Chris Harris exams why the new Manchester United women’s set up are being vilified for er….doing what they were supposed to.
I could hardly believe it. I am reading an article by Suzanne Wragg in the Guardian. She covers, very well women’s football, for the paper. However after another Manchester United romp Suzanne is getting frustrated and very annoyed that Manchester United are sweeping everyone else aside. Manchester United have invested properly, not flamboyantly, in their new women’s set up the result being they are better than everyone else in tier 2.
But let’s examine what is and has been going on. Women’s football, has undergone a rebranding and a revamping to help promote the game. It has been an unmitigated disaster from the FA’s point of view. Sponsors have shunned it and gates remain stagnant at very low Conference scale. One good thing is that after years of not fielding a women’s team Manchester United have come to the table. There were licences every club could bid for in the top division, the Premiership and the second division, the Championship. Man U were applauded for going in at tier 2 when they could have gone straight in at tier one citing reasons such as humility. They have taken it seriously, unlike many clubs who are circumventing the licence agreements, investing proper money that the women’s game is crying out for.
When it was announced Manchester United were going in at tier 2 everyone connected with the game thought it was great. Now when most other ‘brother’ clubs are not they Man U are being criticised for doing exactly what is needed to run their club properly. They are finding their feet and next season with be pitting their skills against the other big clubs which of course will do what the FA have failed to do and raise the profile of the game.
So Manchester United are doing absolutely everything right. The problem has been the licences the FA have handed out are pretty much meaningless and rather than force clubs to pay players better money so they can train full time and invest in marketing and promotion they have blown a lot of hot air that nobody has taken seriously.
Except Manchester United. I just don’t understand the criticism for the sake of it. The FA make the predictable mistake and Man U get the blame. Yes of course we should all be rightfully ribbing the catastrophic mess under Mourinho, it is our birth right. But not the new United women’s set up.
The Rights of Fans. 