In the Club
The ultimate podcast for kids activity clubs! ClassForKids is an award-winning booking and management software trusted by 3000+ kids activity clubs.
From dance schools to football academies to gymnastics clubs to multi-sports clubs, we’re here to help kids activity providers grow and scale their business. In the Club is monthly music to your ears! Okay, not literal music, but all the advice, tips and inspiration you need!
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In the Club
EP 33: Sarah Crilly's Journey to National Football Stardom
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Ever wondered how a school holiday pastime can lead to making national history? Join us as we sit down with elite female footballer Sarah Crilly, who shares her awe-inspiring journey from casual family games to becoming the first in her family to play for Scotland. Sarah’s touching story highlights the profound influence of family and the sheer joy of playing football, capturing the essence of what drives true passion and perseverance in the sport.
We navigate through the evolving landscape of opportunities for girls in football, shedding light on the growing support mechanisms and resources available today. From the rise in clubs dedicated to fostering young female talent to local initiatives breaking down participation barriers, we discuss the pivotal role of qualified coaching. Balancing the enthusiasm of parent volunteers with the expertise of professional coaches is crucial for nurturing the next generation of athletes, ensuring they receive the best possible guidance and training.
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my dad and I are going back to like my kind of like childhood, teenage era. His like what?
Speaker 2:early 30s, mid-30s, and we're gonna go and see about 22 together super old because, yeah, today we've got a football guest on the podcast and it is a female footballer, an elite female footballer. I really like the segue it was a good footballer, an elite female footballer. I really like the segue. It was a good segue. Yeah, went for music, jumped absolutely seamlessly straight into football. No, well, I guess People probably thought we were going to go and over to this music.
Speaker 1:No, no, not us, we're keeping you on your toes. No, no, we're keeping you on your toes. But it is exciting because maybe you just can't wait to get into the interview. Right, interview, right. No, I've done this interview by myself.
Speaker 2:I think you were on holiday. You were swanning about somewhere yeah, I was cutting about eating cannolis. See, that's what we say, I love a cannoli, okay, she likes a cannoli and if we're kind of pistachio preferably where do you think Rebecca is, or where do you think X is, whoever it may be, and the Scottish answer is chances.
Speaker 1:They must be cutting about eating cannolis yeah, for, like our non-scottish listeners, that's a phrase that you can start to use. I think we should start, maybe breaking down, cutting about just means like you're just walking about. You're just going different places, you're cutting about and eating cannolis just means exactly that yeah, so if you're listening um or you're watching this podcast, you can like submit your best cutting about phrase, like tell us what you were doing at weekend where we you cutting about.
Speaker 2:Just drop us a DM on socials yes, let's well, this has been a crazy intro opener all over the place.
Speaker 1:Anyway, back to your interview. I wasn't here, so tell me about it.
Speaker 2:Sarah Crilly and I think we should just go into it and we can learn more about female footballer, female elite footballer Amazing story. Right, wait until you guys hear how she ended up being in the Scotland squad.
Speaker 1:Okay, I think Stephen told me a little insight about this and actually it's very interesting.
Speaker 2:Genuine like maybe one day there'll be a film made about this moment, and I'm not kidding, and fantastic person to catch up with, and let's just go.
Speaker 1:Let's get into it.
Speaker 2:Let's go. We're here today with Sarah Kelly. Thanks so much for joining us. Thank you for having me. You're very welcome, Sarah. What can you tell us about the journey that inspired you to get into football from when you were young?
Speaker 3:So I think it all started during the school holidays. Most of my cousins my age were boys and we all went to the one auntie who looked after us all and we just played football all day and I just got chucked into it. That way it all kind of started from there. My grandad, I think, played for like the Scottish schools and things like that, would you mean he played professionally for them or as professional as you could get back then I think, and he always used to make the joke that he couldn't believe that out of all his grandsons the first one to play for Scotland was his granddaughter. And did any of the grandsons go out and play? And they all played at a decent level, not professionally, but they all played like whether it was local juniors, amateurs. A couple of them were in the Airdrie set up back in the day when that would be about 15, 15 years ago or something like that, and Bill played at like a decent junior level and things.
Speaker 2:So that was like that's the fun side of your introduction, right, but what? What made you fall in love with it enough to want to pursue a career in sport?
