I love it in there – we put the games on and you have both sets of fans sit in there. Obviously, watching the game together means there’s a bit of banter between the two groups – like there would be in any venue – but it’s just such a nice atmosphere.

I think that’s definitely one thing we need to change perceptions of, because you can go and watch a football match and there will be a nice, friendly atmosphere. And getting to be a part of shaping that with the coffee shop has been brilliant. I mean, most of the time I’m in the back, doing the dishes, because it’s the only job I’m trusted with, but then I’ll come out for a bit and say hello.

I love the fact that people make an effort to come to the shop because they say they want to support me. When I stopped playing I thought I might have been forgotten, but the shop’s kept me going.

What’s the best gift you’ve ever received from a fan?

I met a young girl and her mum in the coffee shop earlier this year, and the mum gave me the loveliest journal. This lady had just got back into playing football because she hadn’t had the opportunity to play back in the day, and she explained how she’d recently joined a football team and now had a whole new circle of friends, which wasn’t something she’d expected to find later in life. She said she’d bought the journal for me to write my poetry in (I love writing poetry) and say thank you for everything I’ve done in women’s football, and she’d even written me a big poem on the front page.

I’ve used it to write loads since then – I’m up to 42 poems in that journal now. But it was just such a thoughtful gift to receive.

Jill Scott on the new wave of hardcore football fans: “People come from London to Manchester just to get a coffee”