Natasha Dowie has joked she feared she was going to be sent off after making history by playing for Liverpool Legends against Chelsea. The striker became the first ever Reds women’s player to line up in the LFC Foundation’s annual charity match.
Brought on for Momo Sissoko as a first half substitute, she wasted no time in making her presence felt at Anfield. Her introduction and first touch were greeted with loud cheers from supporters, while she also impressed after sprinting back to steal possession off Ramires on the half-way line.
However, Dowie feared she might have been shown a red card moments after being introduced to the action following a late tackle on Claude Makelele.
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The former Chelsea and Real Madrid legend has shown smart footwork to wriggle free of Dirk Kuyt, Sami Hyypia and Ragnar Klavan in his own box before laying off the ball to a team-mate. But he was left in a heap on the floor after Dowie flew into him with an emphatic challenge, having already started her charge across the box when the Frenchman was still in possession.
Makelele writhed around in pain on the floor, clutching his ankle, before slowly getting back to his feet and hobbling to the sidelines. However, the midfielder, famously a tough-tackling enforcer himself during his playing days, was fit enough to continue.
“What about my first tackle? I thought I was going to get a red card straight away!” she joked after the match. “Striker's tackle, that!
“It's brilliant (playing for the Legends), the intensity was pretty good as well. End-to-end. I think it was a really entertaining game and hopefully the crowd enjoyed it.”
Dowie admitted playing for Liverpool Legends alongside the likes of Steven Gerrard is a proud moment she will never forget as she reflected on her history-making day.
“It was quite a daunting thing to be honest, stepping out there today as the only female,” she admitted to LFC TV. “But I felt really quite relaxed.
“Absolutely brilliant to play with the likes of Steven Gerrard, my main man here (Ryan Babel). The boys have been great.
“As soon as I came in to train, they made me feel right at home and made me feel very comfortable.
“Most importantly we've made money for a great cause, but we won the game. Lovely to get a run-out myself and great to play in front of this kind of crowd. Definitely a moment I won't forget.”
