Dr Sam Oldfield
Senior Lecturer in Sport History/Sociology of Sport
My profile
Biography
Dr Samantha-Jayne (Sam) Oldfield is a senior lecturer in sport history and sociology of sport within the Department of Sport and Exercise Sciences at Manchester Metropolitan University. Since the completion of her PhD her research has focussed on uncovering the life stories of lost figures within sport history, utilising different biographical methods in order to explore their significance and impact on both the sporting and social landscape. Initially, this research focused on the athletic communities and sporting entrepreneurs in Victorian Manchester, before moving into netball research, where she now consults for England Netball’s heritage and archives group.
Since her employment at Manchester Met, she has continued to drive forward the undergraduate and postgraduate curriculums, previously acting as Programme Leader to the BSc Coaching and Sport Development and BSc Sport, Physical Activity and Health programmes (2014-2022), and recently re-developing the MSc pathways within the Department (2021-22). An advocate for student experience, equity and opportunities, she is currently the Faculty of Science and Engineering Inclusive Learning Community Lead and the Department of Sport and Exercise Sciences Employability Lead. Through her ILC work, she is actively engaged with university innovators as part of the Pro-VC Education awarding gaps working group, where she is involved in developing and evaluating intervention strategies to support the wider institution.
She is an Associate Editor for Sport in History and is a member of several international sport history organisations. A founder of the Netball History Network, with Associate Prof. Rob Hess (Victoria University) and Associate Prof. Malcolm Maclean (University of Queensland), she is committed to establishing an international community of netball scholars and publications, whilst developing her own research project surrounding the founding women of England Netball and the construction of a more comprehensive history of the organisation. She provides historical knowledge and commentary for BBC Radio Stoke, Moorlands Radio and BBC’s NetBallers podcast on local through to international netball. Outside of her work commitments, Sam is an avid netballer in a playing, umpiring and administrative capacity. She runs and coaches a well-respected junior and senior netball club in Stoke-on-Trent, and is an active committee member across a number of netball associations entrusted to advance netballing opportunities across Staffordshire and the West Midlands. She has been featured by England Netball as part of their Inspiring Volunteer’s projects several times for both her research and general involvement within the sport.
Expert reviewer for external bodies
International Journal of the History of Sport Journal of Entrepreneurship
Polity Press Routledge
Sport in History Sport in Society
Community, charity and NGO links
Heavily involved in local, regional and national netballing organisations across Staffordshire, the West Midlands, and within England Netball. Engaged with community history groups and organisations for outreach and knowledge exchange delivery. Through her AHRC-funded work, she currently has PhD students in collaboration with the National Football Museum.
Due to her personal connections with different sporting organisations, specifically within netball, she is able to help in the recruitment of placement within both high-performance and community sporting environments, as well as supplying opportunities for coaching, sport science support and much more…
Charity work for Anthony Nolan (blood cancer awareness), Royal Stoke Hospital Cancer Centre, and Pancreatic Cancer UK.
Editorial board membership
Associate Editor for Sport in History
Membership of professional associations
Australian Society for Sport History British Society of Sports History
European Committee for Sports History Fellow of the Higher Education Academy
Women’s History Network Women in Sport and Exercise (WISE) Network
Projects
Nov 2021 ~ Successfully awarded an Arts and Humanities Council North West Consortium Doctoral Training Partnership grant for a Collaborative Doctoral Award between Manchester Met and the National Football Museum (PI: Prof. Dave Day)
Teaching
How will I teach you
My main philosophy is to ensure students are able to be open minded about sport, and that they start to challenge their beliefs, systems, values in order to understand the complexities of sport. My sessions tend to be open discussions whereby you are asked to consider the different aspects of sport from many different perspectives, opening up your “sociological imagination” and your own mind as a result. With a strong historical and sociological focus, most of my teaching revolves around building your understanding and knowledge around sport, as well as encouraging you to share YOUR opinions and interpretations so that you are able to go into industry and shape the future of sport.
