Lizzy Ashcroft
Lizzy Ashcroft | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1905 |
| Died | 1973 (aged 67–68) |
| Occupation | footballer |
| Years active | 1921-1936 |
| Height | 173 cm (5 ft 8 in) |
| Spouse | Joshua (1936-) |
| Children | 2 |
Lizzy Ashcroft (1905 – 1973) was an English footballer who is considered a pioneer of the women's game.[1][2] She is regarded as one of the preeminent pre-World War Two women's footballers.[3]
Early life
Ashcroft was a native of Parr, St Helens.[4] She was born in about 1905 as one of twelve children in a working-class family.[1][5]
Career
Ashcroft made her footballing debut in April 1921, aged 16, when St Helens Ladies FC played against Dick, Kerr Ladies at St Andrews.[6] She later joined the Dick, Kerr team, becoming vice captain in 1933 and taking over from Lily Parr as captain in 1935.[6] After participating in the Dick, Keer Ladies tour of France later that year, Ashcroft retired from football in 1936 to get married.[7]
In total, Ashcroft spent fifteen years playing for St Helens Ladies FC and Dick, Kerr Ladies.[8]
Style of play
Known for her height and strength, Ashcroft mainly operated as a full-back.[9] She was known as the "best defender since Alice Kell" but she could also play in an attacking role when required.[10]
Personal life
In 1926 Ashcroft joined the Whittingham County Mental Asylum in Goosnargh as a nurse.[7] In 1936 she married her husband Joshua, who died just twelve years later.[7][5] They had two children. She rarely spoke to her family about her time as a footballer, although they later described her as a "life-long lover of football" and recalled her watching Match of the Day every weekend.[11][6]
Death and legacy
After Ashcroft's death in 1973, her grandson Steve Bolton found cases of photographs and documents in his father's attic, which inspired him to write an article about her and publish it online.[12] After reading the article, local actress Michelle Crane wrote a short film, Granny, exploring both Ashcroft's career and how her family came to rediscover it.[13] The film premiered at the Genesis Cinema in London in 2022 and was later accepted at the New York Independent Film Festival.[5]
Bolton donated his grandmother's photographs to the National Football Museum in Manchester.[14] Several of Ashcroft's photographs are featured in a permanent exhibition at the museum about Lily Parr, which opened in 2021 to mark the 100th anniversary of the FA's ban on women's football.[15][16] Items from the Ashcroft collection were featured in an exhibition celebrating the history of women's football at the Queen's Theatre in Hornchurch in 2023.[17]
In 2025 a blue plaque was placed in her memory in St Helens.[1]
References
- ^ a b c Molyneux, Jess; Lines, Andy (2025-06-30). "Ten years ago nobody had heard of my nan - now everyone will". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 2025-07-24.
- ^ "Films celebrating Lancashire ladies' football star and Lytham Hall history given Blackpool premiere". blackpoolgazette.co.uk. 2 February 2023.
- ^ "Lizzy Ashcroft: Preston's hidden footballing heroine honoured in new film after family discover suitcases of forgotten memorabilia". Lancashire Telegraph. 16 May 2022.
- ^ Bolton, Steve (1 September 2022). "Lizzy Ashcroft: legend of women's football". Playing pasts. Retrieved 22 December 2022.
- ^ a b c Marshall, Jack (16 May 2022). "Lizzy Ashcroft: Preston's hidden footballing heroine honoured in new film after family discover suitcases of forgotten memorabilia". Lancashire Post. Retrieved 22 December 2025.
- ^ a b c Sherlock, Gemma (27 August 2024). "First women footballers' park in plaque honour". BBC. Retrieved 22 December 2025.
- ^ a b c Bolton, Steve (5 July 2025). "Golden girls of the golden era of women's football". London World. Retrieved 22 December 2025.
- ^ "A look back to when St Helens Ladies beat Dick Kerr Ladies 5-1". sthelensstar.co.uk. 2 April 2023.
- ^ "St Helens' Lizzy Ashcroft has a place women's football history". sthelensstar.co.uk. 28 March 2021.
- ^ "Inspiring sporting women". St Helens Borough Council. Retrieved 22 December 2025.
- ^ Westwood, Katie (26 August 2024). "Women's football pioneers finally recognised 100 years on". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 22 December 2025.
- ^ Ellis, Brian (19 October 2021). "Preston soccer star to be immortalised on the big screen". Lancashire Post. Retrieved 22 December 2025.
- ^ "Capturing local history on film: Granny/Flyte of Fancy + Q&A". Blackpool Film Festival. 2023. Retrieved 22 December 2025.
- ^ Kirka, Danica (30 July 2021). "Women's soccer trailblazer honored by English museum". News 10. Retrieved 22 December 2025.
- ^ "Women's soccer trailblazer honored by English museum". The Independent. 30 July 2021. Retrieved 22 December 2025.
- ^ "Lily Parr: Unseen photos show first women's football stars". BBC. 29 July 2021. Retrieved 22 December 2025.
- ^ "Exhibition: a history of women's football". Queen's Theatre Hornchurch. 2023. Retrieved 22 December 2025.