‘Whitty’, a marriage proposal in South America and the women’s team that conquered all before them in 1960... despite an FA ban MANCHESTER PIONEERS

FORGET City and United – for a few months back in 1960 the only club from Manchester that mattered in South America were a team of women.

Manchester Corinthians were so good that a six-week invitation to tour the continent was extended to three months – as crowds of more than 50,000 packed into stadiums in cities like Bogota and Caracas to see them play.

Corinthians were the unofficial European champions.

With women’s football banned by the FA, they were forced to stage exhibition games on rugby grounds and local parks.

But after representing England in a European tournament in Germany, they had beaten the host nation in Berlin to earn an invitation to take part in the Torneo Internacional De Futbol Feminino.

Once again, they lifted the trophy – in front of 56,000 fans - prompting the tour’s organisers to cash in on the popularity that followed.

And this week marks the 60th anniversary of the success.

Margaret Whitworth was still a 14-year-old schoolgirl, who had started playing for Corinthians after watching them in action in Fog Lane Park in the Burnage district of Manchester.

She had fallen in love with football watching Manchester City win the

FA Cup with former German prisoner of war Bert Trautmann in goal.

And after her parents agreed that a tour of South America would be of educational value, she was given permission by her school to travel.

“I certainly did get an education,” said Margaret, 74, who still answers to the nickname ‘Whitty’ given to her by team-mates.

“We stayed in the best hotels and were treated like stars wherever we travelled, with people asking us for autographs and chasing the team bus.

“But I also saw the terrible poverty the people lived in – and that has stayed with me to this day.

“We were a good team. The manager was a man called Percy Ashley, who had set up Corinthians in 1949. Percy had worked for Bolton Wanderers as a scout and he put the same demands on us that he would have put on a men’s team.

“We played a possession game and he would talk to us about tactics and getting the best out of ourselves by behaving like professionals.

“We weren’t allowed to smoke – and if you were ever late, then you were out of the team.”

Corinthians were so successful that a sister team called Nomads were formed.

Any money raised was donated to charity, leading to the Red Cross helping with funds to take Percy and his squad to South America.

“We didn’t see ourselves as pioneers,” insisted Whitty.

“We were just a group of women who loved football and wanted to play the game. It’s great to see how much women’s football has developed over the last few years. I would love to play on the pitches they have now.

“Sixty years ago, it wasn’t just frowned upon for women to play football, you were also made to feel embarrassed about it as not lady-like. “I remember being taken to hospital after hurting my knee playing football in the street. “When the doctor asked me how I had done it, I lied and said playing hockey. I didn’t want him looking down his nose at me.

“I was a right-winger – Stanley Matthews was a big influence. “I still go to watch City. I’ve been a season-ticket holder for 64 years now – it’s been fantastic seeing the way Pep Guardiola’s team plays.” Whitty’s career was ended by a knee injury at the age of 27. After helping Corinthians beat Juventus in the final of another big tournament, she had been offered the chance to play for the Turin giants in the Calcio Femminile Serie A.

She was unable to make the move – but Juve weren’t her only admirers.

She recalled: “When we were in Colombia, a telegram was delivered to my hotel room one night.

“It was a marriage proposal and it said, ‘Margaret, I will love you every minute of my existence’.

“It was from a sweet boy called Oliver – but I was never going to choose Bogota over Burnage.”