The Crouch End Athletic Ground was crowded on Saturday afternoon in expectation of the novelty of a football match among ladies. Very few of those present, however, can have seen much of the game, for, except in the case of the favoured occupants of the small grandstand, the spectators had to stand on the flat unbanked ground. As for the press writers, the small box provided would not hold a tenth of them, and the remainder had to fight for places with such success as they might.

Women’s football takes centre stage in museum exhibition | Anna Kessel Read more

When the two teams of ladies came running briskly out of the pavilion they were greeted with cheers and good humoured laughter. Their costumes, of course, came in for a good deal of attention, but, thanks to the illustrated papers and the recent developments of gymnastics and cycling, the general public has become so familiar with “Rational” dress that it no longer creates anything like a sensation. The ladies of the North team wore loose red blouses with white yokes, and full black knickerbockers fastened below the knee, black stockings, red berretta caps, brown leather boots, and leg-pads. The South wore blouses of light and dark blue in large squares, and blue caps, the rest of their dress being the same as that of the other team. A few wore white gloves, and some discarded caps altogether. One or two added a short skirt above the knickerbockers, but this rather detracted from the good appearance of the dress, as the skirts flapped about in the wind and rendered movement less graceful. One girl in the blue team had a light blue pocket on the side of her knickerbockers, which gave rise to cries of “Go it, pocket!” from the bystanders when the game grew hot. There were some dishevelled locks towards the end of the game, and when the girls are able to play more vigorously they will probably find it necessary to adopt a tauter form of headgear than a loose hanging berretta perched on the back of the head. In other respects I may frankly say that the costume is pretty, becoming, graceful, and irreproachable from the point of view of good taste.

There is nothing ungraceful in a girl kicking a football when she has got rid of the skirts which make the action hideous

In my own mind, as well, probably, as in the minds of the majority of those present, there was some doubt as to the effect of a number of girls clad in an unfamiliar dress indulging in a game which is usually of the roughest character, but I can only say that the impression left on my mind by the afternoon’s play was that it was an extremely pretty sight. There is nothing ungraceful in a girl kicking a football when she has got rid of the skirts which make the action hideous, and the light figures of the girls chasing each other up and down the ground were always pleasant to watch.

The Association game was played. As for the quality of the playing, those may criticise it who are qualified to judge, but it was evident even to the ignorant that it was of the mildest description. Only two of the girls were able to kick with any freedom, and not many ran well, the habit of wearing long skirts and tight waists showing plainly in the violent elbow action of the majority. They danced round the ball when they reached it as if uncertain what to do with it, much after the manner of a lapdog which has accidentally laid hold of the cat which he has made elaborate show of pursuing. From the playing of the North goalkeeper, however, whose kicks were far superior to the rest, I imagine that women players may after some further practice develop a style of play which may be both vigorous and graceful.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest The British Ladies’ Football Club, 1895: (standing) Lily Lynn, Nettie Honeyball, Williams, Edwards, Ide (sitting) Compton, F. B. Fenn, Nellie Gilbert, P. Smith, Rosa Thiere, Biggs. Photograph: The Picture Art Collection/Alamy Stock Photo/Alamy Stock Photo

At present both teams have only had a few months’ practice, and no real play could therefore be expected. On the North side there was a tiny player who was readier and more active than any of the rest. The crowd decided that she was a boy, and dubbed her (or him) “Tommy,” but how the case really stood I cannot say.

The North team were by far the best, and deserved the seven goals to one by which they beat their opponents. The crowd, while evidently much amused at the peculiar style of play, were genuinely interested, and backed up the respective sides with shouts and cries of encouragement, Miss Honeyball’s name giving rise to cries of ‘Come on, my honey,” while the small player was appealed to – “Tommy, are you a boy?”

When the novelty has worn off, I do not think that ladies’ football matches will attract crowds, but there seems no reason why the game should not he annexed by women for their own use as a new and healthful form of recreation. One other point was made quite clear by Saturday’s exhibition, that the “Rational” costume – that is, tunic and knickerbockers – is the only dress in which women will take active exercise in the future. The women’s football match has settled that.