Speaker 3:I think there was. There's loads of different aspects of football that everybody loves. So you've got team cohesion is a massive one, like being in that team environment with girls or boys, whatever it was, sharing the same passion as you and if the opportunity was there you were going to grab those two hands. And when I was younger there wasn't the opportunity for girls, and certainly in professional capacity. So you would do everything you could. You still wanted to be that professional footballer, you wanted to be that first girl in a boys team, even though that was never going to happen.
Speaker 3:But then the older we got and more success was when the national team was getting things. So there was again more financial resources put in and that opportunity kind of arose. So when I played at like the national teams from, I think, under 15s right through to under 19s, and then there was a set up of the women's national academy at Stirling University, right, so it was myself and I think I was 15 if I moved up there, so four years down the university degree but trained alongside in that elite environment. And so you were training seven o'clock in the morning, going to uni gym in the afternoon and then training week at night, and then it was from that that I then fed into the women's national team as well.
Speaker 2:Do you think, then, that now I mean there's enough opportunities for girls, I mean it's better than when you were younger, it's got better, but is there enough opportunities, enough clubs, enough kind of inlets for them to want to go and play.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I would say so. We've now got, without knowing the numbers, like. There's so many teams across Glasgow alone we think of even just in the West region that we have. We've got Sales, giffner, busbade and Chapel Glasgow Girls. That's only five out of 40 million, I think. And then that's right across the country as well.
Speaker 3:I'm reminded of the very first four. Well, there's obviously a wee bit less the more north you go in, potentially the more eastern when you go. The central belt, the south east and the west are probably the most populated areas of scotland, so normally there is the more opportunities forming. So there's multiple clubs that run from whether it's under eights, under tens, right through to under 18s. Some of them have women's team and championship pl or it might be SWFL, just an opportunity for you, no matter what level that you're comfortable with. And then there's a lot of actual recreational clubs out there that they might not be an affiliated SWFL club but they just run a women's recreation programme and target whether it's over 30s, over 40s, so that there's still so much opportunity to be active there's still so much opportunity to be active.
Speaker 2:And I mean, one thing we're quite passionate about is kind of not just the football space, the Red Cross, the Borlaug, for instance, gymnastics. We're really encouraging as a company to try and get male gymnasts there's not a lot, there is right, but there's nowhere near as many as there is females and in the same respect we are encouraging to get girls into football and to take the opportunities in these clubs. But also the more commercial clubs that might use our software and that might. What could say a commercial club, say a club that was running for camps and just like for fun, say not necessarily based on leagues and whatnot? What could they do? Do you think, to attract more kids? Because it sounds like at that level there is the opportunity, but from what we see on the ground I think that it's still very kind of male dominated in the youth sports section. What could they do? What could these clubs do to try and bring more girls in?
Speaker 3:I think you can remove a lot of barriers telling the girls to go there. So it might be that if you go into a local school and there's 20 kids throughout the school, for example, that you can find out where they're based and actually go to them, but you're right away taking out the transport of parents, parenting gatherings, getting them to a venue, because not everybody drives but everybody can afford buses, taxis and things like that. So if you can pick a venue that is local to this group of kids that you've identified, then it's making it easily accessible for them to come on. You can also have top, unqualified coaches in your place. That's then attractive. You want your kid to go and learn in a fun environment, but learn and develop at the same time. You're not just with somebody that's just taking them for the sake of taking them. You've got somebody there, that's, but it's a 1.1 1.3 ufc license. But, as it may be, that is their experience and know what they're doing and that'll make them want to come back.
Speaker 2:So that's the difference and when we spoke a few weeks ago, I think that came out as well and that obviously and it's a great thing in the kind of grassroots when the parents get involved right. But what's your opinion on and it doesn't need to be controversial, but on on that the development of these kids by the parents has never been as good as the development of these kids by qualified I think without parents gathering volunteers, most clubs wouldn't be where we're at, and even ourselves.
Speaker 3:We've ran solely on volunteers and parent helpers for I don't know how many years, and it's only been in the last couple of years that we've thankfully managed to put the resource in to get these qualified coaches, and brothers putting through their badges are actually resourcing them for their experience. I think parent helpers will get you as far as you want to go, yeah, but then there comes a time in your child's development that you will want them under a qualified coach, because there might be things that they recognise that a parent helper wouldn't, because this parent helper has a dedicated their working life yeah developing their football aspects, whereas a qualified coach that might be the be aligned all for them.
