‘I wanted to prove a point’

AS GOOD AS THEY GET: Hope Powell has worked to obtain her pro managing licence; inset below, with current England Women’s manager Sarina Wiegman

THIS SUMMER the Women’s World Cup takes place in Australia and New Zealand. England will be among the favourites after their stunning Euros success last year.

There have been growing calls for greater diversity among the Lionesses’ squad. However, Black players have played their part in the progression of the women’s game.

Kerry Davis, the first Black player to play for the Lionesses, was recently inducted into the National Football Museum’s Hall of Fame.

Hope Powell, was the first Black coach of England Women while the likes of veteran Nikita Parris and up and coming Lauren James are likely to be on the plane to Australia and New Zealand for the upcoming global showcase.

Powell talks to the Voice of Sport’s Rodney Hinds about her time in the game…

RH: What were your feelings when appointed as national coach?

HP: I think I experienced every emotion. I was overwhelmed at first. It was very exciting, but a bit scary too.

Then I thought, this is a once in a lifetime opportunity, I’ve got to do it. Being young, female, and Black, I knew I could be a positive role model for young people. I was keen to help some young Black people in particular to believe in themselves and strive to be the best. I wanted to succeed for myself and as the first black player in such a senior position, I want to do it for everyone else as well.

RH: As a young woman from south London of Caribbean ancestry how was playing football received in your household?

HP: When I first went to Millwall, my friend’s parents took me as my mum didn’t allow me to go. I went but I got back quite late and I wasn’t going again as far as my mum was concerned, but as far as I was concerned, I was going! There was no way I was not going.

My mum was strict, a typical West Indian. My mother’s culture is a very different culture, so it was a bit difficult for her to understand why a girl would want to play football. It doesn’t happen in Jamaica. Now, she is quite proud, especially after I got the England job, and there was so much media coverage. It’s really funny because sometimes I wonder if she really understands the game and maybe I don’t give her enough credit, Mum will go, ‘How you getting on?’ ‘Who are you playing? Did you win?’ If we don’t win, it’s because the players are not eating enough rice and peas, and she comes back with all of that.

I know she has got a scrapbook, which she tells me about, although I have never seen it. I just think it’s sweet. She follows football on TV now.

RH: How were you received by the wider football industry when you began your journey?

HP: Although I have got the highest coaching qualification in the world, people still look at me as a female and probably don’t give me the credit a man would have, this makes me laugh.

I sit in technical meetings with guys, and they are all very knowledgeable and I listen more. I learn a lot from listening. Whereas a lot of guys want to tell you what they know, and I find it quite comical. The biggest issue is the fact that I’m a female. If I was a man with 66 caps and 35 goals for England and had managed England for seven years, it would be different, but I’m a female in a male world. I’m very cool and calm and have done as much work as anybody else. Actually, no, that is a lie. I have done more as a woman. I had to go and do my pro licence. I wanted to prove a point.

We worked in groups, and I wanted our group to be the best, I pulled my group together and they gave me credit for it. They couldn’t do it. They went off on a tangent.

I wanted to be successful because I didn’t want to be seen as a token gesture.

RH: Share some of the racism that you have endured?

HP: I remember one game when I was quite young and someone referred to me as a black bastard, or something of that nature.

Luckily, one of my teammates heard and she went absolutely berserk. She was five years older than me.

What she did was good, otherwise, I think I would have had a punch up. I didn’t like it. I was not happy. The second occasion was when I was playing for England against Croatia, and I pulled my hamstring right near the tunnel. The physio came on and we decided I should go and shower because obviously I couldn’t play anymore.

As I was walking down the tunnel, this young boy, no more than 12, made a Nazi salute at me. I was shocked. I couldn’t believe it. I think I just smiled. It was like ‘Jesus, you are too young to be even going there.’

CHANGING THE FACE OF FOOTBALL:

From left, Kerry Davis, centre, alongside her nephew Ryan and brother Wayne, was recently inducted into the National Football Museum’s Hall of Fame, while Nikita Parris, right, could make England’s Women’s World Cup

RH: You not only managed the senior women’s team, but she also oversaw the under 19s, 17s and 15s development pool and the National Player Development Centre, as well as implementing a female coach mentoring scheme. With England’s Euros success, you clearly left something tangible behind?

HP: I think from a playing perspective, I wanted to develop the game and move it forward and play the game the right way. I think for every- body on the outside, people that come to watch the game, it has to be entertaining, and just basically move the whole game forward and give the players the opportunity.

The girls were magnificent during Euro 2005. I would argue with anyone that said differently. I think we’ve won over some of our critics. We’ve proved we can compete with the best in the world. There are so many positives to take out of the tournament.

I want the game to be played the right way, I want players to play with the free spirit and not be afraid, and more importantly to enjoy it and certainly have structure.

We have strategies, this is how we are going to play. This is how we have to play and make it more player centred. I want all my players to be free like the Brazilians. You can see that the Brazilians just play with a free spirit and like that. That is what I would like my team to emulate.

I think women’s football is something that is still developing, I think there’s a lot of work to be done, but that excites me. Young kids that are coming through that are so talented and to play a part in their development is great. I would like to do that.

Coach education and attracting more female coaches into the game also appeals to me.