How the Elite Player Pathway works

Congratulations to Sophie Harris and Holly Crosby for their inclusion in the England U15 squad for the forthcoming training camp at Lilleshall National Sports Centre in October.

The U15 camp provides a fantastic base and introduction for players at international level and this is the route regarding their selection. During the past 18 months, England's U15 squad has played friendlies against Germany and Wales, which has since seen some players advance to the U17 squad. Players learn about their roles and responsibilities, the demands of an international player, as well as the levels of technical and tactical understanding at this level.

Head Coach Kay Cossington has previously worked with the U17 and U19 age groups - recently assisting the U19s during their European qualification in Lithuania. Cossington has been part of the international scouting team for the past four years, more recently concentrating on the younger age group during the regional talent identification camps.

Players are observed around the country on a weekly basis at their Centre of Excellence, and reports on players who show potential are collated by England Women's Chief Scout Alan May. A squad of 30 is then selected to attend a training camp, based on observations from coaching staff and reports produced on scouted players, and a squad of 18 is then selected from the training camp to take part in an international friendly. This cycle continues throughout the year, and those players that work through the system are closely monitored back at their centres.

Players will go through a detailed training camp including: Technical and tactical practical coaching sessions, attacking and defending team strategies, classroom theory based learning, diet, nutrition and injury prevention workshops, roles and responsibilities of an international player, player and match analysis, training and match preparation.

Last weekend Georgia Wallis, Hannah Goold, Abbey Young, Martha Harris, Ashleigh Roberts, Jade Sheppard, Megan Foster and Billie Brooks all attended the North East Regional Talent Camp where members of the international selection team worked with and observed the players at close hand. They all performed excellently on a very cold and windy day in Hull, and we hope that this may be the first step on the road towards the National squads.