A Long Eaton School student has scored a fabulous goal after her talents on the pitch were spotted by none other than the England Lionesses.
Notts under-16s star striker Milly Wheldon, 15, is now registered as a player to watch by the England Women’s team after being spotted at a talent identity pathway event in Wolverhampton.
Milly, who is in year 10 at the 1200-pupil school on Thoresby Road, had been put forward to go along to the trial by school principal Mark Shipman, who began his education career as a PE teacher.
Milly joined players from all over the Midlands at the trial event, in which she took part in a series of short matches designed to show how players performed.
Scouts for the Lionesses, who are bidding for World Cup glory this summer, were impressed by what they saw and have put Milly on their register.
She said: “I was so happy when I got the email from the Lionesses! My dad came and told me and I was very surprised! It was the best day of my life, it’s all I have wanted to do since I was little, so it would mean everything to actually play for them.
“I love the Lionesses. All I do is watch them! This just inspires me to want to play even more.”
Milly has played for Nottingham Forest and Derby County and is currently striker for Nottingham’s Basford United girls’ under-16s, which has been undefeated in its 2022/23 season.
Milly’s skills have so far seen her score 17 goals in 16 games for the side, which is sitting at the top of the Nottinghamshire Girls and Ladies Football League.
Football mad since primary school, Milly said she simply loved the game from the first moment she kicked a ball.
She said: “I’ve been playing football since I was about seven. No-one else plays in my family. Ever since I was at primary school, I just played with the lads.
“I remember that I was at school and I don’t know why I wanted to play football. I just found it interesting. I told my mum and dad I wanted to try football and they took me down to Nottingham Forest for one of their sessions. I’ve been playing up a year all the time I’ve been playing football.”
The Long Eaton School principal Mark Shipman said: “We’re all so proud of Milly for her achievement in getting on to the talent books of the Lionesses. “It’s very important to us at The Long Eaton School that our students are exposed to a wide range of experiences both in and out of the classroom and by her achievement Milly is such an inspiration to all our other pupils that if you work hard at something you love, you can do great things. We can’t wait to see how well Milly continues to do – watch this space!”
