By the time the coach of Manchester United fans drives into the south end of Watford Gap Services at 10.30am, there is Taylor Swift’s songwriting talent, a conversation about a perceived lack of playing time for Spanish midfielder Irene Guerrero and a Katie Zelem’s chant that somehow rhymes “fake tan” with “Zidane” has been heard on board. And instead of cans of beer, delicious homemade baked goods were distributed during the trip that started at 8 a.m. This is an away day, in the style of the Women’s Super League.
Arriving at the other end of Dagenham’s Chigwell Construction Stadium – home of the West Ham women’s team – two and a half hours later, the smell of chicken and mushroom pies wafts through the cold air, stewards urge people to line up on the walkway to “go along” and the line for the ladies’ room stretches way out the door, while there are no lines at all for the men’s room.
The away match is packed and the fans – roughly half male, half female – are in good spirits despite United being held to a 1-1 draw. Before kick-off, more than a dozen supporters separately tell Telegraph Sport how much they hope the club does not allow England youngster Grace Clinton – currently impressing on loan at Tottenham – to leave the club this summer, with some calling a ‘Skinner Out’ have brought. sign with them (more on that later). But they are also passionately concerned about many issues affecting all WSL supporters attending matches.
Inconsiderate kick-off times and short-term fixtures
The main concerns are kick-off times, with broadcasts being prioritized over spectators, and the infrequent announcement of match dates. It wasn’t until Friday that the dates and times of the March 30 and 31 WSL matches were finally confirmed when the TV choices were announced.
In November, Manchester United got the kick-off for their away match against Brighton on Sunday evening at 6.45 pm. This visit to West Ham, with kick-off at 3pm, seems to satisfy the vast majority, but they will remember that this match took place at 6.45pm last season.
“Just before Christmas we played Tottenham in the evening, while Arsenal and Chelsea played each other at lunch on the same day. Why? They didn’t have to travel far,” said one disgruntled fan.
Telegraph Sport understands that more regular WSL matches on Friday evenings and Saturday evenings are planned for next season and that possibility has been met with mixed reception. Hannah, who has supported United’s women’s team since reform in 2018 and travels from Wales to matches, said: “You have to look at people who have to take annual leave, or whether they have families. It would have an impact.
“People’s commitment is there, but the start times are difficult and it affects people’s ability to go. Yet football should be for fans. And we always seem to find that out within a few weeks.”
Lack of dedicated away sections
Deborah Henry from the supporters club is also working hard to ensure that every match – such as this – has an away match on offer. “There has to be an away team for every away team so we don’t mingle unless people specifically choose to mingle. It can create tense moments in a game that take away from the fun,” she says.
“It’s about feeling comfortable, being able to stand next to the fans of your team and being happy when you celebrate a goal. For example, in Leicester we were singing and there was a group of children who you could see were uncomfortable and that could have been avoided if they were in a home section and we were in an away section.”
Facilities built for men
Several fans remember awkward toilet-related episodes. There was a time when the lights didn’t work in the women’s facilities at Walsall’s Bescot Stadium for a match against Aston Villa – “We used our phone flares to see” – and a trip to Paris St-Germain during qualifying for the Women’s Champions League when the The women’s toilets in the away section were not even open. However, it is the reliance on “terrible” portable toilets at Arsenal and Chelsea’s Borehamwood and Kingsmeadow grounds respectively that is just as strongly criticized. At least West Ham has permanent toilet blocks.
Some fans seem to enjoy the gritty atmosphere of this smaller ground, such as Norwegian Kristoffer, who lives in London and has been a Manchester United fan since the 1990s. He says: “It’s a bit more intimate, it brings the fans closer to the players. It’s good compared to the big stadiums. I also like the ticket prices, which make it possible for me as a Manchester United supporter to go to Manchester United matches.”
Andy Slater, who founded the women’s team fanzine “Barmy Article” in May 2021, was a season ticket holder for the men’s team for 21 years until 2017 and adds: “As a men’s football fan, I’ve been to big, shiny stadiums. , but as a women’s football fan I have been to areas I would never have been before, and I like that. But some of them are quite poor.
“If you go to a top-of-the-WSL match and there are porta-cabins for toilets then it has to be better, there is no excuse. These clubs have the money to provide basic facilities.”
A female supporter says: “You can see these grounds are for men only.”
Messages from fans for Sir Jim Ratcliffe – and Marc Skinner
Since Manchester United reformed its senior women’s team in 2018, the supporters’ club has grown from a nine-seater minibus to an 88-seat double-decker bus for away matches. They also took seven coaches to the Women’s FA Cup final at Wembley last May.
However, these fans believe the Glazers have not been able to match that rising interest with sufficient focus on the women’s program and so they have a clear message for new co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe.
Connor Roberts, who runs the All for United WFC podcast, has a simple plea: “Just invest. We already have a great team, with so many good young players, so please put a good structure above the manager and really try. Because the foundations are there.”
Andy agrees, hoping to see a team of women’s football specialists given senior positions off the pitch, saying: ‘Put people in place who know what they are doing. Let football people do football jobs.”
Ratcliffe has suggested that if he builds a new stadium for the men’s team, the women’s team could make Old Trafford their home. Zoe seems to sum up the general mood on this issue when she says: ‘I would love that. There is so much history at OT and such a legacy that I would hate to see it disappear completely, for a potentially soulless rebuild, so if we could preserve it and dedicate it to the women, that would be fantastic.
One topic of discussion on which there is less universal agreement is the future of head coach Marc Skinner, whose contract expires at the end of the season.
Conner says before the match: “It’s a tough call. No matter who you ask, you will get divided opinions. I’m pretty sure it’s probably time for a change. I think a fresh start is probably best.”
A fan from Greater Manchester added: “It’s the way he always talks about needing more investment, instead it should be about everyone feeling valued. You see that players look much happier during their international duty. I think that’s a lot on him.”
A group of fans brought a handmade ‘Skinner Out’ sign to the match, which was held aloft at full time as discontent grew. AJ from Wythensawe said: “We want the players to know we support them, but we don’t support the manager anymore.”
When they return to the coach after the game, three fans say almost in unison: “He has to go.”
The coach must definitely go and after a match debrief, laughter provides the soundtrack for the five-hour journey back to the meeting point in the Old Trafford car park.