18 November 2022

Football x Ally Pally

By Ally Pally

Alexandra Park is home to over 7,500 trees, 38 protected species and…dozens of amateur sports clubs.

This includes the Alexandra Park Women’s Football Club, who play their home games on the pitches in the south east corner of the Park.

Club captain, Kate Gerrand, explains what the club is all about….

Founded in 1898, we are one of North London’s oldest football clubs. We are open to all abilities and have a 40 strong squad, which is growing rapidly with the rising popularity of women’s football. We are a fun and friendly team committed to growing women’s football in our local community and dedicated to making sure everyone gets time on the ball. With the age of players ranging from 16 to 60 we are incredibly inclusive – all are welcome!

We are part of the Greater London Women’s Football Sunday League 11-a-side and take part in regular 5-a-side games on weekday evenings. We train once a week, organise regular socials, and have been known to appear at Alexandra Palace Parkrun for some extra training!

I started playing football in primary school in Australia but rediscovered it as an adult. I have been playing with APW since I moved to London in 2018 and wanted to meet some local friends. I’m a central defender often playing as the “last woman standing” between the attackers and the goal-keeper.

We’ll find any excuse to have a drink at the club-house, taking full advantage of the discounted club-house drinks! As well as casual post-match meals and drinks, our highlights are the Club Quiz Night, Awards Night, Christmas Dinner, and intra-club tournaments. For wider engagement, many of the socials are whole-club-inclusive, involving the 10 men’s teams at the club, large youth section and cricket club.

We play football to make local friends, keep fit, and have fun. By learning to communicate with one another on the pitch and catching up after games, playing football helps establish a sense of community.

Football is great for physical and mental health. Not only will the regular training sessions and match opportunities help keep you fit, but I often find that running around in February weather and mud offers a solution to most problems! Bring a pair of boots and we’ll provide the rest! We also offer concession and discounted rates too.

I love the balance of fitness and strategy in football. You can win a football game based purely on speed and strength, or you can win by playing a clever game. The universal nature of the game also means that I have talked for hours with all sorts of people about football and made lifelong friends.

1969 saw the formation of the Women’s Football Association. However, the history of Women’s Football reaches further back than is often assumed. Before the FA ban on women playing in league matches in 1921, the first women’s football match happened in the 19th century at Crouch End Athletic Ground. The 1895 game of North London Vs South London established the foundations for competitive women’s football, and as a North Londoner myself, the North London team will always hold a special place in my heart!

It finally feels like the tide is turning on women’s football. Despite persistent misogyny in women’s sport and a 50-year FA ban on women’s games altogether, it’s impossible to deny women in football now. We have received hundreds of expressions of interest to join the team since the Euros success. It’s been really important for our recruitment. Most importantly, I think it’s been important for our self-belief. The Euros also revealed a lot of the issues in women’s football – and how we might go about fixing them. We’re going to continue to do our part to provide the grassroots place for this.

We’re recruiting and seeking sponsors! If you are a woman looking to get involved in a fun and friendly team at any level (competitive 11-a-side as well as casual 5-a-side) then get in touch! If you are a local business owner or a corporate benefactor keen to raise your profile and support the local community, we would also love to hear from you. As well as getting your name on our lovely orange kit, we have lots of ways to repay sponsors. There has never been a better time to sponsor a grass-roots women’s football team.

We’re so lucky in North London to have such great green spaces and Ally Pally tops the list. I have about 100 photos of the park and views on my camera roll and there’s always something to do here.