RESPECT CAMPAIGN PROMOTED AT COUNTY CUP SEMI FINAL FIXTURE

Grimsby Town Ladies beat Cleethorpes Town 2-0 on Sunday 1 March to reach the final of the County Women’s Cup, on a day dedicated to The FA’s RESPECT campaign.

Having dispatched of Grantham Town and Louth Old Boys in previous rounds of the competition, Grimsby made the perfect start to the semi-final when Beth Wharton ran onto a through ball and finished well past the Clee Town goalkeeper to put her side ahead. That lead was then doubled before half time, with Alisha Dejonge scoring a wonderful overhead kick.

The football on show certainly didn’t disappoint, but another key focus behind the day was The FA’s RESPECT campaign, which aims to create safe, fun and inclusive environments across all football activities. There was a fantastic atmosphere on the day and RESPECT t-shirts were worn by players during the warm-ups. 

Steph Powell, Lincolnshire FA Football Development Officer, said: “RESPECT is a national campaign designed at making sure spectators on the sidelines and managers are in keeping with the spirit of the game. The hashtag is #WeOnlyDoPositive and that’s what we’re trying to encourage on matchdays.” 

Speaking after his side’s 2-0 victory, Grimsby Town Manager, Dale Houlston, said: “I’m delighted for the girls; it’s a fantastic achievement in their first season. They’ve got to a County Cup Final which is the biggest one, so I’m very pleased for them. I’d like to also pay a great tribute to Gary Carlton at Cleethorpes Town and Josh the groundsman; without whom we wouldn’t have had a game today. The girls will go and celebrate and enjoy the moment because they’ve earned it, and then we’ll think about the final. It’s going to be an incredibly hard job for us against Lincoln City but we’ll go there and give it our best.”

For further information on the Women’s County Cup Final between Grimsby Town Ladies and Lincoln City Women, please keep an eye on Lincolnshire FA’s channels. To learn more about Respect and the We Only Do Positive mantra, visit www.lincolnshirefa.com/about/respect