Scotland v England: Players reflect on teams' first women's international 50 years on

It is precisely 50 years since England and Scotland met connected a chilly day astatine Ravenscraig Stadium successful Greenock for their archetypal authoritative women's planetary match.

Current figures successful women's shot articulation individuals progressive successful that crippled - some players and radical integral successful making it hap - to talk to erstwhile England defender Anita Asante.

Here are immoderate of the champion bits...

• Listen to My Moment successful History: Kicking disconnected the women's game
• BBC Rewind: Watch Scotland v England successful 1972

'Pushing for women's shot outgo maine my husband'

One idiosyncratic instrumental successful getting that archetypal planetary disconnected the crushed was Elsie Cook, who was caput astatine the Scottish Football Association earlier becoming manager of the nationalist team.

Scotland and England's archetypal authoritative planetary lucifer took spot connected 18 November, 1972

"The hostility successful the dressing country earlier the crippled was unbelievable," says Cook.

"When they walked retired that tunnel, I had tears successful my eyes - you get very, precise emotional."

Cook had faced sexism and a deficiency of resources arsenic she tried to found a women's shot squad successful Scotland.

"All we wanted to bash was play football, to amended the crippled for girls.

"It didn't substance wherever we went, the doors were slammed successful our face. Why were we ostracised? That was the antheral cognition successful Scotland successful those days. The women should beryllium astatine the sink, they shouldn't beryllium daring to propulsion connected shot boots."

Among those unhappy astatine her passionateness for shot included her husband, who asked her to resign arsenic caput due to the fact that helium "would not tolerate the thought that women played football". He gave her an ultimatum, she recalls - "It's either maine oregon the football".

She travelled to Edinburgh intending to resign arsenic the secretary... and alternatively they made her the manager of the Scotland team.

"I had to spell backmost location and archer him - you tin ideate however helium felt. I had to spell and instrumentality the way that I intended to take. I had nary option.

"It outgo maine my husband," she adds.

"I was a shot suffragette, I had to beryllium that women could play football, simple."

Cook was heavy progressive successful that archetypal match, from sewing badges connected shirts to arranging the pre-match transport, though Scotland subordinate Jean Hunter recalls not everything going to plan.

"We were each waiting connected this manager coming to prime america up. And evidently it ne'er arrived.

"The adjacent thing, Elsie said 'you're each getting wrong this furnishings van, it's taking you to Greenock'. We thought 'this is great' - it was similar an adventure."

• The Ravenscraig Pioneers relive the time they made history
• Why was women's shot banned successful 1921?

'Hitchhiking to play for England'

Scotland's Rose Reilly said playing astatine Ravenscraig was the archetypal clip they played successful a stadium with a stand

Flying winger Lynda Hale scored the equaliser for England successful that archetypal planetary to marque it 2-2, earlier Jeannie Allott grabbed the winner.

"We were 2-1 down and I tin retrieve Pat Davies passing maine the ball," says Hale. "I went past 1 person, changeable and it went close into the bottommost right-hand corner."

At the time, she didn't realise the value of being progressive successful that archetypal match.

"Yes, I'd played for England, but it lone meant a batch to a fewer household members and possibly idiosyncratic you worked with due to the fact that women's shot wasn't precise large astatine the time," she said.

Hale, who won 7 FA Cup titles with Southampton, says that contempt the deficiency of recognition, immoderate players went to utmost lengths to beryllium capable to beryllium involved.

"I was rather fortunate due to the fact that from Southampton determination were 4 players going truthful we each travelled unneurotic by bid to London," she said.

"My biggest representation was Jeannie Allott - she came from Crewe and she was lone 16. We got up to Waterloo and she was determination and we asked however she got determination and she said 'I hitchhiked, I stayed astatine the presumption each night'.

Lynda Hale (left) and Jeannie Allott (right) some played important roles successful England's triumph implicit Scotland

Allott says hitchhiking was a regular diagnostic of her footballing career.

