Kenny Shils issues apology for controversial post-match comments

Kenny Shils apologized for analyzing the 5-0 loss to Northern Ireland on Tuesday night as “women are more emotional than men”.

Shils’ comments drew criticism from many fans, including former England footballer Ian Wright and TalkSPORT presenter Laura Woods.

“I want to apologize for my comments at a press conference after last night’s game. I am sorry for the insult they caused,” Shiels said in a statement.

“Last night was a special occasion in Northern Ireland at the women’s game and I am proud to lead a team of players who are a role model for so many girls and boys across the country.

“I am an advocate of women’s play and am passionate about developing development opportunities for women and girls.”

It was an emotionally-charged night when Windsor Park hosted the largest audience for a women’s match in Northern Ireland, with more than 15,000 fans watching the match in South Belfast.

England opened the scoring with Lauren Hemp in the 26th minute, but Chile kept a goal in the middle until they conceded four goals in the 27th minute of the second half.

Shils said after the match: “I thought sometimes they would struggle to open up until we had the climbing psyche.

In the women’s game you will notice if you follow the patterns, when one team receives a goal, the other concedes in a very short time.

“With the full spectrum of the female game, because girls and women are more emotional than men, so their aim is not good.”

He added, “When we lost 1-0, we tried to slow them down to give them time to overcome this emotional imbalance. That’s the problem we have.”

This is not only in Northern Ireland, but in all countries.

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