Coach Pablo Roca flew all the way to Australia to watch Cata who he trained from a very young age.

Coach Pablo Roca flew all the way to Australia to watch Cata who he trained from a very young age. | R. Prior

Richie PriorMallorca25/08/2023 13:09
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Congratulations to La Roja who beat our Lionesses fair and square last Sunday to win the Women’s World Cup. I thought technically and tactically Spain were better and when your goalkeeper is your best player then you knew England had a problem. No shame in that though but Spanish Women’s football is more advanced than Englands. You might question that as England are European Champions but when they played each other in the quarter finals in the Euros, Spain were the better team but lost the game. I said last week that Spain are the reigning world champions at U-20 level and they are also two-time reigning U-17 world champions in 2018 and 2022. In a strange way the internal problems that the squad had with their coach and 12 senior players refusing to play probably helped them. It meant he had to blood some youngsters but their experience of already being winners without doubt helped them.

Spain also have the best European league in my opinion with Barcelona being European Champions although they have been helped by two English girls in Lucy Bronze and Keira Walsh. Barcelona also hold the European attendance record with 91,644 saw them beat Wolfsburg in a Champions League game.

Now it’s all over you have to look at the legacy and where Women’s Football can go from here. The media in the UK always try to compare and contrast the Women’s game to the Men’s game. Why I don’t know. Last week because she had made it to a World Cup Final, Serena Wiegman was being touted as the next Englands Men’s coach. Now I’m not arguing she shouldn’t be but why the constant comparison? Let’s face it, if Gareth Southgate had made it to a World Cup Final and they were outplayed like Englands women were he would have been lambasted from pillar to post. Whereas last week Englands women were “unlucky” in most people’s eyes. Is this the woke society we now live in where people are afraid to give an opinion in case it upsets someone? Let’s call it for what it is but can we stop the comparisons?

I thoroughly enjoyed the World Cup and I am looking forward to seeing the progress women’s football makes particularly domestically. Now I am talking more about in Spain and where I live here in Mallorca.

Spains forward Mariana Caldentey started at Felanitx and the goalkeeper Cata Coll at Sant Marçal. My sons goalkeeping coach Pablo Roca flew all the way to Australia to watch Cata who he trained from a very young age. So we have the opportunity to develop more stars of the future.

I took the time out to sit down and chat to Leon Blakeley this week who is heavily involved in developing the women’s game at Platges de Calvia in the south of the island. There are a growing number of clubs introducing women’s teams, in the senior women’s leagues, I counted 35 clubs which is very healthy. The three biggest being Atlético Baleares, Son Sardina and Collerense. Notable absentees are Real Mallorca and I’m trying to find out why the islands biggest club isn’t pushing the development in women’s football. More to come on that.

Leon however is helping with the junior element in girls football as this is the only way this is going to grow by developing the grass roots.

One of the things that isn’t helping the juniors in the game is that there are no competitive leagues after 14 years of age. Girls the have to join a women’s team. Compare that to the boys who can play up to 19 years before they move up to the men’s game and you can see that’s a problem. Some girls play in boys teams from 6 years old and can still play with the boys from 14-16 years but the physical difference at that age is a disadvantage. Leon tells me he’s pushing the FFIB, who are the federation of football in the Balearics for a 14-16 year old girls league, which would be a good thing.

Platges de Calvia currently have their women’s team who play 11 a side from 14 years old and upwards. Infantil and Alevin who are 10 to 14 years old who play 7 a side and Benjamin and pre-Benjamin who are 6 to 10 years old and play 5 a side. They have over 75 girls in all of their teams and are still looking for players. In particular if you fancy yourself as the next Cata Coll or Mary Earps then goalkeepers are needed. Please give Leon a call on 676 040 111. Leon said the work he is doing is being fully supported by the Club and in particular the Club President Armando Perez.

As I’ve said already two of the women in Spains starting line up started their football here in Mallorca so let’s hope for many more in years to come.

Take care everybody and enjoy your weekend!