Women's football in Scotland is on the up. More girls and women are playing the game nowadays than ever before. The national team is currently sitting at number 21 in the FIFA world rankings from a pool of 2,500 players registered with clubs and who actively play the game on a regular basis. The total number playing football in Scotland is 27,000. Sweden is ranked number 5 with a playing pool of 250k. In 2005, when Scotland appointed Swede Anna Signeul as the national coach, Scotland were ranked 29 with Sweden in sixth place. This puts in perspective the scale of achievement delivered when you have the right person in the right place. One of the key people behind putting Signeul in that key role of national coach was, SFA's head of girls and women's football, Sheila Begbie. Football pumps through the veins of Begbie and she has been a player at club and international level (first cap won at 15) in her youth before she moved into the admin side of the game when her playing days were over and she has reached the very top. However, this does not mean that any laurels are being rested on. Begbie eats, sleeps and lives football and her enthusiasm for the women's game is infectious.
Sheila Begbie, Head of Girls and Women's football at the SFA (c) Ger Harley | SportPix I met Begbie ahead of Saturday's game against Sweden to discuss the wide ranging issues she and her team have to face. Despite the frustrations that all of us suffer from time to time in terms of persuading people set in their ways, Begbie remained positive that improvements were slowly being made and that the long range target is very much on track. Some side steps may have to be taken as obstacles will come along, but the persuasive skills of people like Begbie, who know that 'no' is not a real answer to a problem, will enable the targets to be achieved.She is not satisfied with what has been achieved to date within the women's game but is ambitious for more success, starting with qualification for the 2013 European Championships. That is why, in part, top nations like Sweden are sought to play against to test the best we have and who appear in the national strip. Over her career, Begbie has had to overcome challenges to play and promote the sport she clearly loves. She, along with enlightened colleagues throughout the women's game, are working hard at changing attitudes and perceptions about the game for women. The SFA is not an easy ship to steer along a different course, especially when other hands are on the tiller with their own plans to follow. However, changes at the top and the new vision they bring have encouraged Begbie that women's football is no longer the Cinderella sport of Scotland. Expectations are high within Scotland for the national teams to be successful. Many of the recent changes introduced by Mark Wotte, SFA performance director, like regional performance coaches were already in place in the women's game. Begbie and Signeul were able to hand over a forward looking plan up to 2015 to Stewart Reagan on his appointment as Chief Executive in 2010. This was held up by Regan as an example of what all parts of the SFA should have in place as he set out his vision for the future of all football in Scotland. He is responsible for the bigger picture and sees women's football as very much part of it. This is not just lip service being paid to one part of Regan's responsibilities. While chatting to Begbie, she received a text from Regan looking for an update on a recent visit by UEFA who were developing a marketing plan with Scotland. Regan sees women's football as very much part of his Scotland United a 2020 vision.Despite millions being invested in the men's game over the years, Scotland's reputation at national level has been in the doldrums for far too long. Calls for investment and introduction of a variety of initiatives are a regular feature of the media around a game involving the national side. This has not helped the attitude to women's football. If discussed at all in the media, the women's game is tolerated and may just about make the sport pages. However, if the ratio of investment to achievement delivered by the women's game were applied to the male game, Scotland could be contenders for winning international honours. Things will not change overnight. Begbie knows there are many obstacles to overcome and miles to go. Four or five years means nothing in developing and delivering a strategy. A successful campaign to reach the 2013 European Championships may just be the small step that raises the women's game profile from invisible to mainstream. This would help bring fresh young talent to the game for further success in the future.There will be more of the conversation with Begbie on the site tomorrow morning and of course a report on the game against Sweden will be available on Saturday with images available on the SportPix website.Source: FOOTYMAD
