Just A Ball Game? (JBG?) they are very pleased to announce Doncaster Rovers Belles goalkeeper Nicola Hobbs as their latest addition to their patrons.
Born in Portsmouth Nicola’s family moved to Lincolnshire for her primary and secondary school years, it was here as a teenager she became aware of her sexual orientation. “I was aware that I fancied the same sex at an early age but was confused and didn’t express this fully till I was 16.”
Football is only one of Nicola’s skills her full time job is that of a fire-fighter.
Nicola says :
I came out before starting work but all my colleagues have been fantastic with it. Some have seen it as a negative and say I am a tick in the box but I don’t really care for attitudes like that so I ignore it or report it if it’s offensive.
“At the ‘Belles’ all my team mates are amazing with it as they are friends and I am who I am, just like they are, and I wouldn’t change any of them.”
Nicola had this to say about becoming a figurehead for the campaign organisation. “It’s a massive privilege to be a patron to JBG? it is a very important cause and support mechanism that could change people’s lives. It’s an honour to have been asked.”