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It was a moment watched by thousands in the stadium and many more thousands on
television at home - two Premiership football teams warming up wearing Her Game Too t-
shirts.
Witnessing the Brentford and Fulham players proudly showcasing their support for Her
Game Too was a milestone moment in the campaign’s fight against sexism in sport.
But this was only one highlight of many in the recent series of football fixtures dedicated to Her Game Too and International Women's Day.
More than 60 dedicated men’s and women’s fixtures took place across the UK during late
February and March - organised by volunteer ambassadors and advocates in partnership
with their clubs - and there are still more to come in April.
Here’s what happened at ten of the fixtures:
Cambridge United v Portsmouth
From a women’s takeover of the matchday programme, stickers of the women’s team to go
into the club’s annual sticker book and local women and girls taking part in matchday
activities, Cambridge United’s Women’s Weekend was a celebration of females involved in
football.
A female fan from each team took part in the “chip in the skip” half-time challenge, there was an all-girl ball crew, female players took part in a lap of honour and local girls’ grassroots
teams were invited to attend for a reduced price.
Her Game Too was also featured in stadium announcements, on the scoreboard and in
photo opportunities with the players and a selfie board.
Emma Smith, Her Game Too Ambassador for Cambridge United, said: “It was the second
year Cambridge United have run a dedicated match that was met with so much positivity,
making me proud to represent Her Game Too as the club’s ambassador.
“The campaign is much better known than this time last season and many fans came to us
for a one year-on ‘anniversary’ photo with our selfie board.”
Tranmere Rovers v Crawley Town
From the ball retrievers to the flag bearers, local girls were celebrated and showcased at
Tranmere Rovers’ dedicated fixture.
The club’s women’s team took on the half-time crossbar challenge, first team player Brad
Walker was announced as a Her Game Too player advocate and local women’s charities
were invited to attend the match through the club’s free community tickets scheme.
Hannah Naylor, Her Game Too Ambassador for Tranmere Rovers, said: “It was fantastic to
see so many women engaging with our campaign.
“Having the women’s team have such a strong presence on the day also meant a lot to me
personally and I know it did to them too - they were represented from under-10s right
through to the first team.
“Also, to have the girls representing us in the EFL Girls Cup as flag bearers was the icing on
the cake.
“The whole day went really well and it is just the start of what Tranmere Rovers will do to
engage with our female fan base as we look to continue to grow year after year.”
Charlton Athletic v Accrington Stanley:
The men’s and women’s first teams took time out to hear about Her Game Too at training
sessions in the build up to their dedicated fixtures.
On the day of the men’s first team game, players warmed up in Her Game Too t-shirts,
videos about the campaign were released on the club’s social media channels and girls from
a local girls grassroots team had a guard of honour.
Tash Everitt, Her Game Too Ambassador for Charlton Athletic, said: “The moment from the
women’s and men’s fixtures that made me feel the most pride was when I spoke to
managers Dean Holden and Karen Hills and the Charlton first teams about the campaign.
“The managers in particular took real interest and Holden sent us messages of support as
well as wearing the pin on our matchday.”
Exeter City Women v Portishead Town Women
This dedicated fixture attracted a club record women’s attendance of almost 3,000
spectators and saw the players signing autographs and having photos taken with children for
an hour and a half after the game ended.
Young female fans got the opportunity to carry out the Her Game Too flag before the match
and signed shirts were given away to young supporters.
At the men’s dedicated fixture the previous day, Her Game Too t-shirts worn by players
during the warm-up were thrown into the crowd for fans to keep as souvenirs.
Latoyah Egerton, Her Game Too Ambassador for Exeter City, said: “The stand out moment
for me was seeing all the young supporters excited to get an autograph from our women’s
team at the end of the match.
“It just goes to show how this amazing platform is inspiring the next generation of young
fans.
“This, along with the record-breaking attendance, shows how times are starting to change for the better, especially with women’s football.”
Bristol Rovers v Portsmouth
A group of first-time female fans of all ages, who had never been to a men’s football match
before, were given free tickets and a special tour before kick off to mark this dedicated
fixture.
The team warmed up in campaign t-shirts and female-led band Blue Soul entertained
crowds in the fanzone, while supporters around the ground waved mini Her Game Too flags
and had photo opportunities with the photo board.
