So, I love Rebecca Welton. And I also love that we're giving her the 'oops internalized misogyny' storyline this season. Because it would be really easy to give it to, say, Roy or Beard or someone else male and steeped in football culture and that would make total sense. But I think that it's infinitely more interesting as something Rebecca has to face about herself.
Because two things are true: Rebecca made what is probably the smartest business decision for the club AND Coach Chilton is correct to call out the fact that she made it the way she did.
Women's football is notoriously underfunded, and they are facing an uphill climb for funding, viewership, etc (Higgins in the NLB museum learning about how there's never an audience until someone decides to build one and create the opportunity for people to show up). The Lady Greyhounds will need eyes on them, good PR, someone who can talk to press, someone Rebecca or Keeley can trot out to sponsors and charm them. Someone who already comes with the perception of success. These are all things that Ted is FANTASTIC at and that we as an audience can assume from Alice's interactions with other members of the Richmond head office, she isn't good at - yet. All of these things have nothing to do with on the field coaching, but everything to do with how the club is presented which is incredibly important.
It would've been a very logical business decision for Rebecca to say 'I have respect for your coaching abilities, but I need a head coach right now who fulfils other promotional duties to raise our profile for funding and is more approachable with people and the press'.
(We also know that Rebecca wanted her friend back, and while that also feels 'not fair' it's a common and understandable reason to hire. Like, I get it. Ted is honest to god her best friend and she wanted her friend back and found an opportunity for him to come back. Honestly, I'd do the same.)
IN THE SAME BREATH, Rebecca didn't express any of those business issues clearly, and to be honest, she may not have thought about it in those terms - because she wanted her friend back and her friend is just so naturally good at the things she believes the club needs right now.
And Coach Chilton? She is ABSOLUTELY CORRECT in pointing out that Rebecca didn't even consider a woman for the head coaching position of the women's team, even if it wasn't her. It looks bad. It looks like women are I guess okay for players but the real decision making is for the men and that, although I don't know if Alice would put it this way, Rebecca isn't a girl's girl. Because Rebecca didn't consider how it would come off. Because Rebecca finds Alice off putting but Roy, who is similarly brusque, is just being Roy.
(I loved when Rebecca was recounting her conversation with Alice to Keeley and putting words and implied meaning in her mouth, and Higgins very clearly states 'she didn't say that'. Like, why aren't you giving Alice the benefit of the doubt like you would Roy or Beard etc? Because of her tone and that's uncomfortable coming from a woman? And I love that Higgins was very clearly that's not what she said so it's clear it's a purposeful story moment.)
The prevailing belief is that Alice is a bitch, but Roy is serious and a ‘lovable grump’.
I love that we get to see Rebecca answer some of those questions about her own assumptions about herself because we're all a work in progress. We all have blind spots. And we can all be better.
