A draw was the score in the final match of England Under-21 Women’s Series with their Spanish rivals at Lilleshall, with the third clash finishing 1-1. Beeston’s Shona McCallin put England into the lead shortly after half time, with Spain equalising on 59 minutes at the National Sports Centre in Shropshire on 6th July.
“It was a scrappy game,” confirmed head coach Andy Bradshaw afterwards. “We just about dominated the first half and created chances, but we weren’t sharp enough in the D.
“There was also a bit of tiredness creeping in and there were some careless errors from both sides towards the end.”
McCallin scored her first goal for the Under-21s after 38 minutes when she scored from the left with a reverse stick shot. However Spain came back strongly, and pulled level with a shot from a penalty corner, which took several deflections on its way into the net.
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“We had chances to win the game from there,” added Bradshaw. “But we were lacking some sharpness in the D which stopped us getting the win. But it has been a good few games. We’ve shown that if we play well we are capable of beating a side like Spain who are one of the stronger sides in Europe.”
After a week’s break, the Under-21s are back in action against Germany, again at Lilleshall.
ENGLAND U21 WOMEN’S SQUAD v SPAIN
Emily Atkinson
Becky Batsford (GK)
Sophie Bray
Laura Bridge
Takara Haines
Jennifer Hall
Rebecca Halle
Sarah Haycroft
Joanne Hunter
Jenny Mashford (GK)
Shona McCallin
Dilly Newton
Harriet Pearce
Alice Sharp
Susie Townsend
Amy Turnbull
Lauren Turner
Hollie Webb
Jess Wood
Jenna Woolven
Jennifer Tippett, Sportsister
The Women’s Sports Magazine
