Elsie Cook

A player with the successful Stewarton Thistle team of the 1960s and 1970s, Elsie was a leading figure in the creation of the Scottish Women’s Football Association in 1972.

A driving force behind the development of the women’s game during a crucial era in the overall history of the sport, she stepped up to become the inaugural secretary of the organisation at a time when the Scottish FA did not even recognise women’s football.

She was instrumental in organising the first official international football match involving the Scotland Women’s National Team. That historic game took place in November 1972 at Ravenscraig stadium in Greenock when Scotland faced England. Elsie resigned as secretary and was appointed Scotland manager in 1974. She took the team on a tour of Italy, playing in Ravenna and Milan. She also played an important role in the formation of the Strathclyde League during the late 1970s and early 1980s. Through the determination of Elsie, the women’s game in Scotland emerged as a more structured sport.

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