Speaker 3:They want to make it to the top, so they will be putting all their investment in a like self-development for them.
Speaker 2:So yeah, I think I mean the parents. They respect that as well if they are looking for that child of theirs to to go up and become more elite, and that they need the tuition of the more qualified people.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I think it's the same in every aspect Like a volunteer will get you so far, but then there comes a point in time where you will need someone else with the more experience, the qualifications to take whether that's born, football or another aspect of life to take you to the next level. In fact, that's just a given in where you're going to be. If you want to be an elite athlete or an elite tech person, it doesn't matter. I respect it's in you.
Speaker 2:And, it's to say, one of the things that we always bring up as well is that it's not the be-all and end-all right. If you love football, if you love gymnastics whatever it is you may love and you're not going to become that elite person right in the end, but you still want to be in that industry. There's a hundred other things you can do within the industries and particularly with football.
Speaker 3:There's lots of other things you can do as part of a club than kicking the ball about on the field there's so many opportunities now, like even myself, yes, I'm being at the elite level, but I've also now been on the operational side of things like working with SFA, working with UEFA, now at Glasgow City. Like there's so much that goes on behind the scenes there that as players you don't understand, you don't recognise until you've you've seen it. Yep. So whether that might be like an administrator or health and well-being or refereeing, coach, education there's so many different areas of all sports now that you might not make it as a player or an athlete, but there's other ways that you can develop. Still, within the environment that you want to be in, you stay, stay in that thing you're passionate about. Yeah, exactly, and I think refereeing's a massive one, certainly now in scotland, like they're trying to push for so many young female referees. It keeps you involved in the game.
Speaker 3:Now I would never want to be a referee ever, like I couldn't think of anything worse. But I've also known people that have got so much passion for being a referee and being a match official because there's opportunities, certainly as a female referee in Scotland. If you worked really hard, you can end up being a new referee and get called up for national teams or champion team matches or whatever it may be. So there's a shortage of female referees, right? Why? I mean, I think they probably do want to play initially, but then they might recognise that their ability might not be there to go all the way where they want to do. Thankfully there are other opportunities at recreational learnings and things. But I think historically we all know that the abuse that some referees can take and it's not a nice feeling. So to actually put yourself in that environment and opening it up to potentially getting that abuse, it's not something I would want to open a child up to no, of course.
Speaker 2:Yeah, you say like that, but if the skin's tough enough, then there's potential careers there.
Speaker 3:That no, 100%. As I said, it's the same as anything like if you dedicate yourself to it, there's going to be opportunities and it'll open new doors, and Ace Affairs is certainly doing a massive push right now on young female referees, so the opportunity's there. I don't know how long it takes you to get to the top level.
Speaker 2:As long as any other career anywhere takes you?
Speaker 3:Yeah, exactly, it's in your own hands If you want to keep developing and going, going through it I think it is badges, I'm not entirely sure and you can go all the way to the top. The more you do, the more. Whether you start under 10s and then to 7-a-side, 9-a-side, 11-a-side and to the boys and the senior girls game and the junior boys game, it depends. And then there might be an opportunity to do an occasional cup final or a UEFA match or whatever it may be an opportunity to do an occasional cup final or a UEFA match or whatever it may be. And then I don't know about the female UEFA referees, but I know certainly a lot of the men are full-time, so there's full-time opportunities to be a referee and then, even if it's not for you, you could still be that operational person that organises all the referees. There's still opportunities.
Speaker 2:We always like to highlight the opportunities and don't feel. Don't feel bad, and this is to the kids like, don't feel bad if you're not getting there, there's always something. That's, as I say, the same in gymnastics, same in performance arts if you're not going to be up on the stage, you could be doing the lightning, you could be doing the sound marketing pr whatever it may be, the companies, and there's a massive yeah, there's a massive team behind the scenes to even put one match on.
Speaker 3:I've worked at SFA and I don't know the numbers, but you've got hundreds of people working on one game for 12 weeks and they're held up to it.
Speaker 2:But as a fan, or you just walk and sit down and, as a player, before you know all that, it's training and then playing the game. Yeah, and they don't know about the game.
