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From the ankles up anyway. Below that line, she looks about £9.99 with her national team standardissue adidas sliders. She laughs, blushing as she says: “Sorry about the flip-flops! Hate driving in heels.” That’s Shelley Kerr all over, though. Pragmatic, practical but more than anything, prepared for everything. The perfect managerial template. It’s the night of the Grassroots Awards at Hampden, an event where she’ l l spend most of the evening on stage with Alex McLeish, humbly recognising the people who are the beating heart of the national sport.
It comes easy to her. When she was 13, there were two senior women’s divisions in the country as a vehicle for her talents, whether she was old enough or not to cope with them.
Now, 36 years on, she has 10,000 girls registered in the pathway leading to her Scotland women’s team.
No one recognises more the sacrifices people have made so that women’s football could make the journey into the national conscience.
And Kerr handles herself like the pro she is – working the room with a blend of humility and self-determination.
She’s more than holding her own for anyone measuring Kerr up against her men’s counterpart, right down to delivering the most withering
put-down of the night. As she waxed eloquent about the qualities of her squad, Big Eck joked: “Sounds like I should be picking some of them.”
“They’ll be too busy playing in a World Cup,” deadpanned Shelley, before a wicked ‘ only kidding ( but not really)’ smile.
Kerr has brought style and substance to the women’s national team since taking over from decade- long servant Anna Signeul after last year’s Euros in Holland.
The first finals they had ever reached, it was hai led to the heavens – but the 59-cap incumbent wanted more.
She knew they were capable of more and methodically set about the const ruct to