[Albion] Women’s Football

[Milano]

What do the club mean by a ‘specialised women football stadium’?
Is it just a smaller capacity? Is it different changing rooms?

Re the pitch/goal size. 100 years ago the average male was less than 6ft tall. Just look at any house built before about 2000, low door frames and ceilings.

 

[brighton_dave]

Couldn't get to game last night, but it sounds as though it wasn't the best selection for the Amex. A Man United or Chelsea will have drawn more fans in, albeit lots of locals following the away side.
The game has come on massively, there has been some great performances by us and some pretty terrible ones too. We enjoyed the football more under Phillips, but somethings happened there and we move on. I think we need the summer to remould the squad.
The standard will never be the same, BUT their is a growth in girls teams, and an ever increasing audience.
The atmosphere is a little tame I agree, and you do at times get looked at a little oddly when you try and get a song going. More support would be lovely from the stands.
I'd hate to see some of the language and behaviour seen in the men's game find it's way into the women's game, the audience is very different. I've heard some of it creeping in with away fans up at Crawely, West Ham or Chelsea I think used some awful language. I'd hate that to creep in which may well impact the attendance if children.
You've been, you didn't like, don't go again. Some will have gone, liked it and will return. I don't see why it is necessary to run it down any further, you've given your thoughts, you wont go back, fine. Good on you for giving if a go, now move on.
Me personally, I like both and know I will be served a different experience watching the men and women's teams. I pay
around £120 per season, 2 adults and 1 child & set my expectations accordingly.
For me as a dad, the growth in the women's game has massive benefits, namely a focus away from all the shit and pressure being chucked at girls across social media etc.
Having someone like Earps to look up to, and the happiness my daughter has having several photos with Lee and Terland is more than enough for me.
Beats having social media tik tok obsessed kids anyday, I know this only too well.

 

[Mackenzie]

I went to Wales women v Germany at the Liberty stadium a few months ago, it was fantastic. I'd go again given the chance.

 

[brighton_dave]

What do the club mean by a ‘specialised women football stadium’?
Is it just a smaller capacity? Is it different changing rooms?

Re the pitch/goal size. 100 years ago the average male was less than 6ft tall. Just look at any house built before about 2000, low door frames and ceilings.

As far as I'm aware all the stadiums used by the women's teams were developed for men's sides.
So looking at the facilties, they are not designed for an audience of mostly women and girls. You'll see this from the toilet queues.
We will be be the first club to design a stadium with the requirements of ladies being at the front.

 

[GT49er]

Unfortunately, given that blazer-wearing-misogynists banned women from playing football for 50-years in this country, any male voice in this discussion should just shut the f*** up.

I'm not a blazer-wearing-misogynist, and I've never condoned banning women from playing football if they want to. If they want to, and people want to watch them, that's absolutely fine. Your implication that as I'm male (blazer-wearing-misogynist or not) I should just the f*** up is, frankly, sexually discriminating and offensive.

If you don’t like the sport - just don’t f***ing watch it.

I don't dislike it or like it. I'm just not interested. For 60 years of my life I've followed football. For those 60 years, it was mainly a men's sport - OK, Doncaster Belles were apparently good, and Leasowe something from the Merseyside area too. I just followed the Albion - and yes, the Albion team I followed was made up of blokes.

Let women decide how they want to develop their sport.

Yes, absolutely agree. But if I'm not interested, don't ram it down my throat - I have an absolute right to be interested in what I want to be interested in, and not to be interested if I'm not. And don't you dare to question my right to decide what I want to be interested in or not, or criticise my personal choice.

 

[dazzer6666]

What do the club mean by a ‘specialised women football stadium’?
Is it just a smaller capacity? Is it different changing rooms?

Re the pitch/goal size. 100 years ago the average male was less than 6ft tall. Just look at any house built before about 2000, low door frames and ceilings.

