Former Lionesses Jill Scott has opened up on the challenges she faced playing football as a young girl and the bullying she endured from other parents.
The 35-year-old had a stellar playing career before she announced her retirement from the game following England 's success at the UEFA Women's Euro this summer. She's now down under in Australia on hit ITV show I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here and is quickly becoming a fan favourite among viewers.
Speaking openly in a conversation with fellow campmates Charlene White and Scarlette Douglas, Scott recalled the comments some parents would make on the sidelines.
"(I started playing) at five years old," she said on Sunday night's episode. "I played in the schoolyard with the boys. I didn't realise until a couple of weeks in that I was the only girl doing it.
"I had loads of energy as a kid. Even my Grandma reckons she said at my christening 'she's going to be a footballer'. I was about four months old or something!
"The kids were fine but it was the parents from opposing teams, you know. If I like beat their 'precious son' they'd shout things at me.
"Things like 'kick her' and 'hack her down'. I'd come off the pitch literally in tears."
Scott began her senior career at Sunderland at just 18 years of age and went on to represent Everton, Manchester City and Aston Villa. She has over 160 caps for England and played a key role as the Lionesses won the nation's first major women's tournament earlier this year.
In response to what the former England international went through, White, who is a presenter on ITV's Loose Women, spoke of how the triumph helped inspire so many young girls. She said: “It’s lovely because there’s so many girls and boys that play because the Lionesses are a massive inspiration.”
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