Name: Natasha Fenton

Age: 21 

Current occupation: Footballer and student physiotherapist

Who do you play for at the moment? Blackburn Rovers Ladies

And where did you go up? I grew up Just outside of Blackpool, we moved there when I was 3 years old.

Do you feel like where you grew up got you into football? Umm, possibly there was a lot of opportunity you know like boys teams and at the time they were really welcoming for girls to come and play So I played a lot in that sort of level for a while before I moved over to Blackburn to play for a girl's team.

So it sounds like you’ve playing football for a long time then? Yeah since about 4 or 5.

How long at a more professional level?  This is my 4th season now in the 1st team and this is the most professional we’ve been now. So We class as semi- professional, if not professional as we play against professional teams in the cup.

Have you ever felt your abilities have been doubted due to you being a woman in football?

Definitely, there was an age, I think it was on a thing when you hit 13 when I was young you weren’t allowed to play for the boys teams anymore even though I was still competing week in and week out

Probably better than most of them as well!

Well yeah, a lot of boys hadn’t developed by that age and of course we were ahead and stronger and quicker, like you noticed the difference,  but its like no you cant play for us anymore and just opportunity wise like I think definitely if I was my age now and I was a boy I wouldn’t be having this conversation now id be playing  full time on like a very good wage for being so young. And I don’t know its the lack of opportunity or just the lack of exposure I think for women  sport in general not just women football or the lack of exposure, I think as well for the women in sport in general. 

I agree. How do you think that men could be allies to women in football? 

I think, I think it could be about support. From a Blackburn perspective I know that the men and the women sort of work closer together, whether that be background staff or as players if we see the men, they’re always very polite to us, you know.  I think there probably should be more done in terms of the men promoting the women games, like if we have a game coming up, what’s the harm in the men tweeting to all their followers and fans, you know thats not going to ruin there street cred or whatever they’re worried about. It’s not gonna do anything, it’s harmless. So I think thats definitely important. And I think that sometimes men can be a little bit ignorant to the fact that there is a women’s game, or  you can get men which are very much like lets support women. I know  when it was the world cup, English male footballers were getting right behind women so just think it's having a healthy balance.

Do you think there is anything organisations/ brands could do more to help female footballers gain visibility? Whether that be in fashion or just commercially?

I think so, I know that Adidas, their guarantee for the World Cup was that any of their US female athletes or anyone they were sponsoring in the World Cup got the same amount the men would get, I think thats good. But then at the same time, like kit launches [a lot more now actually, I was included in the Umbro Blackburn launch and even that is increasing the platform and what clubs don’t realise is they have women supporters as well, so them seeing the kit on a women player - surely thats more of a selling point? I think thats really important and I think people like Nike and Adidas who are huge in the fashion industry, they have that platform, for like I don’t wanna say equal rights, but to just give us more of an opportunity in order for it to grow. People go ‘oh it’s not that big because they haven’t got that many followers’ but people haven’t given us a chance for there to be that many followers.  Like people like Nike and Adidas, its not gonna cost them very much in order for them to increase their platform.

Does it bother you when non football fans wear football wear? 

No, not particularly, I’m happy for them  to do that. At the end of the day if someones buying something from that club then the moneys just going back into the club, it’s just supporting them really. Unless they start making comments about football and they have no idea what they’re talking about!

What does it mean to use for a female in this sports it means a lot? 

It means a lot. I think I've worked like tirelessly hard. Like I’m only 21 but the amount of derogatory comments I’ve heard throughout my life, like “Oh pick up that  girl!” “Its just a girl!” It happened all the time! But even  now, quite often you see, not so much with Blackburn but like with Man City women, if man city men tweet about the women, you just read through some of the comments and you’re like oh that’s just awful. Why do you go through so much time and effort. But then to see how successful the woman’s football has been, and to see how successful MY football has been, that makes me so proud, and we’re not just going to let some keyboard warriors take that way from us. I think it takes a strong mentality to be a successful woman, whether that be in sport or any career. Like I said, If I was a boy at this stage, I would be earning loads of money, but I’ve probably worked twice as hard and I’m no where near even earning a small percentage of that. So I think it definitely  shows courage. To all woman, who are at any success level. It could be anything. It takes courage, and desire and handwork and I think even with setbacks most women are strong enough to plough on through.