Barber speaks about this in the latest Albion podcast. Yes, different changing rooms for obvious reasons

 

[Cotton Socks]

Women's football is never going to be the same as men's until they're allowed to play 'mixed' football at school. That won't happen because it's been decided that women are not 'tough' enough to play the 'mans' game. The only time girls can play 'mixed' football is in the playground & then they have to get special 'dispensation' from the boys as they're 'good'. Or just threaten to knee them in the nuts if they don't let you play (30+ years ago, that may have changed). Then they have to be 'better' than the shittiest player of the boys to carry on playing at lunchtime. You don't see any girls in goal, in a mixed playground match.
There are a lot of girls these days who want to play football rather than the limited options that there used to be for girls, which was basically netball, hockey & rounders. If a girl is tough enough to be smacked on the shins with a wooden hockey stick, why are they too 'delicate' to have their shins studded? Yes I know that the hockey sticks of today are plastic, but girls wanted to play football years ago while they were being smacked by wooden hockey sticks, but weren't allowed. It seems that falling to the floor and acting like someone has choked you (I'm talking to you Ben White) isn't a prevalent thing in women's football.
You theoretically have a point re the goal size but it's a 'meh' point, the girls/women are used to playing on the same size pitches, with the same size goals. Years of not being able to play football is what makes the women's game different to the men's.
Atmosphere is because it's still not a 'mans' game. Lets face it women are still frowned upon if they use the 'C' word, let alone have their supporters sing 'the referee's a w**ker' there is not going to be an atmosphere generated like there is at a mans game, because it's not equal. I don't think it's the players that insist there's no bad language, just a 'perception' that females of today don't like to hear bad language, as it was years ago. It's b**locks, swearing has moved on & there aren't many females I know that would be worried about telling someone to f**k off. Admittedly that may be down to the company I keep.

 

[boik]

The o/ps comment about goal sizes is weird. Back in the old days male keepers were probably 5'9 5'10, but men's goals haven't got bigger as average height increased!

 

[Sid and the Sharknados]

Barber speaks about this in the latest Albion podcast. Yes, different changing rooms for obvious reasons

Jon Filby from Sussex CCC was talking about how they're building a proper women's pavilion with separate women's changing rooms while he was on the cricket commentary a week or two ago.
Good idea, sadly didn't lead to Sussex getting one of the women's teams.

 

[zefarelly]

What do the club mean by a ‘specialised women football stadium’?
Is it just a smaller capacity? Is it different changing rooms?

Re the pitch/goal size. 100 years ago the average male was less than 6ft tall. Just look at any house built before about 2000, low door frames and ceilings.

average height has indeed increased . . . Its still less than 6'

Ceilings have lowered . . . . cheaper . . . . Plasterboard is the size it is because . . . . . . You can still buy lath and plaster in 12', 14' and in some builders merchants 16' bags

Trravis Perkins have just reintroduced the adjustable mahogany door and frame kit as well. All genuine SOuth American hardwood, sliding joints, so anything from 12' down,

 

[Terry Butcher Tribute Act]

I don’t really get why my 10 year old son would be a worse footballer than a 10 year old girl, because girls were banned from playing the game 50 years ago. Unless you are suggesting there has been some kind of evolutionary development in human males that has enabled them to kick a football better than females and it’s passed on from generation to generation. Which seems unlikely.

You don't understand why a total absence of players and coaches 50 years ago would impact on the standard of women's football now, relative to a sport which has dominated the agenda for boys for years and years?

I think you made up your mind a long time ago, you're just using 90 minutes of an end of season dead rubber between lesser sides to confirm what you thought all along.

 

[Mr Bridger]

average height has indeed increased . . . Its still less than 6'

Ceilings have lowered . . . . cheaper . . . . Plasterboard is the size it is because . . . . . . You can still buy lath and plaster in 12', 14' and in some builders merchants 16' bags

Trravis Perkins have just reintroduced the adjustable misogyny door and frame kit as well. All genuine SOuth American hardwood, sliding joints, so anything from 12' down,

You little tinker.

 

[Steve in Japan]

Hmmm. If only there was another sport that had thoughtfully adjusted pitch sizes and ball size to make the Women's game an enjoyable watch.....

 

[Iggle Piggle]

The goal size suggestion is so obvious a solution that for some reason has a mental block on normally right minded people.

