Inspiration Behind the Dick Kerr Girls Series – for International Women’s Day

8th March 2021

Author Eve Ainsworth has shared this wonderful guest feature with us about the inspiration behind her Dick Kerr Girls series. It’s based on the Dick, Kerr Ladies football team in Preston which was formed during WW1 when the women were working at the Dick, Kerr & Co munitions factory in Preston.

In all honesty, it’s hard not to be inspired by the Dick Kerr Girls’ story. I really don’t think there is a greater sporting story than theirs.

I have always been a huge football fan. Growing up in a working-class household with four older brothers, it was hard not to be! But football was not something that a girl like me would ever had considered playing. Growing up in the 80’s, girls were not encouraged to be involved in the sport at all. It was always seen as a ‘boys’ game’ and even as an avid fan, I often heard others making comments at matches, or see them raise a cynical eyebrow that I actually understood the offside rule or could comprehend the basic rules. It was tiresome.

OK, I was never blessed with natural sporting skills anyway (I was the girl picked last for most PE activities), but I was fast and I understood the game, so who knows how well I might have played given the chance? But that’s the whole point, for years girls weren’t given the chance to play football. We simply weren’t allowed. This was something I didn’t fully understand until I began to write the series.

The Dick Kerr Girls formed a team at a time when it was frowned upon for a woman to even show a leg. They were a group of hardworking, working class women who came together and ultimately proved that they were as good as any male team.  I first became aware of them after watching a news report years ago, so when my agent told me that Uclan wanted to fictionalise their story, I leapt at the chance. Here was an opportunity not only to write about the game I loved, but also to write about the first proper female team – and a great one that.

This was a team that was formed out of the munition factories in World War One. It was a team built on friendship. And it was a team that ultimately won the approval and admiration of fans both locally and beyond, showing not only top-class football skills, but also raising thousands of pounds for injured soldiers and attracting huge audiences. Players such as Alice Kell, Jessie Walmsley and Lily Parr excelled with their skill and ability and were viewed by many as among the best players of their time.

And yet we hardly speak of them today. School children don’t know about these legendary players. They are simply not discussed – unlike the historic male footballers.

It wasn’t until I talked with local historian (and Dick Kerr expert) Gail Newsham, that I truly appreciated what these women did and how they had been hindered. The Dick Kerr Girls were ultimately let down by the one body that should have been supporting and advocating them – The FA.

The FA noted that football was ‘quite unsuitable for females and ought not to be encouraged’ and therefore, in possibly one of the most unjust outcomes in sporting history – in 1921, they banned it. Many people privately felt that women’s football had become too popular, and the FA were unsettled, concerned on the impact on the mens’ teams.

Whatever the reason, this ban would stay in place for thirty years and have a huge impact on the progress of women’s sport. It also showed why for me as child, football still wasn’t encouraged. The hangover was still there. There was still a shadowy belief that women could never be as good as men at football.

But this was wrong, and the Dick Kerr Girls proved this to be the case. Who knows what might have happened if they had been allowed to flourish and develop as they should have? It has to be said, even with the ban in place, the women did not stop playing and continued to tour other countries and raise money for charity. However, their great injustice was ignored by many and eventually buried.

So yes, I am hugely inspired by the Dick Kerr Girls and it’s my aim to inspire future generations with the series. I don’t want their legacy to be forgotten. I want people to remember the team – not only for their sporting ability, but also for their courage and their ability to rise above adversity.

The Dick Kerr Girls story is one of spirit, friendship, belief, passion and tenacity. Who on earth couldn’t fail to be inspired by that?

Eve Ainsworth is a public speaker, creative workshop coordinator and award-winning author who draws from her extensive work with teenagers managing emotional and behavioural issues to write authentic, honest and real novels for young people. For more information about Eve and her books check out her website eveainsworth.com and follow her on Twitter @EveAinsworth.

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