Speaker 3:I've been the player and asked our team admin can I get this? It's never been anything big and then all of a sudden it's there but I don't understand how many people have played away and got whatever it was to bring it back, or if it's been a more difficult thing to get, like how hard they've worked to actually get it for you and it's seamless and that means the team behind the scenes are doing their job right, because it's just, it doesn't affect the players, the coaches, staff, because that's what you want. A good game for us is. The players and the coaches and everything don't even know you're there Because there's no impact of them, the invisibility that means things are working right.
Speaker 2:so on coach then, right in your career, what you must have, somebody that inspired you, or somebody that way back when, when you were first training, was there a coach that you were like, right, okay, this person has got me really on the up there's probably one or two, to be fair.
Speaker 3:So when I was, you've got 12, 13 one or two, to be fair. So when I was, you got 12 13. I was part of the SFA's regional squads is what it was called back then think I don't even know what they think it's a talent, emerging talent centers are calling now, and it was a guy called Donald Gillis who's now Rangers women's managing director, and so Donald was my coach. That age group um had a really good relationship from Donald from day one. He helped me develop through the regional squads and international set ups. And then when I went back to work at the SAV, donald was not quite my line manager but he was the head of girls and men's football and I was like the league administrator for SWPL at the time. So I tried to play a lot into Donald. So the fact that we kind of went our separate ways, playing and coaching, but then came back together full circle yeah, again full circle, as you said, and then done the UEFA under-19s tournament as well, like with Donald as being the head of girls and women's football. So he's definitely one. And then it's just nice to hear about yeah, at your rails.
Speaker 3:Yeah, and then probably Kevin Murphy. So Kevin Murphy was a technically, he was assistant coach and then head coach of Hamilton Hockey when I played there again knowing Kevin for years prior to that and things and just he was the one that gave me an opportunity into the first team at Hamilton, which then opened the doors for me, went to Glasgow City and things. And then again Phil Circle back. Kevin was then working at Rangers Harps, man City. He's always been involved in football and now he works for Arsenal.
Speaker 3:So it's good to still have these people that were once upon a time coaches, but again, as we've talked about, some of our opportunities are still in the game, doing different things and using their experience and knowledge to benefit others. Then so they two people. Let me see the other opportunities that we had in football. Um, and then the opportunity, the sfv that led me to the opportunity I got with UEFA and then ultimately back to Glasgow City. So it's always been in football. So it's good to know that the opportunities are there when you can't be that elite player anymore.
Speaker 2:Okay about being an elite player, then what? Probably the loads right, but what main standout moment is there for you in your career?
Speaker 3:So I think internationally I don't even know if you'll know this story it seems like everybody in football knows this story from life.
Speaker 2:Remember and everybody listens to this. I know very little about football, so I probably wouldn't have thought you would my first Scotland cap.
Speaker 3:We were playing Norway. Somebody told me the other day that you actually used to get a cap. Yeah, yeah, you get caps. I've got mine framed. Oh, you still get them. Yeah, yeah, All right. Ok, cool, that's. I don't know if they still do. It's been a while since I've played. I think they do. But no, my first cat.
Speaker 3:I wasn't even actually part of the squad, so they'd picked this 23 or whatever it was. But there was a few injuries and things. So they'd asked the academy girls so the national academy I was at to come and train the night before to make up the numbers so they can do their shaping and things. So not an issue, yet we'll go, said the fair man Went back home, was going to uni the next day and they were like are you coming to the game? And I was like I don't know, it was pouring down, like absolutely pouring down. I was like don't know if I can do ball, I've got a lot of uni work going to do. And then it was one of the other girls who was just like let's go, we'll go, we'll go, kicked off here in the stand. Can't remember the score at the time, I think it was 0-0 at half time or 1-0 at Norbury, can't remember.
Speaker 3:And then all of a sudden the team manager of the Scotland team like shouts up and is like is Sarah there? It's a closed door game so there's not a fan. So it was like, yeah, I'm here. And she's like can you come down? So I was like, aye, no, bother, like let's well, at half time so we might need you to sit on the bench. And I was just like, right, okay, my hair's soaking, bare mind. By the way, I hadn't even like I'd showered and was just lying on my bed, for I hadn't even got myself ready. And I was like, okay, sat down on the bench now.
