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Southampton Women


jawillwill

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I occasionally see posts on Facebook about the women's team and notice they are now on a 10 game winning streak. But how good are they? How does the league structure work for women (E.g. Is it possible for them to reach the top flight? If so, how many promotions would be required?).

 

Where do they even play? Do many people watch? What's their biggest crowd? Are they professional? Do they train at Staplewood?

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A serious question deserves a serious answer. I'm pretty sure they play at AFC Totton's ground. They applied to join the Championship last summer but weren't accepted possibly through not having an adult team at the time but then neither did Utd but they were accepted. I think there is a pyramid arrangement and they are in a regional league fairly well down.

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I don't think that's the official women's team of Southampton fc. Pretty sure they are another level below that.

can get confusing as there are 3 different women's clubs (Southampton saints, Southampton women's fc and then Southampton fc women's).

Southampton fc women's is the official women's team of Southampton fc.

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Here's a small intro;

 

Relatively young squad having pretty much been an U20 squad last season, bit of a turn over from last seasons squad.

Coached by Marianne Spacey-Cale, who was highly regarded at The FA and is seen as bit of a coup when appointed.

Team plays in effectively a grassroots league, which is a frustration amongst players - train in a multi - million pound complex and then end up playing Sunday league opposition. Got knocked out by Portsmouth in Hampshire Cup (have a terrible record against them).

 

The younger age groups is an impressive set up (RTC - female equivalent of an academy). Runs in parallel to boy academy in terms of philosophy, standard of coaching etc. Number of the girls represent England youth age groups and training camps, along with a couple of Wales and Irish internationals. Only have to compete with Brighton, Reading and Chelsea for local talent. (Pompey don't have an RTC but building a programme that's half decent).

 

You still have Southampton FC, Southampton Ladies and Girls and Southampton Womens.

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Team plays in effectively a grassroots league, which is a frustration amongst players - train in a multi - million pound complex and then end up playing Sunday league opposition.

 

Thanks for post Monk. Yep, I play in a local grassroots league and thank goodness for revolving subs (!). There are plenty of players who know what they are doing, but to be polite, quite a number who don't..

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To be fair pompey women are levels above them

Pompey are 2 levels above Southampton FC (Tier 3 v Tier 5). If they get promoted this season it could be quite interesting next as they would then be in the same league as Southampton Saints and Southampton Women (both of whom claim to be the direct descendants of RS Southampton who won the Womens FA Cup many times back in the day, and until recently were the most successful womens team ever). Saints are the team that used to be affiliated to the Football Club, I think it was Lowe who cut them adrift when they were in the 2nd tier. Promotion and relegation in the women's game can be a bit of a lottery, sometimes the FA artificially move teams up or down as they see fit, and some new teams join at a top level if they are called Manchester while others who are called something unfashionable like Southampton have to start at the bottom of the ladder. Currently 2nd in league with 10 wins from 10, but behind AFC Bournemouth who have won 10 from 11, 3-1 to Southampton earlier in the season. Decider is last match of the season, 31 March at Verwood. Suspect only the winners are automatically promoted to Tier 4.

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A bit of a vested interest here as I have daughters who have been at the RTC, initially the Hampshire FA one then Saints when they took over a few years ago.

 

The girls are treated just as the boys are, access to all the facilities, physio, medical etc. They wear gps trackers and get video analysis after every game.

 

They train 3 nights a week and play against other RTC’s - Chelsea, Arsenal, Brighton etc as well as boys teams in the same age group.

 

The standard is pretty high, several of the girls are in the relevant England squad and developing well.

 

Regarding the adult team, they are as professional as they can be, full time coaches, all the kit and they play at AFC Tottenham.

 

They were promoted 2 leagues last year as they were beating everyone and the aim is to get to WSL as soon as possible. Some of the girls from the RTC are already playing for the team at 16 and 17. So again they want to grow from the academy.

 

Despite some of the negative comments on here about women’s football, they take it very seriously and are improving rapidly.

