Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

MARTEL MAXWELL: The Lionesses won and women everywhere roared

A proud moment for England's Lionesses as they celebrate their UEFA Womens Euro 2022 victory.  Daniela Porcelli/SPP/Shutterstock.
A proud moment for England's Lionesses as they celebrate their UEFA Womens Euro 2022 victory. Daniela Porcelli/SPP/Shutterstock.

What a result for England’s Lionesses on Sunday.

Sure, they won the UEFA Women’s Championship final against Germany. But, perhaps more importantly, it was also a victory for women’s football.

Even late-comers to this spectacle had to sit up and take notice when Alessia Russo’s backheel goal against Sweden helped catapult the Lionesses into the final.

Maybe they watched it from every angle.

And maybe like me, the people watching these women live up to their Lionesses nickname felt incredibly proud.

This pride was unexpected, so I’ve tried to explain it – not least to myself.

First up, let’s get rid of the elephant in the room.

It was England, not Scotland who won.

When I tweeted a congratulations, I was met with a few “but you’re Scottish?!” replies.

Actually I was born in London (to two Dundonians) and came back to Dundee aged two.

You won’t find a more patriotic Scot but I don’t hate England.

I lived in London for 15 years, still work in England a lot and have great pals there.

There’s room to feel both Scottish and British. It’s not a political statement – it’s just a feeling.

And bring us the day when Scotland’s ladies do this and we’ll really show you a celebration.

But for now, I’m proud because the women in this Lionesses team went out there and played incredible football.

A victory for determination – and a signal to little girls

“They’re good eh?,” I remarked to my husband during the final. “It’s just like watching men’s football.”

Do you know what’s he said?

“It’s probably better.”

But the one thing that wasn’t in doubt was the sheer determination that took the team to the final.

Alessia Russo of England celebrates her side’s victory over Germany in the Women’s UEFA European Championship final at Wembley Stadium. John Patrick Fletcher/Action Plus/Shutterstock.

I wonder how many times these Lionesses – and their predecessors – have had to listen to men ‘joking’  about remembering to take their handbags on the pitch.

Or telling them they have another place and it’s making tea at home.

Or that women can’t play football.

I can remember comments just like these – now seen as outrageously sexist – being commonplace just a decade or two ago.

But the people who thought that way have been proved categorically wrong.

And any wee girl thinking her choices lie between gymnastics, horse-riding, netball or hockey now knows it is not only possible to play, football, but it’s possible to compete and win at the highest level.

Maybe all the other sports we’ve traditionally left to the men – from rugby to weightlifting – will also come into play.

A valuable lesson for boys too

My eldest boy has started playing for a local team. One of the best players is a girl – and why wouldn’t she be?

He and my middle son are football daft and I loved that they felt invested in this women’s final.

It hasn’t been an option for generations of boys before them. The TV coverage hasn’t been there, nor the brilliance we now see on the pitch.

But I want them to think nothing of watching women’s sport – to see it as the norm.

As the lone woman in our house, I am partly responsible for how they view gender and everything that goes with it.

Martel’s boys.

I just want them to get on with it – not to think there’s a tricky divide to navigate, but that women are brilliant and equal.

Because here’s the thing. They always have been.

Just ask the jute workers of Dundee – like my gran who lost a finger in the mills.

Or the women who carried the country on as normal when the men went to war, doing all the jobs no one had ever thought them capable of.

Women have been slogging it out for generations and the fact it’s not been front page news makes it all the more courageous.

Lionesses can be proud of the example they have set for women

I tell my boys all the time that they can be anything they want to be – but there’s a caveat. They’ve got to try hard enough.

And that’s the beauty of England’s win.

They’ve shown that grit pays and that dreams can come true when you don’t give up.

It’s a lesson for our children and for ourselves too.

And since the joke is on the sexist critics of women’s football, here’s another one.

England have been banging on about bringing it home again since 1966 and finally, when they do get some decent silverware, it’s the women who got the job done.

Forgive me the reverse sexism, I never thought I’d get the chance to say that.

Well done to the Lionesses. You’ve made women everywhere roar.


Conversation