Pioneers of women’s football recognised at Wembley

Three members of the ‘Spurs Ladies’ team back in the 1970s were recognised in a special celebration during half-time of England Women's fine 2-1 win against USA at Wembley on Friday.

Vicky Johnson, Debbie Mack and Linda Young played for the Spurs team that competed in the South East of England League, which ran from 1968/69 to 1981/82. All three were playing for that Spurs team, not affiliated to the Club at the time, when they were capped by England - Debbie in 1979, Linda and Vicky in 1980.

The FA celebrated the 50^th anniversary of the Lionesses’ first international against Scotland in 1972 on Friday. More than 100 former England women’s internationals attended the fixture as guests of the FA, which saw the newly crowned European champions overcome the current world champions in front of a sold-out Wembley Stadium.

We spoke to all three players before they met up again at Wembley.

Vicky, now 62 and an FA Cup winner with Lowestoft in 1982, joined Spurs Ladies aged just 15 in 1975. “I remember we played on a pitch at Lordship Lane (about a mile away from Tottenham Hotspur Stadium) and we took it deadly seriously, we trained twice, sometimes three times a week and we were lucky in that we had England’s physio, Jane Parsons, with us, so that meant we were streets ahead, with access to a physio!

“I was from Hornsey Rise and knew Linda from a young age, Debbie joined us later from West Ham. It’s fantastic we’ll all meet up now 40 years later. It’s exciting, like when you’re five and you can’t wait to get your presents on Christmas morning!

“There is no comparison to what we’re seeing today but I will say when you pull on that England shirt, it doesn’t matter if there are 80 people there or 80 thousand, it still means so much. It was an emotional moment when England won the Euros this year, and nice to know we’ve helped pave the way in some way.

“In many ways, this England team won it not just for themselves and the country, but for everybody who has been before, and women’s sport in general. The next generation, their life in football will be completely different. I’m 62 now, but I’m still playing walking football for a team called ‘the Pacemakers’. I still love it.”

Linda, now 71 and originally from Kentish Town, shall we say, provided the experience back in the day. “I was 24 when I joined Spurs Ladies, the same time as Vicky. I was always slightly older anyway - Young name, but older! It was just great to play football at that time.

“I won my England cap in 1980, we played against Belgium in Ostend. I played until I was 40. I did all the running back then! I will say we played on some ropey pitches, but I loved it. They were great days. It was brilliant for England to win the Euros and it will be nice to see the girls again.”

Debbie, now 63, was brought up in Stratford and played for West Ham before joining Spurs in 1977. “We all took it really seriously, for us, it was the be-all and end-all,” she said. “We wanted to be the best, that is what we strived for.

“Lowestoft and Spurs were the top two at that time in the South East Women’s League. We competed for the title every season, unfortunately they always won it! But it was great. We had great camaraderie, a great team. There were so many girls who wanted to play for us. We were almost too big.

“We only received one England cap, per career. Officially, I had five England appearances. I made my debut in Italy in 1979. I adored playing, and if I could turn back the clock, I would do it immediately. I’m 63 now and we all look back and think we were born way too soon in terms of women's football, but I’m delighted to see how the game has progressed. It’s fantastic.

“This will be a special night at Wembley, really exciting for the girls of today and yesteryear. It’s a different world now, really. Everyone is professional now - we had to take jobs where we could take time off at the weekend. I worked a milk round, purely for that. Loads of us did jobs like that, jobs where we’d need to get cover if we went on England duty, but I wouldn’t change it for the world.”

Vicky, Debbie, Linda and another former Spur from the 1970s, goalkeeper Theresa (Terri) Wiseman, will also be presented with legacy numbers by the FA, celebrating the individuals who hold the honour of representing the nation at women's senior level with their own unique number.

Recent Spurs players Gemma Davison, Abbie McManus and Rachel Williams are also on that list, alongside current players Drew Spence, Amy Turner and Chioma Ubogagu.