The Times - UK (2022-06-11)

Fara Williams, England’s record
appearance holder across men’s and
women’s football, has called for greater
education on diet in the women’s game
after seeing how practices such as “fat
clubs” pushed away some young
players from the national team.
Williams, who earned 172 caps for her
country between 2001 and 2019, said
she felt as if she could not eat certain
foods when she was with England
because of a sense of “being watched”,
which made her “very uncomfortable”.
This month, an academic study
found that 36 per cent of elite female
footballers in England who responded
to a confidential survey showed symp-
toms of eating disorders, and Williams,
38, said there was a “massive” amount
of learning to be done.
The former Everton, Liverpool and
Arsenal midfielder described her fears
for female players, who now wear fitted
kits, and expressed her shock at seeing
players put into “fat clubs” — a term

8 1GS Saturday June 11 2022 | the times

Sport Football

Billy Bingham, the manager who led
Northern Ireland to two World Cup
finals during their most successful
period, has died at the age of 90.
Bingham enjoyed two spells as
Northern Ireland manager, from 1967
to 1971 and from 1980 to 1993. It was
during the second stint that he twice
guided the team to the World Cup,
including a memorable tournament in
Spain in 1982 when they beat the hosts
1-0 to reach the second group stage.
They also qualified for Mexico 1986.
As a player Bingham made 227
appearances for Sunderland and 98
appearances for Everton as an outside
right after starting out at Glentoran,
while he later managed Everton from
1973 to 1977. He earned 56 caps for
Northern Ireland between 1951
and 1963 and played in
their first World Cup
finals in Sweden in 1958.
His son, David Bing-
ham, said in a statement
that his father had died
peacefully in a care home
in Southport on Thursday
night, having had
dementia diagnosed in

2006. “I think it is a
      tribute to his will that he
      managed another 16 years
      from that diagnosis to the
      time he passed away,”
      David said. “We are very
      proud of all our dad
      achieved.”
      In a statement, the Irish
      FA (IFA) said he held “a
      unique place in the football
      hearts of Northern Ireland”. “It is with
      great sadness that the Irish FA has
      learnt of the passing of its esteemed
      former player and manager Billy

Bingham at the age of 90,” the

IFA said.

“He was everything that a

Northern Ireland manager

needs to be — tactically

astute, innovative and inspi-

rational. He led the team to

British Championship glory

in 1980 and 1984, qualified

for two World Cups, and

recorded the first home and

away victories over West

Germany in qualifying for

Euro 1984.

“His greatest achieve-

ment was probably the

qualification of the team

for the second phase of the

World Cup in 1982 with the historic

victory over Spain in Valencia.”

That win against Spain was secured

thanks to an effort from Gerry Arm-

strong in the 47th minute. It came after

“Ii

B I N n a r B

in

fo

r a G E m q

fo

Bingham, top, celebrates with Martin

O’Neill after beating Spain at the 1982

World Cup. Above, Bingham at

Everton with captain Howard Kendall

Northern

Ireland’s

greatest boss

Bingham dies

Tomás Hill López-Menchero

Path cleared for Ashley to

make Derby takeover bid

Mike Ashley is waiting in the wings to

make an offer to buy Derby County

after the deadline for the preferred

bidder, Chris Kirchner, passed

yesterday (Martin Hardy writes).

The 34-year-old American, who

was declared the preferred bidder by

Quantuma, the administration firm

appointed to oversee a sale of the club

in September, failed to meet the 5pm

deadline. That has increased the

necessity to find a new buyer for the

Sky Bet League One club, who

suffered two points deductions last

season and then relegation.

Ashley, 57, who sold Newcastle

United for £305 million in October, is

thought to be keen on the club, but he

is unwilling to pay the fees owed to

Quantuma — believed to be several

million pounds — for its work.

Mee and Tarkowski lead

14 Burnley departures

Ben Mee, Aaron Lennon and James

Tarkowski are among 14 players who

will leave Burnley this summer.

Tarkowski, 29, is expected to join

Everton after Burnley’s relegation

from the Premier League, while his

fellow centre back Mee, 32, and the

winger Lennon, 35, are on a long list

of departures, which also includes

Dale Stephens and Erik Pieters, when

their contracts expire.

Tarkowski has played for the club

more than 200 times, while Mee’s

tally of appearances exceeds 350

during a ten-year spell after joining

from Manchester City in 2012.

Chelsea also confirmed that centre

back Andreas Christensen would leave

when his deal expired this summer.

He is expected to join Barcelona.

the Spain goalkeeper Luis Arconada

flapped at a cross, allowing Armstrong

to lash home through his legs.

