2019 World Cup must be mid-summer feast for women’s game to thrive on | Tanya Aldred
With 40 days to the tournament and the BBC showing all matches, the spectacle must not hide the game’s need for big investment
You know you’re getting on a bit when life suddenly jolts you into the present, when baby steps that happened while you were busy pottering from the tooth fairy to life insurance have somehow become a revolution. Let me tell you a story. Not far away lives a teenager I’ve known since she started primary school in the same year as my daughter. From reception class onwards she was an amazing sportswoman – the fastest runner, the most agile tag rugby player with the quickest hands and, above all, the noblest footballer.
She is driven and ridiculously competitive and each time she tried a new sport a coach would sidle up to her mum asking if she’d perhaps like to take the activity further. But it was always football and only football she wanted. She was noticed by a scout at six, who said he didn’t usually look at girls but she was exceptional. Now in her teens she is at a regional talent club and has international experience. She’s incredible.