Caz May, Her Game Too Director and Bristol Rovers Ambassador, said: “Our dedicated
fixture was such a success. It was heartwarming to see our first-time fans so excited to
attend their first match.
“We welcomed them with gift bags and gave them a tour around the club shop, the dugouts
and the fanzone.
“Result aside, they left the game smiling and some of them even said they wanted to come
back, which is a huge win!”
Bromley v York City
A free training session attended by more than 30 girls and a half-time lap of appreciation for
women and girls involved with Bromley Community Trust were among the highlights of this
dedicated fixture.
The women’s team and girls from the academy were applauded by the crowd as they carried
Her Game Too flags around the pitch.
Georgie Weaver, Bromley’s Her Game Too Ambassador, said: “What made me most proud
was seeing women and girls of all ages come together for the lap of appreciation.
“To me, it really emphasised that no matter what your experience or ability, as a female you
can play football at Bromley.
“That to me was a huge highlight and shone a light on the importance of these dedicated
fixtures.”
West Bromwich Albion v Wigan Athletic
Female staff, players and supporters of the club were celebrated on big screens as the
crowd enjoyed listening to an all-female playlist before kick off at this dedicated fixture.
West Brom captain Jake Livermore met the club’s two Her Game Too Ambassadors, Lizzie
Hayward and Vicky Haddock, to chat about the campaign before the game and the players
warmed up in Her Game Too t-shirts.
At half-time, West Bromwich Albion Women’s head coach Jenny Sugarman and captain
Hannah George were interviewed pitchside while their team did a lap of appreciation around
the ground.
Lizzie said: “I was very nervous about everything going smoothly but it was perfect. It felt like
we got the Her Game Too name out there to Albion fans.”
Bradford City v Hartlepool United
Bradford City players joined fans for photos with the Her Game Too photo board and flag
then warmed up in campaign t-shirts and wore Her Game Too badges to show their support.
At half-time, Bradford’s Her Game Too Ambassador, Dhriti Ahir, and Hartlepool’s
Ambassador, Jill Simmonds, joined stadium announcer Darren Harper on the pitch to tell
fans about the aims and work of the campaign.
Dhriti said: “To be around the ground before kick-off with my advocates, Ellie and Laura, and
to see what goes on behind the scenes, as well as meeting the players and fans, was such
an experience.
“This was genuinely a dream come true for me to do something with my local football club -
some of the players even came up to me and my advocates and spoke to us after the match
before they went home which was such a lovely thing to do.”
Gillingham v Tranmere Rovers
“Get the badge in, Paige!” was the call of Gillingham owner, Brad Galinson, when he joined
his club’s Her Game Too ambassador Paige Collins for a selfie before kick-off at their
dedicated fixture.
He is one of several senior figures at the Kent club to proudly wear Her Game Too badges
on matchdays.
The fixture also saw an all-female crossbar challenge at half-time, photo opportunities with a
Her Game Too frame and the club mascots and the campaign’s ambassador and advocates
spreading the word about Her Game Too to people throughout the club before the match.
Paige said: “There aren’t many owners who ask you to point at the Her Game Too badge to
‘get the badge in’ while taking a selfie!
“From the top to the bottom, this dedicated fixture has shown us that Gills are committed to
making our club a safe place for all.”
Brentford v Fulham
Brentford’s fixture with Fulham saw the two clubs join forces with Her Game Too to promote International Women's Day and women in football.
There were half-time interviews with players from both clubs’ women’s teams and the
campaign t-shirts worn by players during the warm up were signed and given out to the
crowd afterwards.
Ali Mullaley, Brentford’s Her Game Too Ambassador, said: “We had both teams warming up
in our t-shirts which was phenomenal in itself, but the fact those images also went out on
Monday Night Football and the campaign got a verbal mention was brilliant.
“My particular favourite moment, which the club came up with themselves, was messages
from the players about women who inspired them on the big screen before the game and
again at half-time.
“I’ve also got to mention the legend Thomas Frank (Brentford manager), who asked for two
of our badges so he had one on his coat and one on his sweater, which meant he wasn’t
pictured not wearing one.”