What will I teach you
I teach as part of the Coaching and Sport Development team, delivering units at undergraduate and postgraduate level in:
- Social Issues
- Understanding Sport
- Research Methods
- Sporting Events
- Youth Sport
- Equality, Diversity and Inclusion
- Race and Gender History
Supervision
I have supervised/am supervising undergraduate and postgraduate students in a range of historical and contemporary sporting topics, including football, golf, boxing and athletics, as well as considering the impact of regional identities, amateur and professional debates, and transatlantic differences across different sports, professions and communities. I continue to pursue projects which have a social issues focus; discussions of race, gender, disability, class, etc.; to provide context and understanding, and to pave the way forward, for research into under-represented groups.
I have a strong focus and expertise in narrative research, using biographical methods, oral history and content analysis alongside socio-historic theoretical analysis.
Research outputs
For a full list of research publications, please view:
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Books (authored/edited/special issues)
Piercey, N., Oldfield, S. (2019) Sporting Cultures: Global Perspectives. MMU Sport and Leisure History Research Team.
Day, D. (2014) Pedestrianism. Manchester Metropolitan University: Sport and Leisure History Group.
Day, D. (2012) Sports and coaching: pasts and futures. Manchester Metropolitan University.
Day, D. (2011) Sporting lives. Manchester Metropolitan University, Institute for Performance Research.
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Chapters in books
Oldfield, S., Day, D., Taylor, L. (2019) 'Spreading the Word: British Sportswomen and the International Diffusion of Sport.' In Derks, M. (ed.) Building Bodies: Transnational Historical Approaches to Sport, Gender and Ethnicities. Verloren Publishers, pp. 41-54.
Oldfield, S.J. (2014) 'The Manchester milers 1850-1870.'
Oldfield, S. (2012) 'Narrative, Biography, Prosopography and the Sport Historian: Historical Method and its Implications.' In Day, D. (ed.) Sports and Coaching: Pasts and Futures. Manchester: MMU Institute for Performance Research, pp. 35-60.
Oldfield, S. (2011) 'George Martin, ‘wizard of pedestrianism’ and Manchester’s sporting entrepreneur.' In Day, D. (ed.) Sporting Lives. Manchester: Manchester Metropolitan University,
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Reports
Mackintosh, C., Ives, B., Stanniford, L., Gale, L., Thompson, A., Sims, D., Daniels, J., Oldfield, S., Kolic, P. (2020) COVID-19 RESEARCH REPORT: The impact of the Pandemic on Community Sport provision and participation. Manchester Metropolitan University.
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Journal articles
MacLean, M., Oldfield, S.J., Hess, R. (2023) 'Local, national and global histories of netball: an overview.' The International Journal of the History of Sport, 39(13-14) pp. 1411-1421.
Grice, B., Mackintosh, C., Oldfield, S., Durden-Myers, E. (2023) 'From performing gender to symbolic violence in English women’s football: “Women are not supposed to be viewed in this way”.' Managing Sport and Leisure,
Oldfield, S.J. (2015) 'Narrative Methods in Sport History Research: Biography, Collective Biography, and Prosopography.' International Journal of the History of Sport, 32(15) pp. 1855-1882.
Day, D., Oldfield, S.J. (2015) 'Delineating professional and amateur athletic bodies in Victorian England.' Sport in history, 35(1) pp. 19-45.
Oldfield, S.J. (2014) 'Running Pedestrianism in Victorian Manchester.' Sport in History, 34(2) pp. 223-248.
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Conference papers
Oldfield, S.J. (2017) 'The women of England Netball.' In Melbourne Institute of Sport, Exercise and Active Living Research Seminar Series. Victoria University, Melbourne, Australia,
Oldfield, S.J. (2017) '‘To quick-witted girls it’s a real game for go-getting goal-getting’: the All England Netball Association and the development of women’s sporting identities.' 3/7/2017 - 6/7/2017.
Oldfield, S.J. (2017) 'England Netball: an origins story?.' In Manchester Metropolitan University Research Centre Symposium. Manchester, 7/6/2017 - 7/6/2017.
Oldfield, S.J. (2017) 'The origins and formation of England Netball.' In International Sport and Leisure History Colloquium (MMU SpLeisH). Crewe, UK, 3/3/2017 - 4/3/2017.
