Skip Kelly, Montpelier Villa Women’s own Ted Lasso, has an existential crisis

In my role as a football coach, I’m far more inclined to think about who’s going to follow in my footsteps not from an egotistical point of view but rather an awareness of how quickly institutions can change and how if that isn’t managed correctly you end up with Frank Lampard in charge. Or Sam Allardyce. 

In my role as an educator I occupy a classroom that’s much older than I am and although my name may not adorn the door frame, it is colloquially known as my room. I often think of the educators who claimed ownership of that room before me, and how there’s no record of that beyond the memories of the students who sat there. The conclusion I often draw is that no matter how important you think you are at the time, life goes on regardless. “Out, out, brief candle!”

When I first became the coach at Villa, I was reluctant because I was convinced there were better female coaches than me. Nothing since has dissuaded me from this view and I can now name people who are better coaches than I am but the sidelines in women’s football are still populated by people like me. 

It’s no coincidence that women’s football has grown exponentially since I became involved with it. However there are attitudes that still exist where coaches see womens football beneath them which in turn leads to a reduced talent pool in the coaching side and means a lot of womens sides are in the position of hiring substandard coaches. 

This isn’t a reflection on the many volunteers who give up their time, energy and often money to facilitate football for the growing womens game but rather a comment on the likes of the NWSL abuse scandal which led to five coaches resigning because of a systemic culture of sexual harassment and abuse, it’s a comment on the fact that this led to both the Venezuela and Australia national teams spoke about the abuse they had encountered and finally a question that if it can happen in these national organisations then what’s stopping it from happening at grassroots level? 

This isn’t a letter of resignation but the person that follows me needs to be capable and needs to ensure a safe environment for all who play the game. I have no doubt that our squad will be able to adapt to these changes when they come and appoint someone more capable than I am, however I am concerned about the apathy that still exists in some quarters to womens football which ultimately leads to horrendous experiences for people. 

Sinead Farrelly is likely to play for Ireland against Australia in the World Cup this summer, that in itself isn’t noteworthy but the fact she is coming out of retirement is. She retired at the age of 27 and now at 33 arguably lost her best football years struggling to deal with the trauma of being sexually coerced by a coach. How many other players have had to deal with similar issues and miss out on the game they love because of people abusing their power? 

Solutions are difficult but perhaps the FA could lead the way and make spending time in the women’s game mandatory for any aspiring coaches who want to coach in the professional game. This would have the effect on certain dinosaurs that these people are individuals who are impacted profoundly by what their coaches say and do. 

Not for the first time, women’s football is growing at a level that no-one is prepared for and decisions that will be made over the next few years will have impacts that will be felt for generations to come. 

What football as a whole can’t afford to happen is this story to be “a tale told by an idiot full of sound and fury signifying nothing.”