Goal Power! An Exhibition Legacy: Video
Take a deeper dive into women’s football through the experiences of those who helped revive it. Find out more about the national heritage project led by the Football Association to capture the history, growth and highs and lows of the women’s game.
Commissioned by the Football Association, as part of the National Lottery Funded UEFA Women’s EURO heritage project. The four films are now preserved in the collection of Screen Archive South East.
Memory Film: Eileen Bourne
Eileen’s experiences of playing football in the 1960s, 70s and 80s give an extraordinary insight into what life on a women’s football team was like. Stories of friendships and fun sit alongside reminiscences of training, England trials, and working hard to progress women’s football.
She started playing for Brighton GPO (General Post Office) in 1967, while the FA ban on women using affiliated grounds was still in place. Eileen was instrumental behind the scenes of her team, finding pitches, referees, organising the games and transport, collecting subs, as well as training several times a week and playing each weekend.
Memory Film: June Jaycocks
June was a telephonist at Brighton General Post Office in 1966 and played for the netball team. Challenged to a game of football by the postmen, the women set up their own work football team, Brighton GPO.
In 1969 Brighton GPO was a founding member of the Women’s Football Association, along with 44 other clubs. There was no celebration when the FA lifted their 50-year ban on women playing football just a sense of ‘right, let’s get on with it’.
June held various positions from 1971 until 1991 in the WFA, including Vice-Chairman and International Officer, helping to run the England team between 1982 and 1991.
Memory Film: Julie Hemsley
Julie Hemsley has dedicated her life to women’s football.
As a 14 year old girl Julie played on the streets of Whitehawk. A talented footballer, she was soon recruited to play for Brighton GPO, and in 1979 joined the England squad.
Passionate about making the game accessible to everyone, she has also been a driving force behind the professionalisation of the women’s game, developing the game in schools and promoting structured coaching sessions. In 1990 she became coach for the first women’s team affiliated to Brighton & Hove Albion FC, where she persuaded the kit man to give the used men’s kit to the women’s team so that they could play in club colours.
In 1993 Julie became the Assistant Manager for the England International women’s team. Later that same year, she was the first woman ever to be voted on to the FA Council. She was one woman on the Board, alongside 91 male councillors.
Julie is now the Director of Coaching and Playing at Hobe Sound soccer club, Florida, USA.
Memory Film: Lyn Godden
Lyn Godden was part of the growing women’s football movement in Brighton and Hove during the 1970s and 80s. At a time when playing football was still a very uncommon pastime for girls and women, Lyn spent her weekends travelling across the South East, with her sisters to play matches.
There was often nowhere to get changed when arriving at a match, so the teams would get into their kit in cars. There was rarely anywhere to have a shower after a muddy game so they would share a bucket of water or jump in streams before travelling home. If they were lucky there might be a cup of tea.
Lyn played for Brighton GPO before joining the Marmion Centre team in 1974.