“Just heard the sad news that Billy

Bingham, Northern Ireland’s greatest

manager, has sadly passed away,”

Armstrong, 68, wrote on Twitter. “Who

can forget the wonderful memories

that Billy has left us with?”

Bingham also played for Luton Town

and Port Vale before his playing career

was cut short by a broken leg at the age

of 33. Other teams he managed includ-

ed Plymouth Argyle, Mansfield Town

and the Greece national team.

BOB THOMAS SPORTS PHOTOGRAPHY/GETTY IMAGES

INSIDE TODAY

The adventurous winger

who became a manager

with the Midas touch

Obituary, page 78

Women feared being fat-shamed

on England duty, says Williams

Tomás Hill López-Menchero

that has been “openly used” at top clubs

in the Women’s Super League — during

her career if they recorded a body fat

percentage higher than a certain level.

“It was something that I was con-

cerned about as a player,” Williams

said. “Having been an experi-

enced player in the inter-

national set-up it was very un-

comfortable for me at times,

because I like food, I like to eat.

“But you felt as though you

couldn’t eat certain foods because

you were being watched. I’ve always

thought there’s an issue in women’s

football. We’re not educated

around what foods we’re supposed

to have and we talk about, ‘Oh, it’s

great now, wearing your own fitted

kit’ — but you’ve got to look a cer-

tain way to fit into that kit, right?

“When you had bigger, baggier

kits, you could hide a lot under-

neath it. Now, when they’re fitted...

for me, I worry. When I see some of

these players, you can see that

they’re struggling with their

diet, but people will say they

look good. It was something

that I spoke about with some of

my club coaches, about [how]

it’s not right that we just talk

about being a certain body

fat percentage — that’s

not educating people.

Or you get a fat test in

camp and if you’re not

under a certain per-

centage you go into ‘fat

club’. For me, to label some-

thing ‘fat club’ is crazy.”

Williams said she “hated”

meal times when she was

with England, while she

said some younger players

had been reluctant to join

up because of these prob-

lems. “I don’t know how it is

now, but when I was at

Reading, there [were] some

of the girls in the under-age

groups, they wouldn’t want to

go away,” Williams said. “I did

and I hated dinner times. I used to just

have scrambled egg for breakfast, I’d be

starving. The coaches, they don’t watch

your food. It’s your team-mates who

you’re more worried about [in terms of]

what they’re thinking.”

Williams retired last year after strug-

gling with nephrotic syndrome, a kid-

ney condition. She took steroids for it,

which led her to gaining weight.

Asked for a solution to the wider

issue, Williams responded: “It’s diffi-

cult, because what diet would work for

you might not work for me.”

An FA spokesperson said that it edu-

cated players on diet and nutrition from

its under-14s team through to senior

level, while a senior performance nutri-

tionist is embedded within the team

staff. The governing body also plans to

hire a full-time pathway nutrition lead.

They said: “As the game has evolved

so has our understanding. All senior

players are provided with nutrition

plans and workshops have been held

and resources distributed to educate

players. They are also provided with

mental health and wellbeing support.”

Williams felt she was “being

watched” eating certain foods

Tottenham

closing in on

£20m Spence

Tom Roddy, Charlotte Duncker

Tottenham Hotspur are leading the

race to sign the Middlesbrough right

back Djed Spence as Antonio Conte

embarks on a squad rebuild.

Spence, 21, spent this season on loan

at Nottingham Forest and was a key

player in their promotion to the

Premier League via the play-offs.

Steve Cooper, the Forest head coach,

has not given up hope of signing

Spence, who is likely to cost about

£20 million, as the club return to the

English top flight for the first time in 23

years. But Spence, on duty with

England Under-21, is in the sights of

Tottenham, who can offer Champions

League football next season. Fabio Par-

atici, the Tottenham director of foot-

ball, watched Spence often this season.

Borussia Dortmund are also among

the clubs interested in the full back,

who is keen on joining a club where he

will play regularly. Progress is expected

once the international break is over,

with Lee Carsley’s under-21s playing

Slovenia in Huddersfield on Monday.

The Forest owner, Evangelos Mari-

nakis, is understood to have pledged a

transfer budget of between £75 million

and £100 million, with Cooper hoping

to retain all five loan players who were

key to their promotion.

Spurs have shown their intent to back

Conte in the transfer market after the

club’s majority shareholder, Enic Sports,

injected £150 million into the club last

month. The Italian coach views wing

backs as highly influential and Spurs

have already signed the 33-year-old

Ivan Perisic, who has played as both

winger and wing back, on a free transfer.