IT may have taken more than a century but the fairer sex are finally making an impact on the beautiful game.

Even five years ago, female managers were as rare as a gracious acceptance of defeat by Alex Ferguson.

But a growing band of women in Halton are making their mark on the game at grassroots level.

Sports World spoke to two women who manage clubs on either side of the Mersey.

Julie Tinsley runs Wilmere Hawks u12s in Widnes and Julie Taylor controls Grange Athletic u12s in Runcorn.

Both became active on the local football scene through their children.

Grange Julie explained how she first stepped into the frontline: "My husband, Simon, used to manage the Grange u14s and I was at a meeting one night.

"Somebody said that we should have an u10s team, but there was nobody to manage them. So I said I'd do it."

Meanwhile, Wilmere Julie took over her son's u10s side when their manager moved up an age group.

Julie Taylor enlisted one of the men at the club to help in training, although some professional tips have come in handy.

"My son, who's an u10, had trials with Everton. So by going there twice a week I picked up things that I could do with my team," she said.

For Wilmere Julie, the tutelage of another top club has helped.

"We started on Man Utd's coaching courses and we just went from strength to strength," said the FA-qualified coach.

"The more we learned, the better we could teach the kids."

As with any male-dominated area, there's the obligatory quota of die-hard chauvinists, and both have seen plenty.

Grange Julie said: "You get the obvious reaction of 'she doesn't know what she's doing, she's only a woman'. We also have other teams slagging us off, probably because I'm female.

"But I ignore them because the team is top of the league so I must know something."

Wilmere Julie, the only woman manager among 83 men in the Liverpool leagues, had similar experiences.

"I used to get it at first. I would get people trying to dismiss me because they thought, with being a women, I didn't know anything.

"But we have gained respect. The proof is in the pudding and the kids make a really good side. We have other teams man-marking our players now."

Do Grange Julie and her husband discuss football?

"No, we argue about it! Simon thinks his team were better than mine and I think mine are better than his," she laughs.

So what does she believe is important in fashioning a successful side?

"I don't profess to know everything but I can organise things quite well," she said. "I would say that spending time with the kids and encouraging them is very important."

For the Wilmere Hawks, Julie has forged links with Manchester United, with coaches visiting regularly. The Hawks will be visiting the club's Cliff training ground in October.

We are all of us steeped in the lore of the legendary Scottish managers; is the era of the dominant footballing female upon us?

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