MEET THE LIONESSES
- BY ED WAUGH
- Aug 5
- 2 min read
An evening with two north east ex-England football stars will be held on Friday, September 12 (6pm), at the prestigious Lit & Phil in Westgate Road, Newcastle.
Christine Knox and Aran Embleton were the first two England players after the FA lifted the ban on women's football in 1971: Christine in the 1970s and 80s and Aran in the millennium.
The incredible European Championship-winning lionesses of today stand on the shoulders of pioneering players like Christine and Aran as well of the selfless WW1 female footballing superstars like Bella Reay, Mary Lyons and Winnie McKenna.
The exciting talk-in will be hosted by Jane Harker, co-producer of the hit play Wor Bella. Jane's introduction will touch on how women's football developed and thrived in WW1, only to be criminally banned by the FA in 1921.
Unbanned in 1971 (after 50 years), working class women reclaimed the sport. Christine became the first north eastern Lioness of the new era. Playing for Wallsend Ladies, Whitley Bay Ladies and North Shields Ladies, she won ten England caps in the 1970s and 1980s.
Aran played for the Lionesses after the millenium. Gaining four England caps, she played for Blyth Spartans, Sunderland Ladies and Doncaster Belles in her illustrious career.
Jane explained: "Christine and Aran, like the WW1 women footballers, are unsung great; female pioneers of the beautiful game. We'll hear how they fought against hardships and terrible prejudices to play the game they love, and succeed!"
She added: "Both women are role models for younger players. Because of people like Christine and Aran, my nine year old granddaughter plays football and loves it. Thousands of young girls and women in this area have taken up the sport and it is tremendous to see how it is developing so strongly at grass roots level."
The event includes Q&As. All ages are encouraged to attend. The Lionesses Roar: Meet the Lionesses takes place on Friday, September 12 at 6pm. Tickets cost £5 and can be obtained via the Lit & Phil on (0191) 232 0192 or online by clicking HERE.