If you’ ve got a free afternoon, why not pop down to Totton to support, I know they would really appreciate it

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

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A bit of a vested interest here as I have daughters who have been at the RTC, initially the Hampshire FA one then Saints when they took over a few years ago.

 

The girls are treated just as the boys are, access to all the facilities, physio, medical etc. They wear gps trackers and get video analysis after every game.

 

They train 3 nights a week and play against other RTC’s - Chelsea, Arsenal, Brighton etc as well as boys teams in the same age group.

 

The standard is pretty high, several of the girls are in the relevant England squad and developing well.

 

Regarding the adult team, they are as professional as they can be, full time coaches, all the kit and they play at AFC Tottenham.

 

They were promoted 2 leagues last year as they were beating everyone and the aim is to get to WSL as soon as possible. Some of the girls from the RTC are already playing for the team at 16 and 17. So again they want to grow from the academy.

 

Despite some of the negative comments on here about women’s football, they take it very seriously and are improving rapidly.

If you’ ve got a free afternoon, why not pop down to Totton to support, I know they would really appreciate it

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

 

Much appreciated your comments and it’s great they are doing well.

The bit I want to know is who is the one I need to keep an eye out for that would one day reach the standards of say Chelsea. I’m seeing loads of video clips on the bbc website and it’s getting more popular every season.

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Did you play football sue?

 

Yes, Hypo, hence my genuine interest in the subject and posting on the thread. Your contribution is just your usual right wing bullying negativity and has absolutely no connection with this thread. We all know you're a deeply unpleasant individual so there's no need to confirm it at every opportunity.

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Did you play football sue?

 

My only experience of watching woman’s football wasn’t a good one. It was when I was on holiday in Italy a few years back. We wandered into the local town and noticed there was a full on women’s match going on. At first I was quite interested, the standard seemed reasonable enough and the game was being played in good spirit. However things soon went downhill. Playing for one of the teams was a middle aged English woman, whilst most of the women were quite talented she really didn’t have much of a clue what she was doing, she was a lot less fit than the others too. Probably the worst thing was though that she spent the entire game ranting at everyone, giving foul mouthed volleys of abuse at anyone that dared to challenge her, her team mates for questioning every misplaced pass, missed shot or late tackle, of which there were many. On several occasions too she berated the ref waving imaginary cards at him and demanding other players be sent off for the most innocuous of things. Despite all this she clearly thought she was a bit better than anyone else and strutted round the pitch like she owned it, to be blunt it was embarrassing, she really made an arse of herself but the worst thing was she didn’t seem to realise it.

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FWIW I was at the women's world cup in Vancouver...went to a couple of games...53,000 to watch Canada women v England women...great match, high quality football and terrific entertainment. Some way to go to match the speed and intensity of men's football (no sexism, just being respectful by being honest)...but tons of skill, excitement and entertainment. I was impressed.

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FWIW I was at the women's world cup in Vancouver...went to a couple of games...53,000 to watch Canada women v England women...great match, high quality football and terrific entertainment. Some way to go to match the speed and intensity of men's football (no sexism, just being respectful by being honest)...but tons of skill, excitement and entertainment. I was impressed.

 

Its interesting to hear about the speed / intensity. I heard an interview with a female squash player a few years back that was really interesting. She was well aware of the speed/intensity differences in her sport but was also aware of the skill level, commitment and excellence etc. She said she basically viewed the two (mens and womens squash) as two different sports. I thought it was an interesting way to look at it - there are obvious comparisons (its the same game!) but if you just focus no the differences you will never fully enjoy or understand the product. Thats where we are now with football really - we're all used to mens footy, especially in this country where it is more intense than other parts of the the globe who love it just as much as we do. Treating womans football as a slightly different entity is probbaly whats needed to understand its quality. Having a dig at womens football is easy but frankly is lazy and ignorant. If lazy and ignorant is you then crack on

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Ooh, the other member of the boy's tag team has arrived. I'll have to guess the content, but I suspect it won't be about Southampton Women's football team. I might be so bold as to guess he's having a go at me in some way.

 

Strange post but kind of sums up both Sues anger issues. Reacting like that to a post she can’t see, assuming it’s both about her and having a go at her when it’s nothing of the sort. What an ego. Still we all have our demons.

