sharon Gillespie, who played for Mayfair. Although they lost the match it was only the third goal conceded by England, who had held a clean sheet in their previous two games.

- N O R T H E R N I R E L A N D ’ S F I R S T L I N E - U P -

1. Hilary Brady - Minerva -

2. Elizabeth Gadsby - Mayfair - 7. Alison Bennington - Glenavon -

3. Edith James - Mayfair -

4. Madeline Wright - Albion -

5. Jennifer Whiteside - Glenavon - 8. Stephanie McNally - Mayfair -

11. Hazel McQuiston - Albion -

6. Isabel Robson - Comber -

9. Louise Fleming - Mayfair -

10. Sharon Gillespie - Mayfair -

Helena Byrne researches the history of women’s football on the island of Ireland.

IRISHFA.COM

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