Deptford Ravens present Offside at Royal George
Ayesha Shingruf joined the inclusive local football team to get active, but stayed because of its sense of community. She introduces the Ravens' first art exhibition, Offside.
At the start of 2022, Deptford resident Alice Devine was keen to play football. But after trialling a few groups, she found that they were highly competitive and often exclusive, based on ability.
She realised she just wanted to play in the park, and that generally, football for fun was not something that was open to women and girls. To tackle this, Alice founded what would later be called the Deptford Ravens - an inclusive football team for women, trans and non-binary players.
Over the years, the team has grown into something much bigger. With more than 120 members, The Ravens get busy with solidarity campaigns, protests, fundraising, and occasional touring at festivals.
We now call ourselves a community and we have put together our first art exhibition in a Deptford pub to showcase what we do outside football.
Offside at the Royal George (until 14 September) is a collection of artworks from over 20 members of the Deptford Ravens, bringing together close to 100 individual pieces.
Though the contributors were limited to the theme of Offside, they had no restrictions on the medium of their art and the pub’s walls are a reflection of the diversity of the collection. There are photographs, oil paintings, embroidered shirts, poems and mixed media collages.
From a painting of an artist’s husband in an Overground train to an acknowledgement of destroyed football pitches in Gaza, and from a series of photos capturing mushroom growth in New Cross to an archive of the Pride marches, the Deptford Ravens have lined the Royal George with work that has an honest emotional power that speaks to young people.
At the heart of this exhibition is the power of community. In a section in the pub’s backroom, Hannah Anson’s photographs are displayed showing portraits of players taken in local spots with descriptions of what the places mean to them.
These are stories of people who are new to London and of people going through personal changes. It’s impossible to ignore how SE London has shaped their lives, and you find yourself rooting for them and wondering about other, untold stories.
It is fitting that the exhibition has been curated at Royal George, a pub known to feature local artists and frequented by university goers and Deptford residents. Artwork from the Deptford Ravens has a sense of belonging here; this is a local pub, hosting a local football community.
Its willingness to host an exhibition like Offside highlights the need for more places to open their doors to such ventures, and to allow the different forms of expression called for by today’s social and political climate.
The Deptford Ravens have stayed true to their roots, laid down in April 2022. As part of their exhibition, we are selling select artworks and donating a portion of the proceeds to The Outside Project, a refuge for those within the LGBTIQ+ community who feel endangered, or are homeless or outside services.
From a football group that started as one person’s vision, the Deptford Ravens has evolved into a collective, sharing ideas and offering something back to the community. Offside is a call to action. It is hopeful and welcoming.
Both the football club and the pub have done well to showcase the unity between residents and the places they call their own. Walking out, you can only wish that more venues and initiatives allow such events to continue.
Offside is at the Royal George, 85 Tanner's Hill, Deptford SE8 4QD until 14th September 2025.
Contact @deptford ravens or thedeptfordravens@gmail.com