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Yes, Hypo, hence my genuine interest in the subject and posting on the thread. Your contribution is just your usual right wing bullying negativity and has absolutely no connection with this thread. We all know you're a deeply unpleasant individual so there's no need to confirm it at every opportunity.

 

:thumbup:

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Dare comment and risk being labelled transphobic.

 

Martina Navratilova dropped by group. Maybe she needs to go to a camp to be re-educated to eradicate all her phobias. Comical fckers.

 

LGBT group severs links with Navratilova over transgender comments http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-47301007

 

Brave woman. Hats off to her.

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Dare comment and risk being labelled transphobic.

 

Martina Navratilova dropped by group. Maybe she needs to go to a camp to be re-educated to eradicate all her phobias. Comical fckers.

 

LGBT group severs links with Navratilova over transgender comments http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-47301007

 

FFS another group to leap to be offended

 

What’s wrong with what she’s said? It’s absolutely true. Funnily enough we’re yet to read too many cases where a woman decided she wants to be a bloke and wants to compete at top level in their chosen sport. There is a reason for that, they know they won’t be able too.

 

I know it’s not their fault and I know we have to be kind to people with these mental illnesses these days and I’m sure they’ll find a cure for it eventually but until then They have to sort of get on with it. We have a paraolympics for physical disabilities so many he should have one for mentally ill too, we can include trannies in that and the upside is the ones that wish they were men will smash it out the park, you’re virtually guaranteed a medal, if they’re doubling with depression or anxiety it’ll kill two birds with one stone.

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FFS another group to leap to be offended

 

What’s wrong with what she’s said? It’s absolutely true. Funnily enough we’re yet to read too many cases where a woman decided she wants to be a bloke and wants to compete at top level in their chosen sport. There is a reason for that, they know they won’t be able too.

 

I know it’s not their fault and I know we have to be kind to people with these mental illnesses these days and I’m sure they’ll find a cure for it eventually but until then They have to sort of get on with it. We have a paraolympics for physical disabilities so many he should have one for mentally ill too, we can include trannies in that and the upside is the ones that wish they were men will smash it out the park, you’re virtually guaranteed a medal, if they’re doubling with depression or anxiety it’ll kill two birds with one stone.

 

Penises are social constructs

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Well at least Martina had the ‘balls’ to say what everyone is thinking [emoji6]

 

 

Speak for yourself sweetheart. I haven't read everything she has written but a lot appears to be crap. I'm aware of 4 transwomen in the local football I play in: tier 6 and 7 so the lowest there is. I've only heard disparaging comments from the touch line, none whatsoever from any player, nor any complaints about them playing. We leave that to the snowflake guys.

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Speak for yourself sweetheart. I haven't read everything she has written but a lot appears to be crap. I'm aware of 4 transwomen in the local football I play in: tier 6 and 7 so the lowest there is. I've only heard disparaging comments from the touch line, none whatsoever from any player, nor any complaints about them playing. We leave that to the snowflake guys.

 

Can’t believe you count them. Shame on you.

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Speak for yourself sweetheart. I haven't read everything she has written but a lot appears to be crap. I'm aware of 4 transwomen in the local football I play in: tier 6 and 7 so the lowest there is. I've only heard disparaging comments from the touch line, none whatsoever from any player, nor any complaints about them playing. We leave that to the snowflake guys.

 

Ignoring the rights or wrongs of this, they must be absolutely shocking at football.

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Speak for yourself sweetheart. I haven't read everything she has written but a lot appears to be crap. I'm aware of 4 transwomen in the local football I play in: tier 6 and 7 so the lowest there is. I've only heard disparaging comments from the touch line, none whatsoever from any player, nor any complaints about them playing. We leave that to the snowflake guys.
What about a more violent sport like boxing or wrestling. Is that OK?

 

What about female to male athletes competing against girls?