Speaker 3:Before that, sorry, I was like let's go in and get you like a strip and boots. Everybody got your boots with you and I went. No, I came as a fan and it was my friend that drove. So they're like, what's her age? And I've got tiny feet. So it's like I'm a three. Nobody in the squad has got a size three. So closest player was christy murray, so she gave me her boots about a size five. That's not close.
Speaker 3:And then I had rachel corsing strip on. So rachel, as everybody knows, is quite a bit bigger than me, like, like, taller. So I had her strip on and I was even smaller at the time. The strip's gone down to my knees, the shorts there isn't a gap Two pairs of socks on to get everything to fit me. So I was like this is ridiculous. So I was just sat on the bench and everybody was just laughing that I wasn't even there. Then, two minutes later, it was like right, sarah, we'll warm up, keep going on.
Speaker 3:Odd and I just remember it was Tommy Craig, who was a sports scientist who had worked with me at the National Academy. Again, I just put my shinnies on and I was literally like this. I was like this isn't happening. And he just grabbed my hand and he's like calm down, you're fine, there's no pressure, you know. And in a scores, and everybody just came running towards me like everybody's laughing, like literally barely laughing. Wow, I've came on out of nowhere and scored the ball and I think was it two, two, I think the game finished.
Speaker 3:My friends are then phoning my dad being like oh my god, I guess it's just happened. My dad's fuming because he was my dad, never missed a game and he just wanted him and he wasn't at this one and he's like what? And then my dad's, like people at work, were saying oh, I've seen your daughter's just got on for Scotland. And I was like what? This is literally like. It's like something at Hollywood. Yeah, well, that's the thing. So I was then getting my mum and dad were getting emails from one was from the one show wanted to make a film about it. My dad's like I want to get George Clooney to play me and it was just it was getting blown out of proportion because I think I meant it. I thought I was just a fan Right, got pulled out the stand roil, the rovers, kind of.
Speaker 3:And then also everybody here knew the situation but it was still funny. And they said Fabie, sort of like we need to kind of aim this thing, it's getting a bit far. And I was like it's not me, I'm just sitting here carrying on retraining by Hamilton at the time. But it was just that was a realist fight. I mean I'm so glad I didn't know that story. You can still google it and there's a wee American woman that talks about it and talking about her. Is there footage of it? There is not online, but maybe you'll be able to like enough. So there's plenty of photos. Because it was like I think the title is like cup of hero or something, because I had a cup of tea in my hand, like when they shouts down like a warrior and you can tell the strip is massive on, I swear to the Americans thought that you were just because that's their big rags to riches story, isn't it?
Speaker 2:The American dream is like yep, you, you on your gumball.
Speaker 3:Still, that's amazing. I know it's very memorable to me. Actually, I think you will do it too. Well, we'll answer.
Speaker 2:Where do you see yourself in three years?
Speaker 3:It's a difficult one. A few people have actually asked me recently where do you see your career going? Let's go watch. I really love my job at Glasgow City, getting to see players progress throughout the academy, whether that's in the elite environment or the more recreational side. It's great, not even seeing them progress as players, but as people more than anything.
Speaker 3:There's a lot of kids that have been in since they were 10, 11 and are now at the under 18s, for example, like and you've seen them grow the way they're through like, and that's certainly like a proud thing for me, like because we are developing footballers but we're also trying to develop positive young girls at the same time. And and I think, off the park stuff for me goes such a long way, like even just the little things about respect and I've done up to training. It's the fist bumps, it's a high seda, like you're getting more from the younger ones, because older ones are more focused and maybe too cool at the same time, whereas you go to the younger ones, it's like I like that, like, like that, like just knowing, like they're buzzing to be at training and then I come along and they come chat to me like as one of their pals, basically yeah part of the family.
Speaker 2:From what we know about, like all of the different again, and all the different sort of gymnastics and dance, the teachers are. They are literally the ones that they confide in, and things like that as well.
Speaker 3:Yeah, not exactly, and I think we've now. A lot of our coaches have been in loads of different courses and things about, because dealing with young girls is different. They're difficult. We all know there's so much other things going on in their life. Boys are the exact same, so we've put a lot of our coaches through divergent courses and things like that as well.
