Two steps forward, one step back

Depends what you look like. Women like to be looked at. If it's a fat middle aged bald porter. They're a perv and get reported. If it's a fit young registrar they're flattered. I've used a hospital setting there but it applies to many places.

 

I don’t understand how you can comment on the ‘poor standard’ of something that you can’t & don’t watch.?

 

& Chloe Kelly’s penalty was literally unstoppable..

 

That was definitely the best penalty I've ever seen under that level of pressure.

 

Sexism is sexism however it's dressed up, and two wrongs don't make it right.

 

Back to the football. I haven't watched any of it. I'm not watching the Final either. Nothing to do with it being women but I haven't watched it all the way through and if I watch the Final they'll probably get beat. Too superstitious.

The only reason I attended the Play-Off Final was because I went to the Bolton home leg. If I hadn't gone to the Bolton game my superstitious nature would have stopped me attending the Final.

 

I don't agree it's 'very poor' at all. Granted, I only watch England Women, haven't watched any domestic games (though have occasionally watched a few highlights after MOTD), but the improvement in standard in the last 6-10 years is astounding. When I first watched a tournament a few years ago, I thought it seemed really poor quality, but the standards are so much higher now. There's just as much 'good play' as most men's games I watch, it's just not the same pace etc as the men's game. Some of the finishing, dribbling, long range shots etc have been fantastic. Plus you get little of the play-acting, harassing the referee and all that nonsense.

I'm not saying I prefer women's football, but I enjoy aspects of it and can appreciate it. First and foremost though, they have become a great team, they work very hard, they play for each other, they show real determination and passion and they have overcome so much adversity. A number of their key players injured including Beth Mead, Walsh not fully fit after her injury, the red card for Lauren James. They were only level when she got sent off, managed to see out the rest of the game and extra time with 10 players and win the shootout with superb pens; then two games won without her since when she'd been the standout player.

In general, the same idiots on social media who turn it nasty and derogatory are the same people telling female pundits to 'get back in the kitchen' and all that same old predictable dated garbage.

Obviously it won't be to some people's taste, however there's no need to put them down even if not.

 

Yep, awful. My daughter is 3 shortly, already loves dribbling a ball round and I'd love her to join a team when she's old enough - absolutely no reason why not!

 

I don't believe it makes a blind bit of difference bro.

 

Luckily she shouldn't have long to wait. For my sins I'm head of the girls section at Horsforth St Margarets JFC. I've just registered 35 teams for next session with the West Riding Girls League. Start at U7s all way up to U18s. Dribblers section is massive (5-6 yo waiting to start at U7s). Over 400 girls playing the sport and that's in a small part of NW Leeds. Suspect interest will snowball again on back of Lionesses success. Watching 6-7yo at their 5 a side indoor galas is fantastic. My daughter started 7 years ago and youngest teams then were U10s and we had heaps of girls playing up a year as not enough to fill squads. Now a huge waiting list. Great stuff. West Riding League is massive and I'm led to believe Sheffield and Hallamshire also has a large girls section. Massive sea change even in last 5 years.....

 

Certain people are saying the standard is really poor yet I see many World Cup teams that can pretty much without exception put the ball straight on the target's head from corners. In England's case, the number of times Daly is picked out perfectly is incredible. Compare this to EFL footballers for example. They're lucky to get it in the 6 yard box half the time.

The quality on show last night was excellent. Disappointingly, the Aussies did seem to get overwhelmed by the occasion, not really performing as they can that first half. But they rallied and could have got a few more in that second half. Very proud of both nations. And Sam Kerr... she's another level.

 

This is a bit of a seedy generalisation.

 

But that's the point! You're comparing women's football to men's. Why?

It isn't a poor standard, it's the world cup final. There is no higher standard.

If you don't enjoy it, fine, don't watch it. But don't compare it to something it isn't comparable with.

 

It gets compared by women all the time. As I said earlier, my colleague's first comment was 'a World Cup Final... once again, the women are doing what the men have failed to do for 60 years.' And she really meant it. And she was comparing it with something that it isn't comparable with i.e. the women's national team history is different from the men's national team history, so why compare them?

 

The standard of football might not be directly comparable, but surely a women's team beating their peers to win a World Cup is comparable to whether the men's team can beat their peers to win a World Cup?

Serena Williams' grand slam record is comparable to Roger Federer's regardless of who would win if they played each other.

 

It's the time frame too, 'failed to do for 60 years', and the emphasis on failure, and that, as Archie pointed out, you shouldn't compare the two.

 

My son is 3 and he goes to Kixx. Worth taking her to if she's into football. Football Academy for Kids | Kixx

 

I can only speak for when I was playing but I get that, it will work now with modern enlightened attitudes, but back in the day it wouldn’t have.
Reason being there were too many nutcases, who if somebody was getting flash or had the beating of them would look to take them out, if it was some young lass same result and it wouldn’t have been pretty.
Now it might not be right but that’s the way it was, and those attitudes followed right through my Saturday and Sunday league days, if you couldn’t stand up for yourself they would just come after you harder!

 

Does it matter what they are men women or whatever, does it matter what sport or game it is. If they represent England surely we want them to win

 

I wish folks would just keep them separate and move on, just seen some daft bugger on Facebook banging on about Mary Earps and how she is on a par with Gordon Banks!