A Cumbrian ladies football team has been getting fully into the spirit of this year’s Women’s Euros.
Workington Reds Ladies have been loving the increased visibility the games are bringing to women’s football and are anxiously hoping to see a win for England in tonight’s semi-final.
Assistant coach and goalkeeper coach Rebecca Scott said: “The team has been loving the Euros. A few of us went to the opener against Austria at Old Trafford, which was incredible to be part of a crowd that was over 68,000.
“I’ve been lucky enough to get tickets to both the semi-finals and the final coming up this week. This will be my second time watching England in a semi-final, with the last time being in France in 2019, where we lost to the USA in the World Cup – I’m hoping we can go one better this time.”
Aside from the team’s own keen interest in the Euros, Rebecca said she had also seen a big increase in interest in women’s football in Cumbria.
She added: “The amount of people at my work who are watching the Lionesses then coming in and talking about it the day after is brilliant. The increased visibility of this Euros is definitely having an impact, with people of all walks of life engaging in the tournament atmosphere.”
The Reds rebooted in 2011 and initially competed in the Cumbria Women’s League before finishing as runner-up in the 2013 to 2014 season, which promoted them to the North West Women’s Regional League Division One North.
They have competed in this league since facing opponents from areas such as Manchester, Preston and Liverpool.
Last season, the team had their highest finish and points total, coming fifth in a very competitive league and they aim to improve more in the upcoming season.
Rebecca first joined Workington Reds Ladies in 1997 when she was 13 years old and has remained friends with those she played with at the time 20 years later.
It’s a sport she firmly believes women of all ages should play, and with a variety of training academies and scholarships available across the UK, she said she believed there had never been a better time than now for girls to achieve highly in football.
She added: “Women’s football has grown massively since I first started play, but it still amazes me now when I see young girls walking round with Mead, White, Bright, Bronze and Cumbria’s own Stanway on the back of their shirt.
“Young girls now have role models and heroes just like them, that can only be a good thing for the future of the Women’s game in England.”
For youngsters, there are clubs all over West Cumbria that are part of the Cumberland FA leagues structure, which provide training and matches.
For women, there is the Andrea Buggy Women’s nine-a-side Summer League, which has grown significantly over the last few years and now has 10 teams from across Cumbria competing on a weekly basis.
With three women’s teams in the Lancashire county league and three at the North West Regional level, including the Reds, there is a vast amount of opportunities in Cumbria for women to play at a high standard weekly.