Speaker 3:So it's like how can you be approachable to every girl on the team, no matter what level they're like, whether that is if they have autism or ADHD or if it's just they had an issue at school or whatever it may be? To be an approachable adult in that environment makes such a difference for the girls to actually have somebody that they can go and confide in. Now there's never, thankfully, been a time where our coaches have had to flag it and go. This is an issue we need to tell their parents. Thankfully, it's just all been, yeah, little things, whether that's about oh, I want to maybe try at this position or whatever it may be, but they're happy to have that open conversation with the coach and that's such a big thing for them.
Speaker 2:I mean, you must just be an amazingly positive role model for these girls. Well, I don't know about that I try to be.
Speaker 3:Hopefully they do.
Speaker 2:I mean you are just by being you and doing what you've done. You know there's so many that must look up to you.
Speaker 3:I'd like to think so again through both sides the elite side of things and playing, but also, I would say, how well organized their academy actually is, and we've had, like new players have came in recently and compared it to other clubs and said it's night and day, it's just so. There's everything you need to do like. But then there are times that it might be like I've not actually spoke to you directly in two months, but it's not because I don't want to, it's because I've got nothing. There's nothing that you need to know that can help you or unsettle you or anything like that. So we as a club always say we will speak to who we need to speak to when we need to speak to them like. We do like little updates. We've got a new system called Pachero that's an old thing, an old dancing platform for our kids like parents, where they, like can get all this training, information and things like that. So we do a little updates on that about new academy goal keeping which is going to be in. This is the schedule and things like that. So it's just keep them in touch. That way, violent doesn't need to be direct contact all the time and you will have just been there and I'd like to thank both myself and fee, who's the academy administrator are very approachable and very transparent in everything we do.
Speaker 3:If anybody sends an email, their phones we're there, we're getting back to you, certainly within a couple of hours, if not the latest of day, and that's how we like to conduct our business, because that's how we would like people to treat us as well, even if it's a like myself. If you had an example last week, because I was over in Germany for the Euros, it was something that came in and I wasn't entirely sure what the answer was. She just sent a holding email thanks for getting in touch. Like Sarah's actually on annual leave right now, but we'll get back to you as soon as she's back, like just wee things like that, rather than not replying to say it on back. It's a week later and all by the way. But, as you said, there's good customer service and our players and parents are customers like. That's how we treat that and, as I've said, if we can treat them as best and how we would want to be treated, then I think we're doing the right thing.
Speaker 2:Okay. So, as I said, I think you're probably, whether you accept or not a a very positive role model for the girls. Who was your role model?
Speaker 3:I mean I would always say my family, like my mom and dad's sister, like my granddad's cousin. He's like I've got such a close-knit family and a big sporting family. My sister was a runner, couldn't play football to save her life, so she's watching this. I'm like I'm going to apologise. She was a runner. My dad was a footballer. My mum actually played football once upon a time and my cousins did, my grandad did. So just having them to look up to most of my cousins all my cousins other than one on that side of the family were older than me, so it was just having them just to play football with and, as I say, inspired me to actually take it on.
Speaker 2:Did that give you a development of no fear? And just like you were, like right, I'm going to start straight away.
Speaker 3:Yeah, and that was what I was saying. Like even when I was in I think it was primary seven, all the boys in my class played for the club called Milton Rovers and they were constantly on at their coach. There was a wee girl in our school, blah blah, blah. And he just refused. He was like no, like no girls. Blah, blah, blah. And then the coach changed and the boys then were on it again and was like can we invite Sarah along? And he was like aye, come on.
Speaker 3:And my dad always says this, he remembers he was like you've trained really well. And he went. But in the game at the end of training he was like they punted the ball up, like just to put it in play, and it was like it came down from 40 yards and he went. You touched it dead and it was like right away everybody was like oh, so again. It's just like wee things like that, that if that opportunity, like if that coach didn't let me come to training, don't know where I would be at it's just simple things of allowing me to come to that one night to let them actually see what I could do, and then from then I was in the team for, I think three, four years I was in the team before I moved on.
Speaker 2:Just so much in that what you're saying. Let me show you what I can do the way across the boards, you know, and everything, not just sport but like, and some people just need that opportunity and somebody to look and looking and listening.
