Cod Almighty | Diary

Crimson, eleven, delight, petrichor

20 July 2017

Nurse Diary writes: GTFC is my club. I love it. I've loved it for a lot of years... Too many to think about, to be honest, as it just reminds me of how old I'm getting.

Over the years, like a lot of you I've seen a lot of changes on and off the pitch. Over those 30+ (gulp) years of support I've visited numerous grounds across the country. Nothing unusual in this for a supporter, you may think, and I quite agree, except that I'm a female. Yup, a girl. I like pink, I have been known to wear a dress on occasion, sometimes a nice pair of heels.

Does this make a difference? Does it hell! Football is a universal language. Man, woman, child, nationality, age, rich, poor... it doesn't matter; if you're a football fan, you are a football fan.

So in a progressive week where Doctor Who has regenerated as a woman (heaven forbid!) and a case has been made against safe standing on the grounds of women apparently being unable to stand for long periods of time, a new GTFC blog aimed at females has been launched. I have to admit, perhaps controversially given my gender, that it's not something that sits all that easy with me.

It's not only that the name 'The Blundelles' makes the female supporters of our club sound like one of the groups competing in their college song contest in the Pitch Perfect films. Its launch comes a few days after our friendly rivals down the A46 announced something very similar – and a mere week or so after GTFC unveiled the superb equality and diversity wall at Blundell Park. That is something the club is working on very hard behind the scenes, and rightly so.

So is a gender-specific blog necessary in these days or times when equality and diversity are being focused on so strongly in the game? Female football fans are hardly a new thing. Some of us even know the offside law and attend matches to do more than just gaze at hunky footballers. As a club GTFC have a strong female supporter base. There's a lot of us of all ages, and the fact we feel like we belong is great! I've never felt unable to go to Blundell Park, or any ground, alone. I've always been perfectly comfortable in socialising with fellow fans of both sexes.

I'm as up for a debate or discussion as the next person, but does that need to be restricted because of gender? My views are often in line with some of the male fans I know as well as some of the female fans I know. Part of the enjoyment of football is seeing and engaging in different perspectives and views. Wouldn't it be boring if we all thought the same things? Does being a man or a woman, boy or girl mean we don't and won't share the same views and perspectives? Or even differing ones? Does it matter? We all have a voice and we can all use it, on blogs, forums, social media platforms. Do we need a female-only site as girls to be able to do that? Do we need a male-only one for the boys? I really don't think so, though some people will no doubt think otherwise.

In that light, there is an irony in the article The Blundelles published about the inequality of the argument that safe standing might deter women from attending matches. How can you talk about the "togetherness" of fans when you're on a blog creating an unnecessary sexist divide, and then complain about a sexist point of view?

There are many fantastic people in football, both male and female. I'm as much into a bit of girl power as anyone, but I can't help but wonder what would people feel had a male-only blog been started; we can hazard guesses at outraged reactions if it had "girls can like football too" comments, and they'd be 100 per cent right. We can and we do! Some girls even play it. The England Lionesses' profile has never been higher, for example, and GTFC once had to deny rumours that ex-England manager Hope Powell was being lined up to manage the club. I can only imagine the reactions, from both sexes, if she had been in the running.

I have no doubt intentions behind The Blundelles are good, and debate between football fans is never a bad thing. Whether it's between fans of the same club or rival clubs, it's all part of being a supporter. I'm just genuinely unsure, at a time when the club is working so hard on equality and diversity, that a gender-specific blog is the best way to represent that. After all, we're all Town, aren't we?