Louise Gardener came to Test Park to watch the Sirens play their first home game of the season against Oxford City on Sunday.

Gardener was a player during one of the most successful eras of the club and was involved in the Sirens’ FA Cup triumph in 1971.

She was just 17 when the Sirens beat Stewarton Thistle 4-1 in the Women's FA Cup Final.

Within the same year Gardener also got the opportunity to play for England in what was an unofficial Women's Football World Cup.

Louise, then known by her maiden name Louise Cross, was part of the 14-player squad that defied the Football Association’s restrictions to travel more than 5,300 miles to Central America for the 1971 tournament, organised by the Federation of Independent European Female Football (FIEFF).

Playing in front of extraordinary crowds of up to 90,000 spectators at the Azteca Stadium in Mexico City, she found herself on one of the biggest stages in world football.

Now, more than five decades later, Gardener watched on proudly as a new generation of Sirens took to the field. For her, the occasion was not only about the result against Oxford City, but about witnessing the progress the women’s game has made since she played.

Her journey from lifting the FA Cup as a teenager to playing in front of 90,000 in Mexico, and now supporting from the stands at Test Park, reflects both the struggles and triumphs of women’s football in England.

As the Sirens look ahead to their season, Gardener’s story remains a reminder of the pioneers who laid the foundations for Women's football to thrive.