Remembering the Corinthians The story of the trailblazing Mancunian football team. By Sam Cox | OneFootball

On a crisp, dry October afternoon in 2023, a group of trailblazing women gathered at Fog Lane Park in Didsbury for an immensely special event.

After months of tireless fundraising, it was confirmed a blue plaque would be erected in honour of the pioneering women’s team who defied the ban on female participation in football in England at the time.

Their name? Manchester Corinthians Ladies Football Club.

In attendance at the ceremony alongside a swathe of former representatives of the team were members of the community, Football Association representatives, governmental figures and their friends and family.

Community group, the Friends of Fog Lane Park, played an instrumental part to ensure the Corinthians are remembered and that this aspect of the park’s life is properly recorded and acknowledged.

Alongside the commemorative sign, murals celebrating the club’s history on the playing grounds in Didsbury were designed and painted by artist Gavin Renshaw.

Anne Grimes, a goalkeeper who played for Corinthians from 1956 to 1963, was delighted to see a blue plaque unveiled.

“The Corinthians needed to be recognised because they did wonderful things, including raising hundreds of thousands of pounds for charity," she declared.

Manchester City celebrate a decade of professional Women's football in January 2024, but our early history and the exploits of the Corinthians and indelibly linked.

The pioneering team, with a commemorative plaque just five miles from the City Football Academy, finally have the recognition they deserve.

The Corinthians

Established in 1949, Manchester Corinthians Ladies Football Club were formed under the guidance of Percy Ashley during the period where the FA had banned females playing football on grounds associated with the organisation.

The team was comprised of local women who showcased tireless dedication to the club and demonstrated the injustice of the ban on professional female participation.

Ashley’s side embarked on numerous tours of the globe, playing in front of tens of thousands of supporters and in some of world football’s most iconic stadiums.

Perhaps one of the Corinthians’ greatest achievements came when, representing England, they won a major tournament in Germany which was regarded at the time as a European honour.

Not only was the team filled with exciting and phenomenally talented players – they also raised thousands of pounds for charitable causes across Manchester.

Although the team changed across various names during the 1980s, and was briefly reformed towards the end of that decade, their golden era where was certainly between 1949 to 1975.

A swathe of players moved from the Corinthians to Manchester City’s first official Women’s team in 1988 and featured in the maiden fixture against Oldham Athletic at Boundary Park.

“We played a lot in Venezuela and Colombia, it was amazing” – Margaret Whitworth

Ashley’s Corinthians provided mouth-watering opportunities to ambitious female footballers of all ages.

At just 12, Margaret Whitworth was afforded the first of taste of one of the team’s groundbreaking tours around the world.

The Netherlands was her first destination before she was asked to join the team’s tour of South America in 1960 where they thrived and captured the attention of thousands.

“I joined the Corinthians when I was 12 and I finished [playing] around 1972.,” Whitworth explained.

“I went to Holland with them just as an experience at 12 and then we came back from there and in 1960 I was invited on a tour of South America.

“That was supposed to be for six weeks and it was so successful we stayed for three months, so that was amazing.

“We set off and we had a Portuguese agent, who would book all the different stadiums and places. We played the first match in Caracas, Venezuela and played twice in the stadiums there.

“About 50,000 and 60,000 people were there. We went on to Santa Marta, Curacao, Aruba, Jamaica.

“We played a lot in Venezuela and Colombia. It was just amazing. “

"After playing in front of about half a dozen people in Fog Lane Park, I was running up the tunnel at the Alvalade Stadium in Lisbon and playing in front of 45,000." - Anne Grimes

Although playing in front of packed, raucous crowds in foreign countries may seem like a daunting task to players who were discouraged to play in their home country, the Corinthians thrived in those environments.

Grimes recalls holding her nerve to produce one of the defining moments of her sporting life.

She explained: “The best memory I had was running up the tunnel at the Alvalade Stadium in Lisbon after playing in front of about half a dozen people in Fog Lane Park and going up that tunnel and playing in front of 45,000.

“It was absolutely incredible and there was a penalty which I saved and the whole 45 [thousand] erupted!"

By jet-setting across the globe, the attitudes towards women's football back in England were a distant thought.

The 1921 FA ban on female participation in the sport blocked those who wanted to play competitively.

It wasn’t until the 1960s when the prevention was lifted, and representatives of 44 clubs attended the first Women’s Football Association in London.

However, Whitworth explained the mental difficulties she and her teammates faced when returning to England after incredibly successful world tours.

She added: “When we came back, we couldn’t cope with it because you’d been with freedom and so many people enjoying life then you’re back down to earth. It was very difficult.

“I think because I was so young, you didn’t have the fear of people. You were just doing what you wanted and that was playing football. It was just amazing, the whole tour.

“I wish I was about 20 and I would have appreciated a lot of things, because you’ve got people who are millionaires, and people in poverty which was sad to see.

“When you’re that age you just don’t think about these things.

“It would’ve been brilliant if we had the recognition and it would’ve been professional because we had some cracking players. They would’ve walked into the England side they were that good.”