Speaker 3:Okay, show me yeah, and I'm into. Oh, we're always like until we're at max capacity at squads, which some squads we currently are like, we will always give a player an opportunity to come in, show us what you can do, and then that's when the coach used to make the decision. And it's not even if you weren't at a level. It's not, you're not good enough. It's like our teams are actually quite even in our community. Think they're quite elite. So the level is high.
Speaker 3:So we've got to think about that individual's development. If we're bringing them into this squad, are they going to play? Very often? Probably not if they're not at the level. So we will always do what's best for that individual. You're not ready for this Glasgow City team, but here are other clubs in the West Region that are maybe clear to, or whatever it may be, that we would advise you to go and play with. Get your game time and we can always keep tabs on these players like you can always go away, develop and if a year later you're in a much better position, we're more than happy to have another. Look at you like the door doesn't ever close.
Speaker 2:So, rebecca, you're sitting there right at the Blink 182 gig. You're sitting there right At the Blink 182 gig. You're sitting there standing. I am standing and you. This is all kind of speculation, right? I'm kind of made up. You've been playing the guitar for a while, right? Yeah, and then what's his name?
Speaker 1:the guitar man, mark or Tom.
Speaker 2:Mark or Tom hurt their hand, oh no, and they go. Guys, I need somebody to come up and play, but that's not their accent. Okay, hey, guys, I need somebody to come up and play. Yeah, that's it. And your wee hand goes up, and then they point at you in the middle of the crowd and you get taken up on stage and you get to play and then afterwards you're asked to start a band and that band makes you really, really popular and famous. That is the equivalent of what happened to Sarah Crilly.
Speaker 1:I am very impressed with your analogy. Well done.
Speaker 2:I segued that well Made that first segue, which was absolute rubbish. Made up for all that.
Speaker 1:Yeah, great analogy. I mean, Sarah's story is like you said at the start of this podcast there's going to be a movie made about this one day, for sure. And if you're a movie producer or you know somebody in the film industry, we've got a script we've got a filmmaker here.
Speaker 2:We're halfway Hollywood. Oops, that's my doorbell. I'm very sorry. Has that been my phone that's been ringing the whole time?
Speaker 1:I am very, very unprofessional yes, have we given that in yeah, we'll just keep that in say the story, to be in the crowd and to be pulled out of the crowd to actually play for your national team.
Speaker 2:I know she explained how, as you just listened to listeners they didn't even have a kit for her. The kit that she had to put on was oversized, the boots that she had to put on were oversized and they had to pack them out with tissue. And she scored, and she scored, and she scored, she scored and scored the winning goal. It's like an actual dream.
Speaker 1:That is like the probability of that happening to anybody else in the world. I can't even put it into probabilities, but that's absolutely just. It blows my mind.
Speaker 2:And then from there, obviously, she works so closely now in female and just in football. In general, she's a massive advocate for females in the sport and, yeah, I think that going forward, there's lots we can work with her on and kind of just lots of insights we can learn from. We've already started having a think about that going into 2025.
Speaker 1:We have because there is this kind of untapped space. I think you know, as working in the kids activity industry and you know the clubs that are operating within, that we've done things like future coaches and you know, just being quite candid with our listeners and being transparent, like we did think about okay, how do we fold something to do with female football into this campaign, and actually it didn't quite feel right to fold it in just for the sake of shoehorning something in, and it deserves its own space and its spotlight, so I can't say too much about exactly what that means, but there will be exciting things coming to Class for Kids in 2025 in that space.
Speaker 1:So if you are either thinking about extending your club and its current offerings to open up more classes that are female only, if you run a female only football academy and you're interested, please do keep an eye on our socials and everything that we're doing content-wise in 2025, because there will be some useful content coming your way.
Speaker 2:There will Now. I think that, me having fixed that initially bad segue, we should wrap this up before I mess up again.
Speaker 1:Okay, let's do it.
Speaker 2:I'm going to let you end this.
Speaker 1:Okay, well, it's been great to have all of our listeners listening to this podcast, watching it, if you're watching it, and we hope that you've taken something really valuable away from Sarah's podcast with us and enjoyed your time with Class for Kids.
Speaker 2:I've enjoyed talking to each and every one of you this week. I'm messing up again. You're letting me do that.
Speaker 1:Okay, we're just going to wrap it up. Okay, we'll be back soon. Three, two, one Bye.
