Not a Lasses' Game? - A Journalist's Take (#5)

It is more important than ever to be ‘with the times’ in football, when it comes to being savvy and aware of social media trends.

Newcastle United and Sunderland AFC have bolstered themselves internally in recent years to provide first-class coverage of every game for their supporters to enjoy.

The independently-run Durham Women have done the same and it can be argued this coverage does wonders for a club needing to rely on themselves, rather than having a known brand name to attract supporters for them.

With time, we are likely to see more and more voices giving their opinions on a matchday.

Club media departments will expand, traditional outlets will pay attention and fanzines will back their teams all over the country.

But is there more work to be done?

There has always remained the question about whether and when traditional newspapers would notice the increased demand for women’s football.

Kieran Regan, the Women’s Football Engagement Officer at Sunderland AFC Women, spoke out about the recent River Wear derby between Sunderland and Durham, which gave platforms like The Chronicle and The Northern Echo the perfect opportunity to take note of the scene.

“It’s a great fixture to showcase two of the North East’s best teams and [it] got the coverage it deserves,” he said.

“The FA were keen to assist with this and make sure it got written and broadcast coverage too.

“In the other games for this season, we have introduced a press conference leading up to each of our games, tied in to a similar time as the men’s press conference, so that press have the opportunity to cover each game, and we’ve seen a good response from that this season, with coverage for every game.”

Supporters can expect a fiery battle between Newcastle and Sunderland, on top of the existing rivalry in place with Durham in the league next season.

He added: “From a neutral perspective I think it will be good for the region to have three North East clubs in the Championship.

“The Wear-Tyne (that’s the Sunderland fan in me!) derby is the biggest fixture in the North East men’s calendar, and I think this game in the women’s game would draw close to the same attention.

“This prospective fixture would be a huge occasion.”

Sunderland Women celebrate a goal. Credit: Chris Fryatt / Alamy Stock Photo

Emily Scarr for Sunderland AFC Women on the ball. Credit: Chris Fryatt / Alamy Stock Photo

Across the River Wear...

Durham Women ensemble getting ready for the game. Credit: NurPhoto SRL / Alamy Stock Photo

Durham Women team walking out onto the pitch. Credit: Action Foto Sport / Alamy Stock Photo

Durham Women team walking out onto the pitch. Credit: Action Foto Sport / Alamy Stock Photo

Durham Women celebrating a goal. Credit: MI News & Sport / Alamy Live News

Durham Women celebrating a goal. Credit: MI News & Sport / Alamy Live News

The independently-run Durham Women across the River Wear is holding its head above the water in the Women’s Championship.

Its Operations and Marketing Manager, Mark Donnelly, is immensely proud about how interested local media organisations are in the professional women’s game.

“I think the North East media deserve a lot of credit for buying into women's football too,” he said.

“BBC Look North and ITV Tyne Tees, for example, show goals from every Durham and Sunderland game on their Monday night bulletins and that's excellent coverage - and something that is the envy of some other clubs across the country.

“There's always more that can be done, with the caveat that a lot of local media have limited resources and can only cover so much.

“Having students and people who are passionate about covering women's football providing them with copy can be a major help in this regard and is again something that can help.

“I think just seeing the level of media interest increase and the players finally receive the platform they deserve.

“We had a game earlier this season picked for broadcast on the BBC and there were genuinely tears shed between players and staff because we never, ever thought we'd get to a point where something like that was happening.

“It's well-deserved and hopefully is only the start."

The men’s game continues to be a hotbed of opportunity when it comes to honing your media skills, and Corey Nicholl has taken those chances with both hands.

She is a graphic designer and media assistant for Hebburn Town, who secured promotion into the seventh tier of the football pyramid for the first time.

It hasn’t always been an easy journey for her, but experience working with Wallsend Boys Club, North Shields and York City in the past has given her a well-earned platform.

“They were class to work with!” she spoke about her time with Wallsend.

“I had no real portfolio to start and spoke with Brad [Saxton] at York City who let me do some work for the U19s and when that finished I was able to have a good foundation of work to bring forward.

“For Wallsend I was involved in everything, from graphics to working some events while they got set up for their new community hub.

“It’s a massive club with a lot of history and I met some class people working there.

“They were all lovely and welcomed me on board, and I even was given some merchandise which I still wear today.

“At North Shields, I was brought on board quite quickly and easily which I’m thankful for.

“With them I worked a lot and treated it almost as a full time job as I rebranded the whole social media with templates, graphics, YouTube thumbnails, and then created matchday graphics for every game.

“Both these clubs taught me a lot about designing and how to act in a professional environment.

“With my own editing I can sit until 3am making graphics with no time limit for what I want to do but at a club everything goes by a schedule, and you have to work with other people, sometimes using their ideas instead of your own or working with certain assets I’m not 100% comfortable with.”

Nevertheless, the future looks bright for Nicholl who has continued to make the most of her new foundations.

She added: “I think professionally there’s a bit of a barrier if that’s the right word, as I didn’t do design in education at all, but that’s why I’ve tried to do as much work as possible and give myself a strong portfolio for a future employer to look at.”

Graphic work showing Harvey Barnes of Newcastle United. Credit: CoreyNGFX, Twitter. (https://x.com/CoreyNGFX/status/1774111986688672076)

Graphic work showing Joelinton of Newcastle United. Credit: CoreyNGFX, Twitter. (https://x.com/CoreyNGFX/status/1778755818072035552)

Graphic work showing Alexander Isak of Newcastle United. Credit: CoreyNGFX, Twitter. (https://x.com/CoreyNGFX/status/1777076830228357610)

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Across the River Wear...