This summer’s highly successful Women’s World Cup followed hot on the heels of this summers highly successful Women’s Ashes, which followed last summers highly successful Women’s European Championships. Everywhere we look, women’s sport is flourishing. In today’s blog, our Community Engagement Officer, Maria, has taken a look at some of the history of women’s sport in Dorset…
—
First a confession – I never was a very sporty girl! Although I enjoyed my high jump in the garden, riding my bike and a ‘ball in the scoop’ game on the beach or at a camp site, the sort of organised, competitive games which both of my sport-mad schools offered turned me right off physical exercise. In fact, it wasn’t long before my tricks for avoiding sweating in a gym kit were Olympic standard!
However, we all know how important exercise is to a sense of well-being, and that the camaraderie of a team game is unparalleled. So, hats off to those women and girls who embrace the challenges of sport. The Lionesses journey to the World Cup Final this summer was brilliant, but to follow some of the coverage you’d think women had only just taken up footie! In fact, women and girls have been booting a ball (and an old-style heavy leather one at that) for just about as long as the men – albeit without the ‘benefit’ of raucous fans, huge transfer fees and wall-to-wall media coverage with sponsorship deals to match.
In DHC’s collections there is plenty of evidence of women enjoying sports from lacrosse to shooting. In 1921 the women workers of Carter’s tiles in Poole formed a football team – but only got to play two matches! Elsie Warren (nee Hookway), former left back, told the Bournemouth Evening Echo in 1972 that it was the attitude of male players, spectators, boyfriends and coaches that led to the team being dis-banded after their 2-0 defeat by Southampton’s team. The women had to wear hats – rather like the mop caps of a previous generation – but that didn’t dampen their enthusiasm and Elsie remembered the team as being ‘great fun whilst it lasted’.
—
In 1989 the Dorchester Ladies Football Club was founded by Nicky Heron and played in the Southwest Region’s League – division 2, which suggests that a good many teams were competing, although the league was only formed in 1990. They’ve had better luck than Elsie and the team and are still going strong, with plenty of Dorset teams in the league. Interestingly, all the teams seem to be sticking with the ‘ladies’ moniker except Weymouth who were perhaps enticed into a change by the alliteration of Weymouth FC Women.
—
Of course, football is not the only sport, and perhaps not the one which has been the most popular with women and girls over the years.
These pictures show the Weymouth Grammar School girls’ hockey team in 1964 and the tennis squad in 1969 – please do let us know if you recognise yourself, we’d love to make a note of your memories.
These images come from the Graham Herbert collection – Herbert photographed many sport teams in the Weymouth area from the 1950’s – the 1980’s and you can find out more about his collection here.
—
School experiences are often the making or breaking of our enthusiasm for games and exercise. At DHC we work in partnership with the Windrose Rural Media Trust and this fun film from 1952 shows the pupils at Westbury School enjoying all areas of the curriculum including swimming, cricket and handy craft – it is interesting to see what activities are mixed, boys only or girls only. It seems that cricket was very much a male stronghold!
For now I’ll stick to cheering on the Lionesses and thinking fondly of all the women and girls who have paved the road to future glory.