Ashley himself continually championed female participation in football during his influential time at the helm of the Corinthians.

Monica Curren, who played for the team between 1960 and 1964, believes his unwavering backing provided an immense source of encouragement on and off the field.

As a result of Ashley’s support, Curren gained the confidence to pursue other sports she harboured passions for.

“I played for them [Corinthians], not for a long time, I came from Oldham so it was miles to get here. Half the time I didn’t have the bus fare so I couldn’t come,” she explained.

“When I did come, Percy Ashley supported you to the hill. I think that’s what you need. Any professional football team needs somebody who you know is on your wavelength and he was.

“I played from 1960, 63 and 64. I went to Italy and it was beyond belief.

“I think it was Inter’s pitch we played on and when you run out onto that pitch it was like a billiard board. In about two minutes you had cramp in your legs.

“We were used to this [Sunday league] grass! You trained as a kid but you weren’t trained on like an athlete’s [pitch].

“It was the football I enjoyed and I enjoyed going to places. I’d never been anywhere apart from a Blackpool day trip, nothing else.

“I used to just play with the lads on our estate now and again, but it really brought me out, this. It gave me confidence in a way to go on. I finished up a marathon runner!

“I probably did 20 marathons, but it was [the Corinthians] that gave me the confidence. Girls didn’t have sport.”

Among the Corinthians’ swathe of incredible tours around the world was a visit to Italy in 1961 where they played in the stadia of Milan, Juventus and other iconic clubs.

These pilgrimages preceded trips to Ireland in 1962, Morocco in 1966 and Reims in France (1970) where they produced a famous victory over Juventus.

For Corinthians player, Jan Lyons – that victory over the Old Lady would ignite a wonderful chapter in her life where she was asked to join the Italian giants.

She recalled: “I joined [Corinthians] in 1968 and I played until 1973. I went to Juventus afterwards in Italy. Corinthians was 1968 to 1973.

“I went all over the country playing for the Corinthians down to Deale in Kent and that was a big tournament.

"My trip abroad was to Reims, France in an international tournament against Juventus, Reims and a team from Slovakia.

“And we won it which was fantastic. We lifted the cup, went to a reception with champagne and I thought it was lemonade so I got legless! I had a right bad head the next day coming home.

“My time in France we played at Reims’ ground at Stade de Reims and there was a big crowd watching that. That was my main trip abroad and we won which was really good.

“We went to a banquet afterwards with champagne and it was just a marvellous day. We shared a dormitory with the Italians.

“They were at one and we were at the other with a little board in-between. Imagine the banter that was going on.

“[I signed for Juventus] because that’s where I got friendly with some of the girls. I went over [to Italy] on holiday then started a training game with them and they said ‘why don’t you come over?’

“I did and I was 18 when I went. I just got on a plane and went, that was that. You had no fear then, so you just did anything and it was really good.”

What’s more, accompanying the Corinthians on a tour of Germany was former City goalkeeper and Club legend Bert Trautmann who acted as their translator and helped organise matches in the country.

LEGACY

With attitudes changing in the late 1960s towards female participation, the Corinthians’ management played a vital role in the formation of Women’s Association Football.

The club, alongside fellow Mancunian team Nomads, became founding members while their manager Gladys Aiken was placed on the governing body’s committee.

As football entered the 1970s, the team continued to play and thrive thanks to regular coaching sessions by City 1956 FA Cup winner Dave Ewing at the Club’s Platt Lane training complex.

A new era beckoned in the 1980s when the team’s name was altered to Woodley Ladies following a change of home ground – but the club unfortunately folded by the close of the decade.

However, the Corinthians became a consistent source and pathway for players into Manchester City’s first ladies team, with a swathe of former players making up the Club’s first squad.

A player who trod that particular path was Leslie Wright, an unconditional Blues supporter who was given the opportunity to play for the club she loves

She explained: “I started playing for Corinthians in probably about 1975 and then when City ladies formed in 1988/89.

“I left Corinthians to play for the team I support, have a season ticket and [continue to] support.

“It was a dream [to play for City] because to play for the team I had a season ticket for and that I followed home and away was just great and a fantastic achievement for me. It was a dream.

“I was so proud [to wear the captain’s armband]. To think I have those memories too. I made lifelong friends through football. Some who played for the Corinthians also played for City with me. It was just brilliant.

“I played on Maine Road once on a 5-aside at half-time, walking around the pitch. I got to wear the kit which were hand-me-downs from the guys, but that didn’t matter.

“The pitches we had, the recognition that we got from City at that time – they were very helpful.”

The Corinthians' legacy will forever live on thanks to the wonderful memories held by their iconic players who so richly deserved a Blue Plaque in their honour.

“I think it’s marvellous they’ve erected a plaque in our honour. I never thought I’d see the day.”  Dorothy Alcock

City's Club Historian Gary James' book: Manchester Corinthians: The Authorised History is out now, telling the story of this remarkable club. For details see:

https://gjfootballarchive.com/order-manchester-corinthians-book/

Many thanks to Gary for his help and support in this project, including the supplying of images.

Top