As an example, a lad I coach has gone from a 9 a side to an 11 a side goal. He has also gone from an excellent GK to a bang average GK overnight. He is sacking off being in goal because he hasn't had his growth spurt and has lost a load of confidence because it's too big. As a hockey GK and wicket keeper in younger years I totally get where he is coming from but as much as I try I can't give him confidence.

Still, let's keep women's goal full size yeah? I'm sure that'll attract the best of the best.

 

[Pondicherry]

Well they have 50 years of being banned to make up for, so I wouldn’t begrudge the game a bit of extra airtime as it improves

Women were never banned form playing football.

 

[Invicta]

Go if you want to or don't. Not sure of the need to compare men's games to women's games. Live your life as you want.

 

[dazzer6666]

Women were never banned form playing football.

No, just professionally, and from using any professional facilities

 

[Commander]

Re the pitch/goal size. 100 years ago the average male was less than 6ft tall. Just look at any house built before about 2000, low door frames and ceilings.

Someone else mentioned this yesterday, and it’s a good point that I hadn’t considered. I guess my argument against it would be that the game has come on so much since then with tactics and systems and technical ability that if we played in goal sizes today equivalent to average male heights then, there would be far, far fewer goals. So the same goes for women’s football as well- presumably that Brighton side from Friday night would absolutely batter a men’s team from the time when football was first invented.

 

[Commander]

Women's football is never going to be the same as men's until they're allowed to play 'mixed' football at school. That won't happen because it's been decided that women are not 'tough' enough to play the 'mans' game. The only time girls can play 'mixed' football is in the playground & then they have to get special 'dispensation' from the boys as they're 'good'. Or just threaten to knee them in the nuts if they don't let you play (30+ years ago, that may have changed). Then they have to be 'better' than the shittiest player of the boys to carry on playing at lunchtime. You don't see any girls in goal, in a mixed playground match.
There are a lot of girls these days who want to play football rather than the limited options that there used to be for girls, which was basically netball, hockey & rounders. If a girl is tough enough to be smacked on the shins with a wooden hockey stick, why are they too 'delicate' to have their shins studded? Yes I know that the hockey sticks of today are plastic, but girls wanted to play football years ago while they were being smacked by wooden hockey sticks, but weren't allowed. It seems that falling to the floor and acting like someone has choked you (I'm talking to you Ben White) isn't a prevalent thing in women's football.
You theoretically have a point re the goal size but it's a 'meh' point, the girls/women are used to playing on the same size pitches, with the same size goals. Years of not being able to play football is what makes the women's game different to the men's.
Atmosphere is because it's still not a 'mans' game. Lets face it women are still frowned upon if they use the 'C' word, let alone have their supporters sing 'the referee's a w**ker' there is not going to be an atmosphere generated like there is at a mans game, because it's not equal. I don't think it's the players that insist there's no bad language, just a 'perception' that females of today don't like to hear bad language, as it was years ago. It's b**locks, swearing has moved on & there aren't many females I know that would be worried about telling someone to f**k off. Admittedly that may be down to the company I keep.

There is a girl in my son’s under 10’s team. She’s decent. Girls play football in the playground if they want to. There are two girls in my nephew’s Under 13’s team. I don’t know what the rules are on when they have to go to girls football, but they’re certainly not being split up at the moment.

I’m friends with the parents of the girl in my son’s team, they are adamant they want her playing in a boys’ team for as long as she can physically cope with it, because the standard is so much better and she is developing much more quickly because of it. They took her to a girls club recently for a trial as she is starting to struggle a little bit, but the standard was so bad and she was head and shoulders above any of the other girls, that they gave up on the idea immediately. I don’t know what’s the best option for the development of young girl players as a whole, but if I had a daughter that was half decent I’d be doing the same, keeping her in a boys team as long as possible.

 

[Harry Wilson's tackle]

What do the club mean by a ‘specialised women football stadium’?
Is it just a smaller capacity? Is it different changing rooms?

Re the pitch/goal size. 100 years ago the average male was less than 6ft tall. Just look at any house built before about 2000, low door frames and ceilings.

100 years ago average male height in the UK was 5 foot 7.
Today it is still only 5 foot 10!

Men's average height 'up 11cm since 1870s'

The average height of European men has risen by almost 11cm since the mid-19th century, experts have found.

www.bbc.co.uk