Check out our ContiReporter’s fantastic video report from the Women’s U17 Championship, and tomorrow you can read her final report from the last day of her trip.
If you missed part one and two, you can catch up now!
Ailsa went to the Women’s U17 Championship thanks to the kind support of Continental UK.
Tuesday 26th of November
Today was match day! England v Italy.
The match was at Telford Stadium so we had a 50 mile journey from St. Georges Park to get there.
It was a rather cold day to be outside but it wasn’t shown by any of the excited school children that flooded the ground, ready to watch the game. Before the match began outside the stadium, Continental Tyres were running a Conti Fan Zone. A variety of football activities were being run for the energetic children.
I had a go at measuring the speed of my kick. On my first go I fluffed it and didn’t even hit the target (that’s why I play in goal!) but on my second go I managed to get 29mph which was quite good.
I had to do a piece to camera about what went on before the match and interviewed two Birmingham City Ladies who were taking part in the activities.
Me and my cameraman David positioned ourselves by the team dugouts, ready and waiting for kick off. When the game finally kicked off it was a fast, exciting game.
Both teams were equal and no team was particularly dominant. The England captain, defender Leah Williamson was a stand out player as she was clearly comfortable on the ball and lead the team with ease.
At half time it was 0-0. For the second half me and David retreated to the press box, due to the days coldness, where Simon and Dad had been watching the game and famous footballer spotting.
I had to do some reporting to the camera at half time about how I thought the match was going. The second half was just as gripping and as nail-biting as the first. Unfortunately England conceded an untimely goal off a deflection. England continued to battle throughout the second half and continuously tried to win themselves back a goal, they came staggeringly close to scoring again but unluckily when the final whistle blew, Italy won 1-0.
The score didn’t reflect the game, a draw would have connoted the game more suitably. After the game, I got the chance to ask Lois Fidler a question at the after game press conference.
Following the press conference I then got the opportunity to interview the current England Ladies Manager, Brent Hills, who was lovely and chatty, I still can’t believe I got the chance to interview him.
I was also fortunate enough to be able to interview Alex Scott, England international, Dave Sampson, Bristol Academy Ladies Manager and four of the Under 17 girls, Leah Williamson, Keira Walsh, Chloe Kelly and Molly Rouse.
I was overwhelmed by the people I got the chance to talk to about the game. As the day came to a close it was time for us to go back to St. Georges Park after a long, jam-packed, thrilling day.
Hi my name is Taylor. I am 9 years old, I am in year 5. I live in St Ives in Cambridgeshire. I like irish dancing, Jessie J, Tang So Do and Tuna Pasta. When I grow up I want to be a midwife.
I have been working with my Aunty Bry who is an artist. We have been working together for almost a year when I am not at school.
Our project together is called Credible Likeable Superstar Role Model.
It’s a social campaign, theatre show, documentary and education project.
If you don’t know already, a role model is someone you admire, whose behaviour inspires you, makes you happy. And want to achieve something as well as they have.
Ages ago me and my aunty Bryony had a look at the role models that were offered to kids like me on TV, in music, online. We found they were all very similar. Lots of them talked about fame and money, the girls all looked similar, the way they made you feel was the same, most also tried to sell you something. We started to think about a different role model who wasn’t like that. And we decided to make one come to life. As an alternative.
I chose my top 5 personality traits for a role model from a list that Bryony gave me. These were:
Kindness
Community
Tradition
Hard Work
And
Safety
I then created a character that had these traits. Bryony asks me 100s of questions all the time. I am in charge. I am the manager. She then goes away and makes things come to life. It is very fun. And a bit strange.
Her name is Catherine Bennett.
She works in a Museum with the dinosaurs.
She has a dog called Cookie
She is 29.
She is good at what she does. She worked hard to get there.
Her favourite food is Tuna Pasta.
Her bedroom is light blue.
She has lots of friends, likes parties and being outdoors.
She goes to the gym everyday and practices martial arts.
She has a boyfriend called Matthew and a best friend called Chelsea.
Matthew is a proof reader.
Chelsea is a midwife.
To relax she lays on the sofa and watches TV.
Her favourite film is War Horse.
She likes 80’s music.
She cycles everywhere.
Her favourite TV programme is Come Dine With Me
Catherine as you have seen, has shoulder length blonde curly hair
She wears glasses and a dinosaur bone necklace.
Has blue eyeshadow and red lipstick
She wears knee length skirts and likes polo necks
She is quite covered up. She is quite clumsy so doesn’t wear high heels. She always has a back pack even when she is on the red carpet. She is a normal lady.
We decided that pop music was the best way to reach people my age. So CB became a pop star. My aunty played me hours and hours of music. She then gave me a sentence and made me fill in the blanks with musicians and bands.
CB sings songs like Lily Allen, written by the B52’s and produced by The Gorillaz.
I then gave Bryony and Tom (who makes the music) the things I thought CB should sing about, things that me and my friends like. Animals, Friendship, getting up and being happy.
Catherine Bennett wants you to believe that anything is possible in life. She wants you to use your imagination
And she wants to make sure no one ever feels small.
We now need to get CB famous. So we can prove that kids would like an alternative role model.
We have decided that fame means:
1 million hits on Youtube
Interviews on 3 TV shows
Newspaper and magazine coverage
Celebrity friends
Radio Play
And one big company to offer to buy CB (so we know they are scared and want in on our good thing!)
You can help us by…
Sharing our music and telling people our story. Pass this on to all your friends, and visit the website www.catherinebennett.so
NOW. I want to introduce you to someone –
My pop star role model. Catherine Bennett.
EDITOR’S NOTE — April 2014 —
Since writing this article, Taylor and her aunt have been very busy. First they raised a ton of money to pay for a documentary to be made about their project, and they starred in their show. It was performed in theatres around UK, and then in Australia, where the response has been brilliant. This review from Herald Sun
The show flips between deliciously charming and fiercely confronting as we watch the pair dance with joy and abandon to Jessie J, enact fantasy stories, become knights-errant to fight invisible enemies, and share secrets about each other with the audience.
Taylor is a bright-eyed, innocent fawn in Kimmings’ eyes, while Taylor sees her aunt as a dinosaur with a bad back.
Kimmings in compelling and this production is joyful, self-referential, autobiographical theatre-making at its best, with a touch of feminist politics, a smattering of critical analysis of pop stardom, a huge dollop of comical storytelling and pop culture, and plenty of poignant yearning.
