How did the club and particularly your team get started?
Rutherford itself was formed in 1878, as Science and Arts F.C , which involved the master and pupils of the school. The name was changed to Rutherford after its founder Dr John Hunter Rutherford and the club was founded as a member of the Northumberland Football association in 1883.  The girls/women’s team started around ten years ago, due to the youngest daughter of club chairman Steve Coxon being footy mad and there being no local teams around for her to play at. He decided to start up a team at the club and had a lot of interest and as they say - 'the rest is history'. Rutherford Ladies was the first women’s team to be started in Gateshead and, still to this day, has women playing regularly in the squad who were here from the very start.  (If you would like any further background information on how and when the club was formed, you will find plenty of information on the following website - www.rutherfordfc.co.uk).

Tell us some of your top nicknames and explain why players have them and why some maybe don’t?
Well, where do we start with this one?! We have quite a few daft names. Our goalkeeper, Donna Finlay who has been with us from the first game, has a nick name of 'Bob'. This is for no other reason than after a drunken football night out a few of the girls decided to call her 'Bob' and it stuck, so 10 years on, that is still what people know her as. Some of the other nicknames are 'Chopper' - because that is what she will do if she gets next to you on the pitch and another is 'Special' - due to the fact that she is quite simply extremely daft!
Leo adds - "Don’t forget 'Jedward', this is what we call Sara because after a particularly windy training session, her hair seemed to resemble that of Jedward’s.

Do you have a fairly settled team?
Yeah, I would say our squad is fairly settled.  We have a few older players who the youngsters in team look up to and they are mature, experienced squad members who have been with the team for a long time. However, we're always on the look out and welcome new players into the squad, and the club, as well as the team, have a lot to offer any player.

What league do you play in, how has the 2010/2011 season gone for you so far and who are your biggest rivals?
We play in the 'Durham County Women’s League'. So far this season, we have won more games than we have lost and not drawn any.  The very beginning of the season started extremely well but after losing a few players, due to work commitments etc, we began to lose a couple of tough matches. The team soon managed to bounce back and get back into their winning ways, with the help of a few new signings. There are 12 teams in the league and at time of writing, we are currently sitting in fifth place. Our biggest rivals would have to be either 'Birtley Phoenix' or 'Boldon Ladies' - a lot of the girls previously playing at Boldon, so they have that rivalry towards their old team but in a good way. Also, the majority of the 'Birtley Phoenix' team used to be our first team at the club so after the team folded a few seasons back they decided to form another team and come into our league. Obviously there is a bit rivalry here but is always a fun match to play.

Tell us a top fact about your club:
Our club is one of only 80 clubs out of 36,000 in the country to be a 'Charter Standard Community Club' which is the highest FA award. Rutherford Ladies is sponsored by England and Liverpool striker 'Andy Carroll'.

Who is your captain and tell us a bit about her?
The captain of the team is Christina Adamson and she is part of the back bone of the team. She is a brilliant team player who is very skillful and is involved in a lot of the goalscoring within the team. She encourages the team when they go down to carry on and fight to get back on top. She is a massive part of the team and signed for us last season. Tina's Nickname is 'Aggie' just because her full name is simailar to singer Christina Aguilera and she is blonde, so not really football related but that is what the team know her as. Aggie's only downfall is her time keeping - it's shocking - but i can work my way around that by changing the time on her watch.

What about your coach/manager – are they serious, funny, good/bad and why?
Leonie answers this one: Actually to be honest that pretty much covers it ha ha. Sara is the type of manager that has her team's best interests at heart, whether it's football related or not. She is a very motivational manager and is always open to new ideas and suggestions from the team. She also acts as the team's 'Agony Aunt' as the majority of us confide a lot of stuff in her and we know we can talk to her about anything. As for being serious...she is one of the daftest lasses you will ever meet ,yet once it gets to 2pm on a Sunday afternoon, we know she means business! The team will put in 110% not just for themselves but because we know of the amount of time and effort Sara puts into the team and we never want to let her down. The only bad side to Sara would be her inablity to hold her drink... a fact we discovered a few weeks ago after a team night out and she was the one who turned up hungover, on the Sunday morning! We still love her though. :)

Tell us about a funny moment the team has shared:
Well, I would have to say the funniest moment I can think of is only from a few weeks ago when the Evening Chronicle photographer came along to training to take some photos of our strips, sponsored by Andy Carroll, for an article. The photo session consisted of team and action shots, one of which required the team to hold me in the air whilst I lay across their arms. This proved to be a hilarious situation because when I finally managed to get in position properly and the photographer started snapping away, I saw the ground draw closer and closer to me. Surely enough, I fell with a bang to the ground and was very badly winded. There wasn't a dry eye around the pitch due to laughing so hard. This was definitely a great moment and it brings a lot of laughs, every time it is mentioned.

