Becky is a quiet character; never one to boast about her accomplishments. But ahead of Saturday’s match with Birmingham City – a club she made almost 50 appearances for across two separate spells – she chatted with us about her against-all-odds experience with Jamaica at the 2023 Women’s World Cup.

The story itself is so incredible that it has been made into a film, directed by two-time Oscar winner Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy and Trish Dalton, which premiered at DOC NYC in August.

For context, Jamaica – nicknamed the Reggae Girlz – had only been to one World Cup before 2023. They failed to qualify three times and did not enter twice before reaching the tournament in France in 2019. On that occasion, they went home with no points and a minus 11 goal difference, finishing bottom of the group.

At this point, it’s important to introduce Jamaican music legend Bob Marley’s daughter Cedella to the story. The Jamaica Football Federation have disbanded the women’s team twice due to funding issues: in 2008 and again in 2016. In 2014, Cedella Marley released a single to raise cash for the team and secured sponsorship through the Bob Marley Foundation.

In the build-up to the 2023 World Cup, the JFF once again said they were struggling to fund the women’s team and called on the Jamaican government for support. In desperation, midfielder Havana Solaun’s mother set up a crowdfunding page called “Reggae Girlz Rise Up” to get them to the tournament. It raised $50,000.

That’s where Becky takes up the story…

‘I've got quite a few career highlights to be honest,’ she says. ‘But I would say being at the World Cup with Jamaica is definitely up there.

‘I don't really talk about the story a lot. But we had to have a GoFundMe to get us to Australia and New Zealand in 2023. Jamaica is a male-dominated type of country. The money and the decisions are dominated by men, and so they put the senior boys' team ahead of us.

‘We really defied the odds by qualifying. And then when we actually got there, we had the group of death, which was Brazil, France, and then we had Panama. We drew against France in the first game; it was 0-0. Bunny (Khadija Shaw) got sent off, and she's our biggest player in the team.

‘It was a real uphill battle, but I think as a group we knew that we were going to be able to do something. We had Panama in the next game, and we knew we had to win that game to at least get three points, so we won 1-0.’

With their first four points at a World Cup already in the bag, Jamaica faced Brazil in the final match of the group stage. The eyes of the world were on legendary Brazilian striker Marta, knowing she would likely be appearing in her last major tournament on the world stage.

Yet it was unfavoured Jamaica who would make the headlines. Spencer earned the Player of the Match award for facing eight shots on target and keeping a clean sheet, with the 0-0 draw enough to make history for the Reggae Girlz and knock Brazil out.

‘We had Brazil in the last match, and it was one of the most gruelling games,’ she says, before going on to describe what was going on behind the scenes. ‘I don't think I've ever concentrated so much in a game before. Everyone was just going for it; we defended literally for 90 minutes. We ended up drawing 0-0. So we got out of the group and into the round of 16.

‘Some of the girls were literally surviving off Uber Eats. The hotel that we were in wasn't good. There were no protein shakes, no recovery stuff. It just shows that if you've got a really strong bond within a team, that alone can take you a long way.

‘So you can only hope that if we did have all the rest of the stuff we needed, that we would actually be able to compete properly.

‘The outpouring of pride from Jamaica was amazing, and I think we showed the nation – and other nations who are struggling as well – that you can actually do it even if you don't have the resources.’

Jamaica were narrowly beaten in their first knockout round fixture, a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Colombia. Yet the team had won hearts and minds with their incredible story, and the result is what Becky describes as 'bigger than football'.

‘It was important to send another message home to Jamaica that we can achieve big things,’ she says. ‘And even if you don't have everything, you can still make it through. That’s the biggest message. Making it totally against all odds. It was honestly amazing, and we got a lot of support around the world as well.

‘I remember getting loads of messages from people in England being like, "We're Jamaica fans now because you lot are just brilliant underdogs!" and that’s exactly what we were – total underdogs. I had never been in that position before. I was just like, “Okay, this is what it's all about." That’s why it’s one of my biggest career highlights - it almost beats winning anything, to be honest.

‘We wanted the younger generation in Jamaica to be able to see a pathway. To be able to see people playing who are like them, so they know that they can do it as well. It’s bigger than football. It's about a cultural shift as well. It really was fantastic.’

Don't miss our huge London derby clash against Arsenal at Stamford Bridge! Secure your seat now...