Welcome to Moving the Goalposts, the Guardian’s free women’s football newsletter. Here’s an extract from this week’s edition. To receive the full version once a week, just pop your email in below:
Football is a great tool to connect people, get in touch with old friends and have fun. That perhaps is not telling you anything new but it is what MissKix experience in their weekly training sessions. The team based in Brighton is predominantly composed of lesbian women in their 40s, 50s and 60s, who are finally fulfilling their dreams of being part of a club.
“We didn’t have that opportunity when we were younger, so we’re very appreciative of making the most of it now,” says Andy Cook, one of the founding members. She went to the first MissKix session back in 2016 and is still showing off her skills with the group six years later. Even though some members have left and others joined, Cook feels the connection with her teammates – current and former – goes beyond football.
“The stories of discrimination and difficulties that people have faced in their upbringing bond us,” she says. “There is also the struggle to reach a sense of positive identity, a sense of belonging, and live in the way we want to live. To feel OK about ourselves without internalising that stigma, that homophobia.”
Clare Brunet, one of the first members, got the ball rolling by getting in touch with friends from the LGBTQ+ community and was able to get 16 women to have a kickaround in an unlit park behind someone’s house. Years later, the development is there for everyone to see: they rent a pitch for training sessions, have a coach to help improve their performance and are affiliated to the local Southern Combination Premier Division club AFC Varndeanians.
And everyone seems to be in agreement: being a MissKix member feels like being part of a family. The players share what is going on in their lives with teammates, they are able to feel happiness and celebrate the achievements of their companions and those close to them, as well as supporting them during difficult times. MissKix’s eldest player, Jac Langham, 63, has cancer and is living in a hospice. Though she is not featuring on the pitch she is still part of the team.
“Something the team has done for us is create a really strong connection,” Cook says. “It’s been much more than playing football, much more than the sport. There is something about being in a team that gives us a sense of family and belonging.”
After drills and a game, having a pint is a great way to catch up. “Although some of us had a really core groups of friends, the football team are the people we see, really reliably, regularly, every week,” she adds. “It’s become something much more meaningful in the sense of belonging and a support network.”
On the pitch, however, things can get quite competitive and they need to be careful about injuries. “I think that sometimes we overestimate our ability,” Cook laughs. “When you’re playing, you tend to get very involved and just go for it. I forget that I’m 58, then I take a tumble and it hurts.”
That is why the team decided they’re only joining veteran tournaments from now on. “There have been times in the past when we played younger teams, and obviously, they are much fitter and stronger than us,” Cook says. “My partner broke her leg in a tournament going for a tackle. So now we try to play teams that we are matched in terms of age and ability.”
The MissKix members decided to tell their stories in a book – Jumpers for Goalposts: The Making of the MissKix Women’s Football Team – to show how the game changed their lives. One example is Tina Johnson, Cook’s partner, who was kicked out of the army because of her sexuality. Even though she missed out on sporting opportunities in the armed forces, being part of MissKix gave her a new chance.
“I know that people are generally surprised at our ages but I hope we are an inspiration for younger people,” Cook says. “It’s so important to keep going for as long as you can, and I think the more you do, the fitter and better you feel.”
Talking points
Argentinian anger: Juan Sebastián Verón, the former Argentina international who is now one of the vice-presidents at Estudiantes de la Plata, is under pressure after claiming that investing in women’s football was about “romanticism” and that it is more related to gender than to the sport itself. Estudiantes’ players have fought back with forward Paulina Gramaglia tweeting: “There is nothing more distressing than being a player and listening to one of the managers at your club saying things like this, it takes away your will to do anything.”
Quarter-final time: The Under-17 World Cup is under way and the USA, Nigeria, Germany, Brazil, Colombia, Spain, Japan and Tanzania have qualified for the last eight. The knockout stage starts with games on Friday and Saturday at 12pm and 3.30pm (BST). Games are broadcast on Fifa+.
Ballon d’Or: Alexia Putellas is the first woman to win back-to-back Ballon d’Or awards after picking up the 2022 one on Monday night. The Barcelona midfielder beat Beth Mead and Sam Kerr despite suffering a serious injury just before the Euros. Putellas thanked her teammates in her victory speech. “Winning last year pushed me to want to be even better. Without my teammates, this wouldn’t have been possible,” she said.
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