Radio Workshop

Pads, Not Pom-Poms (Transcript)

by Nancy Farghalli

Narration: Saturday morning brings three teams to the Coney Island field. A youth soccer team does kicking drills. An adult baseball team runs sprints. And, a group of 40 women, in helmets and pads, do jumping jacks in unison.

Ambience: Roll rumble of jumping jacks

Narration: This is the first official practice for the New York Sharks, the women's professional football team. Professional does not always equal celebrity athletic status. They crowd into a small rectangular area on the field. The Sharks don't have their own practice field. They don't have a media gauntlet recording the first practice drills. And, they don't get paid.

CUT: THET DESERVED TO BE PAID. THEY WORK REAL HARD.

Narration: Crystal Turpin is the team's general manager; she handles the equipment and runs fundraising for the team. Crystal hopes to pay her players --eventually. The average salary of a women's basketball player in the WNBA is $43,000. Crystal says her players might never make that much.

CUT: THEY DEDICATE A LOT OF THEIR TIME. AND WE WANT TO PAY THEM. BUT, LIKE I SAID, THEY LOVE THE GAME SO MUCH THAT THEY DON'T MIND PAYING TO PLAY.

Narration: It costs thirteen hundred dollars to participate in the 23 team Independent Women's Football League. That amount covers the cost for uniforms, insurance, and the ambulance at every game. Most of the women hold jobs as police officers, construction workers, and high school coaches. In April and May, they practice four days a week to prepare for the eight week season.

Ambience: Go again; go again run it over

Narration: Head coach Nick Giannatasio runs a drill. Two players sprint at full speed. One tries to tackle the player with the ball, dragging her down and knocking the ball out. Ginnastasio waits to hear the click--the noise of a correct tackle.

Ambience: Women cheering.

Narration: 23-year-old Tracy Douglass does not yell. She stands on the sideline, with her arms folded, watching her teammates tackle. And, she's visibly upset.

CUT: I WISH I COULD HIT TOO. BUT I DID NOT GET MY MONEY IN ON TIME.

AND THAT'S WHY I'M STANDING ON THE SIDELINE.

Narration: No helmet. No pads. No tackling. That's the Sharks rule. Already two players nurse injuries on the sideline. One woman bruised her elbow during the drill. Another woman bends over; blood trickles down her forehead. Douglas does not flinch.

CUT: WHEN I GET MY EQUIPMENT I CAN HIT TOO. I WANT TO KNOW WHAT IT FEELS LIKE TO HIT SOMEONE AND TO GET HIT.

Narration: Even in practice, the sharks hit hard. 34-year-old Quarterback Val Hailsworth knows what its like to absorb a bruising tackle. She played last season with a sprained finger on her throwing hand.

CUT: YOU CAN GET SEVERLY HURT. BUT WE JUST LOVE IT. IT IS PASSION.

Narration: Ten new teams have joined the League this season, including teams from Philadelphia, Miami, and Boise. Hailsworth says the league's growth shows that football is not only a "men's sport." She should know. At the age of eight, she was the first girl in New York State to play organized pee-wee football.

CUT: IT'S JUST ANOTHER SPORT. IT'S WOMEN ON WOMEN. WE'RE NOT TRYING TO SAY THAT WE CAN COMPETE WITH MEN. BUT, WE LOVE THE SPORT, AND WE WANT TO PLAY.

Narration: Other teams are not so happy that the Sparks play in their league. Last year, the Sharks went 8-0, winning the League's super bowl. The Sharks start their season on April 12 at Queens's high school football field. They have already circled July 12th on their calendar-- the date for the league championship game in New York City.

For Columbia Radio News, I'm Nancy Farghalli