She had informally played football with neighbour boys in back lanes from about the age of five, but would hide if other people came by as they mocked her for joining in.
A poor family, they would stand outside St James' Park to listen to the crowd when Newcastle United played, as they could never afford to go in.
[2] Wilson was granted leave from the Ministry of Defence to play, but told she could not tell people her role and had to pretend to be a teacher from Liverpool.
[4][1] The team did well, though only qualified by default;[3] Wilson was approached by an Italian club side, possibly Juventus, to sign for them, but had to refuse due to her military responsibilities.
She says her RAF colleagues were uninterested, which she puts down to them also working with Billy Steele, a rugby union player for Britain.
Their team was the only non-professional side, all under 24 and mostly teenagers, and,[2] due to the injuries, featured some Mexican substitutes in their last, hastily-arranged, play-off match (one of whom, Cecilia Gallegos, would play for England again).
[4][3][8] The British press were negative about the competition, both England's defeat and the injuries sustained, arguing that women should not play football.