I think it comes down to a question of 'if they're good enough', I don't mind.
Some of the female pundits are insightful and articulate and put some of the male pundits, such as Ashley Williams, Jamie Redknap or Joeleon Lescott to shame.
I know what you mean in terms of it being pushed on us because I've seen an all-female panel discussing a men's game whereas you're highly unlikely to see the reverse for a women's game.
I get why that's happening, though. In any society where there's been a massive historical imbalance, whether that's the position of certain minorities or the treatment of women, etc, and that balance is being redressed, there's always an amount of going to far in the other direction.
People are reluctant to change, especially when that change involves them not being in as cushy a position as they once were
after the change. That's what we're seeing here. Change is rightly (in my opinion) coming and I'm going to use a word here that many will hate-it's all to do with getting rid of the patriarchy that's existed since, well, the stone age.
There's absolutely no reason why women's football shouldn't be a high profile sport, The increased profile of the women's game has had a hugely positive and beneficial impact on the way girls view themselves-I see that in school on a daily basis and colleagues in schools across the city tell me the same. This pattern is repeated across the country and is just one example of why the current push to promote women's football is happening.
And, like I say, in pushing against a force that is resisting (and many men
are resisting), sometimes you have to push too hard and get it wong and end up going too far. An example is the BBC reporting on the women's Premier League as if it's the men's game because they're so desperate to show that they think it's really important. They'll talk about Chelsea and Man City without saying it's the women's teams for fear of demeaning the women's game. The fact is, Chelsea and Man City's men's teams existed first so the women's teams need to be identified in a different way. The women's game
is really important but pretending their teams are the same isn't helping their cause.
Sorry for the lengthy (and in some folks' eyes, arsey
) reply but it's a cracking question, Phoney, so I gave it my best shot.