Lionesses

Meet The Yorkshire Lionesses Heading To The FIFA Women's World Cup

 

NAME: RACHEL DALY

POSITION: DEFENDER

DOB: 06 DECEMBER 1991 (27YRS)

HEIGHT: 5FT 8" (173CM)

PLACE OF BIRTH: HARROGATE

CLUB: HOUSTON DASH

ENGLAND DEBUT: 04 JUNE 2016

SENIOR CAPS: 22

Rachel Daly has enjoyed an England renaissance under Phil Neville.

Plying her trade across the pond, the 26-year-old was voted Houston Dash’s most valuable player for 2018 after scoring a career-high 10 goals and thrice being named in the NWSL team of the month.

This fine run of form didn’t go unnoticed by her national team boss, as Neville added Daly to his SheBelieves Cup squad last year and played her against Germany, her first England appearance in a year.

The Harrogate native has continued to thrive under Neville’s tutelage and has been named in a squad for a major tournament for the first time.

Daly believes her versatility has worked against her at times, but she is able to operate effectively as a full-back, a wing back or even in the frontline.

She scored on her senior team debut against Serbia in June 2016.

NAME: MILLIE BRIGHT

POSITION: DEFENDER

DOB: 21 AUGUST 1993 (25YRS)

HEIGHT: 5FT 10" (179CM)

PLACE OF BIRTH: CHESTERFIELD

CLUB: CHELSEA FC WOMEN

ENGLAND DEBUT: 20 SEPTEMBER 2016

SENIOR CAPS: 27

Such was Millie Bright’s immediate impact in an England shirt that she was the only player to start every match at Euro 2017 – despite making her debut just 10 months earlier.

Her Lionesses bow came in Belgium, when she replaced Karen Carney in midfield, but it is in the backline where she has shone for both club and country.

Bright has struck up a fantastic centre-back relationship with captain Steph Houghton, with the pair racking up nine clean sheets in the 14 matches they have started next to each other.

Bright has won both the FA WSL title and SSE Women’s FA Cup with Chelsea.

NAME: BETH MEAD

POSITION: FORWARD

DOB: 09 MAY 1995 (24YRS)

HEIGHT: 5FT 4" (163CM)

PLACE OF BIRTH: WHITBY

CLUB: ARSENAL WFC

ENGLAND DEBUT: 06 APRIL 2018

SENIOR CAPS: 13

Beth Mead introduced herself to the rest of the world with two superbly-taken goals at England’s triumphant SheBelieves Cup campaign of 2019.

The first was a sumptuous, angled winner against Brazil in the opening game and the second was a composed finish, from Keira Walsh’s sublime pass, which sealed both the 3-0 win over Japan and the SheBelieves title.

The 23-year-old, who scored 77 goals in 78 games for former club Sunderland, has been a revelation since being moved out wide by Arsenal’s FA WSL title-winning boss Joe Montemurro.

Like fellow England star Nikita Parris, Mead was prolific for England’s development squads and she has started to find her feet at senior level, with five goals in 12 appearances since her debut against Wales in April 2018.


NAME:
LUCY STANIFORTH

POSITION: MIDFIELDER

DOB: 02 OCTOBER 1992 (26YRS)

HEIGHT: 5FT 2" (157CM)

PLACE OF BIRTH: YORK

CLUB: BIRMINGHAM CITY WFC

ENGLAND DEBUT: 04 SEPTEMBER 2018

SENIOR CAPS: 9

Lucy Staniforth certainly earned her stripes in England's development teams before making her senior bow in September 2018.

The attacking midfielder represented her country at the U17 World Cup in 2008 before helping the U19s reach back-to-back European Championship finals, with Mo Marley's side winning the competition in 2009.

Staniforth progressed to the Under-23s while waiting for her first taste of senior international football.

She started England's final 2019 World Cup qualifier, one of seven full debutants in Kazakhstan, getting on the scoresheet in a 6-0 win. And she bettered that with the opening goal in the pivotal 3-0 win over Japan at the SheBelieves Cup.

Staniforth appeared in the 2009 Women's FA Cup Final for her hometown club Sunderland.