Lucy goes back to her roots

The Lioness, who won the European Women’s Championships with England in the summer, and who were named the BBC Team of the Year at their annual awards, visited Alnwick Town Juniors to hand over some much-needed equipment, with the promise of more to follow.

Lucy was born in Berwick, lived on Holy Island and went to school in Belford and Alnwick.

And it was with Alnwick Town that she started playing football.

A club spokesman said: “What an amazing experience Alnwick Town Juniors had.

“Lucy came to visit our junior teams and handed over an amazing donation of equipment, with a lot more to follow, all of which has been sponsored by Nike.

“It was a great turnout even in the wind, cold and rain. We can only say Lucy went above and beyond, and as a club we would like to say a massive thank you to her.

“Lucy contacted our chairman, Louise Jones, offering us this generous donation following the devastation we experienced last year with Storm Arwen.

“Louise arranged the meeting for all our junior teams to come along and thank Lucy in person. She took part in individual team photos and held a Q&A session which also ended in selfies and autographs for hundreds of players.

In what has been a glittering career to date, after leaving Alnwick Town, Lucy went on to play for Sunderland Ladies, Liverpool, Everton and then had a spell in America before returning to join Manchester City, whom she has had two spells with. She has also played for Lyon and now plies her trade in Spain with Barcelona.

Along the way Lucy has won numerous league championships, cups, the Champions League and of course the European Championships with England.

In the past she has been described as the best right back in the world, has been named European Women’s Footballer of the Year and nominated for the prestigious Ballon d’or.

“She is a role model for all the youngsters,” added the spokesman. “It was great to see her back to her roots, back where it all began.”