Not forgetting a few weeks ago, on a night out ,when Team Captain 'Aggie' walked smack bang into a lamp post whilst singing 'Summer of 69' at the top of her voice. One of our chants on a Sunday is now (to the tune of Oggie Oggie Oggie) 'Aggie Aggie Aggie! Watch out for that post!'

Who is the team’s jock (the fittest) and who is the joker?
Well, the fittest person on the team has to be Leonie Kennedy. She trains like a million times a week, runs all the time and I actually don't think she stops at all. Leo is a dual-signed player who we share with 'Hartlepool St Francis', who are a few leagues above us. She eats, sleeps and dreams football and could run and play football 24 hours a day. She is a fanatastic footballer and fits in great with our squad, especially with her experience. It makes her an inspiration to the younger girls in the team. Hopefully one day we will have Leo on a regular basis.
We have quite a few jokers amongst the team but probably the top two are goalkeeper Bob and striker Nichola Brown. These two come as a double act and bounce off each other. Usually their laughs are at the expense of some poor person on the team but it's all in good tact and fun. These two are team players who have been with the squad for a long time and have earned their respect from all the players within the team.

Where are the best and worst places the team has played?
I would definitely have to say that the worst place we have ever been, was a good few seasons ago. It was Northallerton. The facilities weren't that bad but when we returned to the changing rooms, after the match, we discovered that the door had not been locked and all our valubles had been stolen. Some of the girls had phones, purses, money and even jewellery stolen. The police were informed but nothing ever came of it. The team dropped out of the league and at least we won 12-1. The best place we have played has got to be our home ground after the new building has been put up, which is fantastic, with its underfloor heating and cosy interior. It is fantastic having a place like that and to be able to that it is ours.

If the team were to be on any TV series, what would it be and why?
Probably 'Friends' because there are always fun and laughs to be had but at the end of the day, the lasses are all friends and are there for each other, if anyone needs them.

Have you been in the papers or on TV, as a club and what for?
We have recently been in a few papers such as 'The Daily Star', 'The Evening Chronicle' and 'The Daily Mail online'. They all ran stories to cover our new spnsorship deal this season with Andy Carroll. The local coverage is excellent for the team, as it promotes us to other clubs and to any players who are interested in playing for a great club, with lots of added benefits. I also did an interview with 'Peter McDowell' who is a pitchside announcer at Liverpool F.C and is also a presenter on LFC TV. I was live over the phone, with images of the team being shown, whilst I was being interviewed. This has been a brilliant thing for our team, club and for our sponsor as it is coverage of the right kind for us all.

Does the team/club have an unsung hero?
I'll let Leo answer this one...

Obviously Andy, as his sponsorship has enabled us to attract a number of new great players. But the main unsung heroes are the lasses themselves! Sometimes they don't give themselves enough credit for how great they actually are. They have a created a fantastic team spirit and wha ever may happen in a match they will always laugh and smile about it afterwards. Even on the rare occasion where tempers/frustration may flare, the lasses know that whatever is said to them on the pitch, stays on the pitch.

We do have one more unsung hero which is our coach John, who works alongside Sara to bring out our best. Sara is the figurehead of the team but John puts in a lot time and effort to make sure the team is in the best condition to win games. The partnership between the two is great as we have the best of both worlds with a manager who is very considerate towards her team indvidually and a coach who strives to get the best out of us all. We would just like to say thank you to John, for all his work with us. We really appreciate it. :)

Who is the team's sponsor and how did you find them?
The team sponsor, as I mentioned before, is England and Liverpool striker Andy Carroll. This came about as Andy is a social member within the club, he often comes up with his family for a game of pool or to watch the matches in the clubhouse. He stays around to sign autographs for all the kids and have his picture taken with them, never leaving until the last one has been done. Striker Nichola, from the ladies side, decided she would ask Andy to sponsor our team, on the off chance he may say yes. She thought at the end of the day  - he can only say no - so there was no harm, really. Andy was up for it straight away, and with his cheque book in hand, asked how much did we want. We asked for £500 to buy a new set of home kits, which we were in desperate need of. He wrote the cheque no problem and now we proudly wear shirts quoting 'Rutherford Ladies sponsored by Andy Carroll'. He also signs shirts and balls for us to auction and raffle off, to make extra money, as well as donating signed merchandise to the club too. We definitely have the best sponsor of all time and hope Andy will continue to sponsor our team in the future which I think shows his support for women's football.

Who is always first to the bar/on the dancefloor on a team/club night out?
Well, unfortunately I may have to admit that it is in fact myself, the team manager. But only to buy an orange juice ;) I would defo say that the whole team, who are above 18 that is, are never far behind though. The first to the dance floor is definitely always me, whether I'm drunk as a skunk or sober as a judge, I always get the party started (it can be a tad embarrassing..) The team nights out are always full of fun, giggles and dancing - nights not to be missed!

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