Dorset: Pioneer woman referee in football honoured in Dame Carol Ann Duffy poem

In her poem Carol Ann Duffy wrote: "Red card for misogyny. Free kick in progress. We're all onside."

One of football's first female referees has been honoured in a new poem.

Scottish poet Dame Carol Ann Duffy has recognised Pat Dunn, a trailblazing woman referee from Dorset, in her poem We See You.

Released last month it contains the line: "We see you too, Pat Dunn - you blew your whistle and the game kicked off for women referees."

Historians have said Pat Dunn was "among the first qualified women referees."

In the poem, commissioned by mobile provider Three, Ms Duffy also wrote: "Red card for misogyny. Free kick in progress. We're all onside."

Pat Dunn passed the official referees' examination in 1967, but the FA issued the certificate while at the same time also passing a ban on women officiating at an FA or league match.

It took until 1976 for it to reverse its decision, and Pat Dunn finally took charge of a Sunday league third division game between the Freewheelers from Weymouth and East Lulworth.

Jenny Vallins, from Wareham, was in the crowd at the game and presented flowers to Ms Dunn at the end of the match.

She said: "I was a 16-year-old girl and I didn't realise how significant it was at the time.

"But looking back I think it's amazing."

It was Pat Dunn's first game as an official and it took her nine years to get to that point.

Jean Williams, a British professor in sport history, said: "The FA just didn't recognise women's football.

"There was a ban on women playing football from 1921 to 1970.

"We don't know that she was the world's first woman referee but she was certainly among the first qualified women referees and that's quite a story."

Aislinn O'Connor, director of marketing at Three UK, said: "At Three, we feel passionate about shining a light on amazing talent and providing women with opportunities to help encourage and aid them in reaching their full potential.

"This year we are proud to build on the connections we made last year - creating a bigger 'WeSeeYou Network' community and platform which aims to promote accessibility and growth across all areas of women's sport."

We See You - by Carol Ann Duffy

That rain-heavy, leather ball your left foot smashed a century ago

has reached us here, and so we see you, Lily Parr,

in hindsight's extra time; linked to our female, family chain

of passing forwards … to Mary Phillip, first black Captain

of the Pride, Katie Chapman, Carly Telford, Millie Bright.

We see you too, Pat Dunn - you blew your whistle

and the game kicked off for women referees. Red card for misogyny,

Free kick for progress. We're all onside. Team-sheets are the dreams

of managers - shout out the golden days of Emma Hayes - which make us visible

to thirty, forty, fifty thousand fans … so good, so good, so good …

from grassroots team to League to Euros to the World. Now.

Women's voices - Eni Aluko, Karen Carney - tell the poetry of play

We'll find you - 10 years old, girl with ball, incredible to be you.

So here's our Team Talk: We're right behind you. And we see you.

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