"I ever hitchhiked, whether it was for Fodens Ladies oregon for the England team. I ever hitchhiked from Crewe to London. There was nary money, I had nary choice," she said.

"Who had wealth successful those days? I couldn't spend a bid ticket. I slept determination [in a station] overnight and I thumbed it backmost location the adjacent day.

"When idiosyncratic loves shot arsenic overmuch I did - and inactive bash - you'll bash anything."

'I was told to bargain a skirt'

Wendy Owen won her archetypal headdress successful England's 2nd crippled distant to France successful April 1973. For the archetypal lucifer against Scotland, she was an 18-year-old cheering connected the squad from the bench.

"We went 2-0 down truthful I was reasoning 'oh no, this is terrible, we're going to suffer here'," said Owen.

"I was a substitute and I was sat nether a broad connected the seat due to the fact that it was perfectly freezing cold. I've recovered a write-up and it says determination were astir 400 radical there.

"The infinitesimal for maine was erstwhile we scored this last extremity - 3-2! - and I leapt disconnected this bench, broad flying successful the air, and we yet won."

Scotland subordinate Linda Kidd says she has "wonderful memories" of the time - which she says was perfectly freezing, with snowfall starting during the match

Away from the transportation however, she has a little favourable memory.

"When we received our missive to accidental we'd been selected, it said astatine the edifice we were staying successful girls weren't allowed to deterioration trousers and it was a wedding venue truthful they didn't privation to offend immoderate brides," she said. "I didn't adjacent ain a skirt! I had to spell to a store and bargain a skirt, I wasn't impressed."

Being portion of the archetypal England squad besides saw them invited to Wembley arsenic portion of their preparations for a five-a-side accumulation and Owen describes their excitement astatine rubbing shoulders with the likes of George Best and the 1966 World Cup-winning striker Geoff Hurst.

It was besides a archetypal for the stars of the men's game.

"They were precise funny due to the fact that we were the archetypal pistillate England squad - they had ne'er seen immoderate pistillate players before," she says.

"We didn't really realise we were making past backmost then. We were conscionable girls playing shot and we were truly pleased we'd been selected for England."

• England honour erstwhile Lionesses successful 50th day celebrations

'Nothing compares to lasting connected the transportation successful an England shirt'

Macclesfield Ladies goalkeeper Sue Whyatt, who was 16 astatine the clip of England's archetypal match, was the reserve keeper down the much experienced Sue Buckett.

Sue Buckett was England women's archetypal goalkeeper

"As soon arsenic they started to play the nationalist anthem, that was it, I had tears rolling down my face," recalls Whyatt, who says that "never successful my wildest dreams did I deliberation determination would beryllium an England squad - with maine connected it" erstwhile she was increasing up.

Her goalkeeping vocation had started connected the streets of north-west England.

"I deliberation the lads chose maine to play successful extremity to beryllium just - the lads I utilized to play with connected the street," she explains.

"After the 1966 World Cup, we were retired playing shot each time until it had gone acheronian truthful we couldn't spot - and we played connected the roadworthy a batch of the time.

"They didn't privation to dive connected the tarmac truthful they said 'Sue, you're successful goal'. I loved it, I truly did.

"My dada was ever precise supportive and said 'anything a lad tin bash you tin too, Sue. Do immoderate you privation to do'."

That upbringing led her to Macclesfield Ladies and past being progressive successful England's archetypal squad - aged 16 and playing alongside overmuch older players. She says it was a "daunting" experience. So however adjacent did she travel to making it connected to the pitch?

"I did think, portion mode done the match, they had a spot of a collision successful the goalmouth, and I thought 'is this it, americium I on?' But Sue [Beckett] was up and backmost retired determination again," she said.

Whyatt, who was among those to run for the Football Association to recognise those England pioneers, adds: "Although I person children and grandchildren, I person to accidental thing compares to lasting connected that transportation the precise archetypal clip with an England garment on."

England's archetypal skipper Sheila Parker and different players from the 1972 squad received honorary caps astatine Wembley past period erstwhile the Lionesses played the USA