It’s so surreal that I’m going to the Palace!

WHEN I received a call from the Cabinet Office earlier this month, I was really worried I had done something wrong — that I hadn’t paid a parking fine or something like that! I was buying giant glass baubles for my Christmas tree in Marks & Spencer when they called and I almost smashed them when I realised I was going to be made an MBE for services to football in the Queen’s New Year Honours. Since then I have been sworn to secrecy. On Friday I was invited to Admiralty House in London to meet other people who have also been nominated and many of them had done lots of work charity. There was one lady in particular who had been working to encourage girls in sport. Without people like that it wouldn’t be possible for the athletes who are perceived to be at the top — playing professionally and representing their countries — to receive these accolades. I still feel like that seven-year-old girl who fell in love with playing football and just carried on kicking a ball. To think that it has got me to places like this is surreal. I don’t think it will really hit me until I’m there. Who is going to let this girl from Sunderland into Buckingham Palace? I keep thinking that I’ll have to speak slower so that they can understand my accent. My former England team-mate Karen Carney was named in the list in 2017 and is saved in my phone as ‘Kaz MBE’. I might have to tell her to save my name like that now, too.