JILL SCOTT
Position Centre-midfield | Caps 134 | Goals 22
“PARENTS SHOUTED THINGS LIKE, ‘KICK THAT GIRL’, BUT no ONE WAS GOING TO STOP ME PLAYING”
What’s your first football memory? Probably playing for a boys’ team when I was seven, being named player of the match and getting a trophy with ‘Man of the Match’ on it. They wanted to change the inscription to ‘Girl of the Match’, but I kicked up a fuss and didn’t let them change it – I didn’t want anyone to think I’d only won because I was the only girl in the team. A local paper got wind of it and wrote a story. The headline read: ‘Jill is proud to be a man’, which was pretty embarrassing.
Was it tough being the only girl in the team? Yeah. I used to get a lot of stick, and parents shouted things like, ‘Kick that girl.’ There were definitely times I walked off the pitch in tears. But I’d always pick up my boots a couple of days later and go back to training, then play again the following weekend. It was hard, but I always felt like I was meant to play football and no one was going to stop me. Sometimes when I go home for Christmas, I’ll bump into guys who’ll say, ‘I remember playing against you and now I watch you playing on telly’, but I remember they were the ones trying to kick me back then. I’ll just smile politely and say thanks. It’s quite satisfying in a way – it means the women’s game is now starting to get the respect it deserves.
Which players did you look up to when you were growing up? Back then it was mainly male role models, so it’s good that girls now get more of a chance to see female players. I loved David Beckham – I admired him for the role he played off the pitch, as much as anything else. I remember going to the Stadium of Light to see England play Turkey when I was 16. My mum was a bit worried about crowd trouble after the match, so told me to make my way straight home, but I waited outside the ground for two hours to get Becks to sign a poster. My mum grounded me for two weeks but it was worth it! He came to one of our meet-ups last year to say a few words. I don’t really get starstruck, but that day was pretty special. I didn’t tell him about the poster, though!
You’ve been around the England setup since 2006 – how much have things changed in that time? Loads has changed: the introduction of central contracts, professionalism meaning players can focus on football full-time, the amount of media coverage some of the bigger matches and competitions are getting. Ten years ago it felt like there was lots of media interest in big international tournaments, but things would quickly die down when we came home. Now the media interest is more consistent. There are more people coming to watch club games – we see 2,000 or 3,000, up from 200 or 300.
How difficult was it for you starting out? When I was 19 and signed for Everton, I was having to make a 350-mile round trip for every training session and match because I was still living and working in the North East. So twice a week I’d do some coaching in the daytime, then drive straight over to Liverpool, train in the evening, then drive home to Sunderland. On a Friday we had to train from 8-10pm as it was the only time the women’s team could get access to the pitches. I’d usually get home between 1-2am after that, then I’d have to do similar journeys for matches on Sundays, too. I don’t think that kind of thing would happen at the top level these days. I was pretty much surviving on food from service stations and not looking after myself as well as I do now.
Which change in women’s football has been the most important? I’ve been classed as a ‘full-time professional’ since I was about 26. People ask me about the additional physical demands of training every day, but it actually gets easier because you’re so well looked after. You don’t have to travel as much, you eat the right food and get the right amount of rest. You don’t need to worry about any of that stuff – it’s all taken care of.
You’ve played for England at three World Cups and three European Championships – do you think your experience could be key to the squad this summer? I’ve got a lot of tournament experience and every single one has been a different journey. When I speak to younger players, I just tell them to get themselves as fit as they can and mentally ready. Then it’s like a rollercoaster – you’ve got to throw your hands up in the air and enjoy the ride.
What’s your best memory from the previous tournaments you’ve played in? I think that was probably at the Euros in 2009. I didn’t play much during the tournament and perhaps struggled to stay motivated, but my moment came in extra time of the semi-final against the Netherlands. I came on and scored with only four minutes of extra time left, to put us through to the final. Whenever I speak to younger players now, I tell them they have to make sure they’re a good squad player. If they aren’t in the team, how can they support those who are? I tell them their moment will come if they continue doing the right things and are always prepared. You could play every minute of a tournament and not perform, or you could only make one appearance and make a huge difference. You have to be ready for everything.
What’s Phil Neville like to work with? He’s a very logical thinker. He thinks everything through and likes everything to be structured and organised. One of the things I like is that he also wants to get to know you as a person, and that’s really important when you’re in an environment like the training camp at a major tournament. I’ve had some managers who’ve adopted a very different attitude, but Phil can sit there and have a conversation with you about your family, and that kind of thing is in your mind when you walk out onto the pitch. You want to do a good job for that manager.
Who are the big personalities in this group? The great thing about this squad is that there are so many different characters. If I want to switch off I’ll go for a coffee with Jodie Taylor, who I’ve known for a long time. Then there are girls like Millie Bright, who’s funny and always wanting to have a laugh. Her and Rachel Daly hang around together a lot, and when you’re with them everything is fun and light-hearted. It’s a relaxed group.