 

It's definitely a level playing field. 511641ec1f78564cb2254be477116c41.jpg

Edited by hypochondriac
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Tyson Fury has decided to self-identify as a lady, and rule the women's heavyweight division. First ever world champ across both genders.
It's interesting regarding this subject that you never hear about female to male athletes dominating men's sport. It's almost as if there are clear biological differences between men and women...
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It's interesting regarding this subject that you never hear about female to male athletes dominating men's sport. It's almost as if there are clear biological differences between men and women...

 

Don’t be silly. Larger lung capacity, higher peak flow, larger heart, larger skeletal muscles with a greater percentage of fast twitch fibres, and larger bones are all mere social constructs and products of the oppressive patriarchy and toxic masculinity!

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Cracking 2nd goal from England Women last night. Probably better than anything scored in the Premier League this week.

 

The point about the crowd doesn't really make sense. It's a new competition and neither team were playing at home. The media still report heavily on test match cricket when there's hardly anyone watching. The South Africa v Sri Lanka series was amazing but there was barely anyone in the stadium.

 

I know half the comments on here are in jest but there's some really weird negativity towards the women's game.

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Cracking 2nd goal from England Women last night. Probably better than anything scored in the Premier League this week.

 

The point about the crowd doesn't really make sense. It's a new competition and neither team were playing at home. The media still report heavily on test match cricket when there's hardly anyone watching. The South Africa v Sri Lanka series was amazing but there was barely anyone in the stadium.

 

I know half the comments on here are in jest but there's some really weird negativity towards the women's game.

 

It isn’t negativity but the blatant promotion when it has yet to have the interest.

 

The actually had women’s cricket before the men’s one day game as well.

 

Schar’s goal was pretty decent btw

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The point about the crowd doesn't really make sense. It's a new competition and neither team were playing at home. The media still report heavily on test match cricket when there's hardly anyone watching. The South Africa v Sri Lanka series was amazing but there was barely anyone in the stadium.

I think the comparisons of crowds is valid. There is less demand to watch women's football but the BBC want to push an equality agenda, so fervently promote it nevertheless. I think it's a fools game. Ultimately the market will decide.

 

You can liken it to the Paralympics. There's no doubt that fewer people want to watch disabled people take part in sports than able bodied, but an agenda of "celebrating those with disabilities" means you can ignore the viewer imbalance.

 

There's probably valid sociological reasons why it may or may not be a reasonable stance to take, but you'd struggle to argue that it isn't "agenda driven". I suppose the real question is, who sets the agenda and on what basis?

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I think the comparisons of crowds is valid. There is less demand to watch women's football but the BBC want to push an equality agenda, so fervently promote it nevertheless. I think it's a fools game. Ultimately the market will decide.

 

You can liken it to the Paralympics. There's no doubt that fewer people want to watch disabled people take part in sports than able bodied, but an agenda of "celebrating those with disabilities" means you can ignore the viewer imbalance.

 

There's probably valid sociological reasons why it may or may not be a reasonable stance to take, but you'd struggle to argue that it isn't "agenda driven". I suppose the real question is, who sets the agenda and on what basis?

Very eloquently put sir. It is without doubt agenda driven. I would like to know whether woman's football is self sufficient and sustained purely on their own merits or whether it is subsidised from the men's game. I'm a little sceptical as to whether they are strong enough to stand alone.

 

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Very eloquently put sir. It is without doubt agenda driven. I would like to know whether woman's football is self sufficient and sustained purely on their own merits or whether it is subsidised from the men's game. I'm a little sceptical as to whether they are strong enough to stand alone.

 

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I think they can stand alone as long as they are realistic about the relative interest, pay their players what they can afford rather than relying on external funding sources and look to grow as much as they can.

 

There's obviously interest in female sport despite it often being "inferior" with regards to athletic feats (although not necessarily as a sporting spectacle or entertainment.) Athletics and sports like tennis seem to get it right. No reason that football can't be a bigger success for women as long as they don't foster resentment by doing silly things like comparing it to the mens game.

 

Let's also hope that uk women's football don't make completely retarded comparisons like their counterparts from the US.

 

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=10154101240714030&id=6096369029&_rdr

Edited by hypochondriac
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