HOT-SHOT BETH SETS SIGHTS ON THE EUROS
THE return of Toni Duggan to the England squad was the talking point this week as manager Mark Sampson selected his 23-player party for Friday’s visit to France and the forthcoming trip to Spain.
The Manchester City forward’s gain could be perceived as Beth Mead’s loss for now as the Sunderland striker is instead one of 16 players selected by Marieanne Spacey for a four-day training camp at St George’s Park.
The players in the Next Gen squad, which has replaced the previous Under-23s, meet today.
But it’s not just Spacey who Mead is hoping to impress at Burton. The 21-year-old wants to show Sampson she is ready to be called on with the European Championship on the horizon.
Before this season, Mead had been prolific in both Women’s Super League 1 and 2, leading to her being named PFA Young Player of the Season in April.
There were strong calls for her to gain full international recognition, but the first cap has not come and the goals have dried up.
Sunderland find themselves eighth in the WSL 1 table and Mead’s return of five goals in 14 league games is a famine by her high standards.
But the Whitby-born whiz is determined she can still be on a plane to the Netherlands with the Three Lionesses next July.
Mead said: “Lots of people say ‘you’re young, you’ll have your time’. But I want to play for my country now, so I need to keep working as hard as I can to get there.
“It’s a bit disappointing not to have been involved with England lately, but I’m still in the Next Gen squad.
“I’ve just got to keep working hard and, hopefully, force my way into the manager’s thoughts. We’ve got plenty of competitive matches before the Euros with the spring series. I have high standards that I expect of myself and I would have liked to score a few more goals this season. There is plenty for me to reflect on and learn from.
“All of us at Sunderland had high expectations after last season and we have not done as well as we would have liked.
“There have been gaps in the fixture list and we have found it hard to get consistency.
“It’s been difficult when you’ve not got a game to look forward to at the weekend, but you stay motivated because you know the cause you are playing for. You want to do the best you can for yourself, your
team-mates, the fans, everyone at the club.
“I think perhaps teams have sussed us out a little bit.
“It just wasn’t meant to be this season.”
On Monday, Mead was at Sunderland College to launch FA Girls’ Football Week, where more than 100 students took part in the day’s sessions.
Though it’s not so long ago that Mead left school, she admits times have certainly changed.
She said: “When I was younger, I used to train with the boys. Naturally, it meant slightly better facilities and I think when you’re young it can benefit girls to play with boys because boys tend to develop quicker.
“So, my experience of playing against them was that it got me ready for the physicality of women’s football when I started playing in the first team as a teenager.
“I think it’s nice that we’ve moved on a bit now and girls have the option and opportunities to play among themselves.
“It was hard for me at college. I had to get friends to stand on the pitch to make up the numbers!
“On Monday, I was at Sunderland College and there were so many teams, so many players that wanted to play. It was great to see.”