I like to believe that I know a lot about old defunct sports leagues, but when I first learned about this book, I had no idea there was a professional women's football league that existed in the 1970's. Thank you to the author, Britni de la Cretaz, for writing this book to introduce the league and its player to those of us who will learn a lot about it. Here is my review of "Hail Mary"
Title/Author: "Hail
Mary: The Rise and Fall of the National Women's Football League" by Britni
de la Cretaz
Rating: 4 of 5 stars (very good)
Review: When Sid Friedman, a talent
agent from Cleveland, thought about creating a women's football team to do
barnstorming tours and make a few bucks in the process, little did he realize
that he found women who not only wanted to play the game, but play hard and compete
– to do the same things that make the men's version of the sport so popular. This led to the creation of the National
Women's Football League (NWFL) that had a brief life in the 1970s but impacted
many women. This book by Britni de la
Cretaz tells about not only the league, but the stories of the players and
their teams.
Some of the teams featured in the book are the Detroit
Demons, the Houston Herricanes and the Los Angeles Dandilions. But far and away the most successful NWFL
team, both before and during the time of the league, was the Toledo
Troopers. Their stories make for some of
the best reading in the book, along with those about the best player on the
team Linda Jefferson. Jefferson's story is first told early in the book and
that sets the tone for what every woman wanted – to be recognized as legitimate
players of a sport they loved.
As for organizing these teams into the NWFL, that wasn't
done by Friedman (who attempted to form a league with teams from the Ohio and
Pennsylvania areas) but instead by several businessmen left mainly by Bob
Mathews. Mathews had more foresight than
Friedman in that he knew that he needed more than hype to sell the game – he needed
organization, a schedule, fans, marketing, media coverage, financial backing
and much more. Sadly, he and the other
owners never really obtained that to what was needed and the league was out of
business soon after the 1979 season.
Reading about the teams, the structure of the league and
what eventually led to its demise was very good and it is clear that de la Cretaz
did excellent research on this aspect which makes up the bulk of the book. The only downfall to this reviewer is that
when she adds in some of her opinions, it appears that she only uses facts that
would support her viewpoint without the entire picture. The example I use is near the end when she opines
that the NWFL and other women's leagues would succeed if the financial backers
would not bail on them so soon after realizing that they will not be profitable
immediately. That is not incorrect, but
the example that she uses that this isn't the same case for men's team with the
Pittsburgh Steelers is not completely accurate.
Yes, the Steelers struggled for decades both on the field and in the
front office, but it should be noted that Art Rooney did not build up his fortune
elsewhere – he allegedly used money won betting on horses to buy the Steelers
and they became his business. Including
that information, depending on how she would use it, could make her case
stronger.
There are other aspects that may make some readers
uncomfortable, such as the section on the stereotypes placed on female athletes
(and her section on the background of some players in lesbian bars may make
some readers buy into the stereotype even further) but these are necessary for
a complete picture and story of these women who risked a lot to play a sport
they loved for very little money.
Any reader wishing to learn more about women's football
must pick up a copy of this book.
Football fans, including this reviewer, who have never heard of the NWFL
will enjoy learning about this short-lived but fondly remembered league.
I wish to thank Perseus Books for providing a copy of the
book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
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