Pioneers of women's football in the UK honoured with new book

Over the past five years, writer and football historian Dr Gary James, from Hyde, has devoted his time to bringing the fantastic story of the Manchester Corinthians to life.

After writing and publishing his book on the history of Manchester City’s women’s side, ‘Manchester City Women: An Oral History’ back in 2019, Gary was determined to take this history even further and dive deeper into the Manchester Corinthians.

Manchester Corinthians was a local women’s football team that was founded in 1949 and played on for 40 years, with many of their players moving on to play for and be the founding members of Manchester City’s women’s side.

The Corinthians played at a time when women's football was banned by the FA, so they had to overcome so many barriers and really fight to even be allowed to play.

They have played a huge part in helping women’s football get to where it is today, by overcoming adversity and becoming role models for so many.

With all this in mind, writer Gary wanted to make people aware of the impact the Corinthians have had on the history of women’s football in the UK and felt their story had to be told.

Gary had long been campaigning for the Corinthians to be recognised publicly for their efforts, and in early October his wishes came true when a blue plaque was unveiled at Fog Lane Park to commemorate the side.

Speaking before the unveiling, Gary said, “We don’t have enough blue plaques in Greater Manchester that are about sport, and as far as I’m aware we don’t have any at all that reference women’s football, this needed to change.

“This team's contribution to football in Greater Manchester needs to be recognised.”

Hundreds of people turned out for the unveiling and there was a large media presence. Among those in attendance were ex-players, family members, as well as Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, who made a speech prior to the unveiling.

A number of ex-players took to the microphone to share their stories, including former goalkeeper Anne Grimes, from Audenshaw, who first joined the Corinthians in 1956.

She spoke of her experiences travelling the world with the Corinthians, and what it was like to play in front of 60,000 spectators.

Another ex-player present at the unveiling was Denton resident Gail Redston, who joined the club in 1973 for a brief spell before joining Manchester City Women’s side, where she played her football for a further 14 years.

Gail said she found it extremely difficult to accept that she wasn’t allowed to play football at secondary school, and she was determined for this to change.

“It has been a long time coming but I’m so happy that women’s football is finally where it is today, and I’m so proud to have been one of the pioneers for it.

“The turnout for the unveiling has been unbelievable, it’s so nice to hear the stories of those that played before me, and I’m so glad the Corinthians are finally getting the recognition they deserve for everything they have done”, noted Gail.

“It is so important our stories are not forgotten, and I’m so grateful to Gary for helping us get our story out there”, she added.

Though the plaque unveiling was a landmark moment for Gary on his quest to make the Corinthians a household name, it was by no means the end of the journey.

After writing a couple of articles about the Corinthians back in 2019 and interviewing dozens of players involved with the club throughout the research process, Gary was keen to put the data he had collected, as well as the various anecdotes he had heard throughout the years, to use.

He chose to do this in the form of a book, titled ‘Manchester Corinthians: The Authorised History’, which he will be releasing later this year to mark the 75th anniversary of the club.

The book will take the reader through the history of the club, and will include interviews with players from every era.

Via these voices, the entire history of the club will be explained, with the key figures identified and remembered.

Their remarkable stories and memories will be supported with an amazing array of photographs, newspaper articles, match programmes, trophies and other items of memorabilia from every era of the club’s existence.

Speaking about the book, Gary said: “I’ve known several of the Corinthians for over 35 years. Another taught my sister PE at Hattersley High School in the 1980s. Their stories of what this club was and what it achieved are remarkable. For years I’ve wanted their story to be told and I’ve been interviewing members of the team for many, many years.

“Researching and promoting the Corinthians’ story has been a major aim of mine for several years – and a real privilege. As a historian of Manchester football, I’ve always been keen to ensure all aspects of the game’s development in the region is known and recognised for what it is. Sadly, the history of women’s sport within Manchester (and nationwide) has not been given the attention it deserves and so this book will, I hope, add significantly to our knowledge of another area of football that Manchester has led on. The Corinthians have added so much to the development of women’s football and it’s an absolute joy helping to get their stories out.”

Gary is hoping to release the book late this summer, but readers can order it now for £19.95.

All orders received before March 31 will have the purchaser’s name included within the special roll of honour at the back of the book.

For more information, or to purchase the book, visit: gjfootballarchive.com/order-manchester-corinthians-book/