Meeting of the Parliament

Meeting date: Tuesday, February 21, 2023

Official Report 931KB pdf

Time for Reflection

The first item of business is time for reflection. Our time for reflection leader today is Dr Rose Reilly MBE.

Presiding Officer and members of the Scottish Parliament, thank you for letting a wee lassie from Stewarton address you today.

Today, female football players still struggle for equality. I had my own struggles. At school, I wanted to play fitba, but that was not allowed. I loved football, so I played every day anyway, and I was belted for it. My headteacher said to me, “Rose, you’re not learning.” I replied, “No, sir—it’s you that’s not learning.” I never held a grudge—I moved on and tried harder.

There was no girls’ team, so, to play with the boys’ team I had to get a short-back-and-sides, change my name to Ross and get changed at home. During my career I experienced name calling. Today, this would be considered a hate crime; back then, it was “just a bit of banter”, but it was wrong, it was horrible and it hurt.

When I got older, in order to turn professional, I went to France, and I then went to Italy to develop my career as a football player. I was seen as a pioneer back then, seeing all the cities of Europe, winning cups, trophies and medals and living in the best hotels. It must have seemed glamorous.

It was difficult at the start, until I learned the language. I had no support network, but football kept me going. My reward for my pioneering work in football was to receive a lifetime ban from the Scottish Football Association. Instead of being supported, I was rejected. Where I could have been used as a positive role model to inspire females, I was disowned. Those challenges that I faced were wrong and horrible, and it hurt, but I am not bitter—I forgave the SFA and I moved on.

I believe that what I did back then has helped young girls in Scotland to realise that they can do whatever they want as long as they work hard to follow their dreams. Today, I support young girls to get involved in sport and physical activity, so that they do not face the same hurdles as I faced.

I am grateful that my work has been recognised in Ayrshire, where there is a sports centre named after me in Stewarton. At Ayrshire College, I have a football academy for girls, which provides free football and free kit to all participants.

I am fortunate that I have been able to give back to the community where I was born and raised. The look on the faces of those wee lassies playing for fun is as good a feeling as any goal that I scored or any trophy that I lifted. The awards were great, but the rewards are greater.

Thank you.