Roche puts ladies first

One David Hickey, with an address in Wales, was moved to put pen to paper after watching the recent England-Germany women’s international on television.

“Why was it screened?” he asked in his letter to a newspaper. “Women can’t play football. They don’t even know the basic rules.”

And then, warming to his theme, he went on: “When tackled they get up and play on. They don’t pretend to be hurt. They don’t dive. They don’t get opponents sent off. They don’t wrestle at corner kicks. Worst of all, they don’t hassle the match officials. As any fool who has watched the men’s Premiership knows, that is not the way to play football.”