Oldfield, S.J. (2016) 'Victorian Manchester’s female sporting entrepreneurs.' In British Society of Sports History Annual Conference. University of Edinburgh, Scotland, 2/9/2016 - 3/9/2011.
Oldfield, S.J. (2016) 'The transatlantic trainer: Manchester’s James Robinson and the American coaching system.' In C3S, AFRAPS, UPFRSport de Besancon, Universite de Bourgogne/Franche-Comte International Seminar. Besancon, France, 28/4/2016 -
Oldfield, S.J. (2015) 'Manchester’s athletic development: urban public houses, enterprise and the Holden family 1840-1870.' In 19th Centro di Studi per l’Educazione Fisica e l’Attività Sportiva (CESH) Annual Conference. Florence, Italy, 22/10/2015 - 24/10/2015.
Oldfield, S.J. (2014) 'Using prosopography to explore nineteenth-century pedestrianism: the Manchester milers.' In Institute of Historical Research Sport and Leisure History Seminar Series. Institute of Historical Research, London,
Oldfield, S.J. (2014) 'Running pedestrianism in Victorian Manchester.' 3/4/2012 - 5/4/2012.
Oldfield, S.J. (2014) 'Manchester’s sporting past: Manchester pedestrianism.' 27/3/2014 - 30/3/2014.
Oldfield, S.J. (2013) 'The Manchester milers 1850-1870.' In British Society of Sports History Annual Conference. Crewe, UK, 6/9/2013 - 7/9/2013. British Society of Sports History,
Oldfield, S. (2012) 'James Robinson, Manchester “Ped” to Princeton Athletic Trainer.' In British Society of Sports History, Annual Conference. University of Glasgow, 7/9/2012 - 8/9/2012.
Oldfield, S. (2012) 'Manchester's sporting past: nineteenth century athletics grounds.' In Manchester Histories Festival. Manchester, 3/3/2012 - 3/3/2012.
Oldfield, S. (2011) 'Narrative, biography and prosopography: historical method and its implications.' In Sports and Coaching: Pasts and Futures. Crewe, 25/6/2011 - 26/6/2011.
Oldfield, S.J. (2011) 'Manchester’s sporting entrepreneurs.' 1/2/2011 - 1/2/2011.
Oldfield, S. (2010) 'The coaching business: nineteenth century Manchester sporting entrepreneurs.' In British Society of Sports History Annual Conference. Wellcome Collection, London, 10/9/2010 - 11/9/2010.
Oldfield, S. (2010) 'The Manchester public house: sport and the entrepreneur.' In RIHSC Annual Conference. Manchester Metropolitan University, 1/7/2010 - 1/7/2010.
Oldfield, S. (2009) 'Serving the masses: sporting entrepreneurs in nineteenth century Manchester.' In RIHSC Annual Conference. Manchester Metropolitan University, 1/7/2009 - 1/7/2009.
Oldfield, S., Day, D. (2009) 'Manchester pedestrianism 1840-1880: a collective biography of ‘sporting publicans’.' In Memories, Narratives and Histories Postgraduate Conference. Centre for Life History and Life Writing Research, University of Brighton, 9/6/2009 - 9/6/2009.
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Theses and dissertations
Cooke, M.D. (2021) The emergence of Association Football in The Potteries, 1840-1880: people, clubs, and governance.
Dyer, L. (2018) The London and North Western Railway Company and the Crewe Alexandra Athletic Club in the late Victorian and Edwardian periods.
James, G. (2015) The emergence, development and establishment of association football in Manchester.
Oldfield, S.J. (2014) Narratives of Manchester pedestrianism: using biographical methods to explore the development of athletics during the nineteenth century..
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Posters
Oldfield, S. (2012) 'James Robinson, from Mancunian Butcher to American College Trainer.' [Poster] In Manchester Metropolitan University Institute for Performance Research, Postgraduate Poster Conference. Manchester Metropolitan University Institute for Performance Research, Postgraduate Poster Conference. Date viewed 14/9/2012.
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Other
Oldfield, S., Taylor, P. (2011) How Failsworth became the athletics capital of the UK.