Faye White blog

Well where do I begin? It’s so difficult to put into words my thoughts and emotions of the events that have unfolded over the last four days or so.

The past weekend has gone by in what I can only describe as a blur. It’s been a rollercoaster ride of highs and lows for me personally and for the team.

Our quarter final against Finland seems so long ago. Since then I have flown back to London to have an operation on my fracture and dislocated cheekbone, then rushed back on Saturday evening to be part of the squad again in time for the semi-final and  to witness the jubilant scenes after the girls qualified for the Final of a major tournament.

We started the Finland game brightly with Eni finishing off a well worked  move to help us settle into the game and silence the near-capacity crowd that obviously provided Finland with some extra momentum.

Just five minutes before half-time I went up for a header and after connecting with the ball I felt a crack on the side of my face.  My initially feeling was that it didn’t feel right but I said to Pippa, our medic, that I thought I could carry on. But she said it might be cracked and after trying to jog to the sideline to go back on, a sharp shooting pain told me my game was over.

Although I managed to watch from the bench I couldn’t remember too much about the second half, so had to watch it again on DVD a few days later. Eni’s second goal was really special. To be able to produce an individual piece of skill like that, when we had just conceded, to put us back in the driving seat was unbelievable and deserving of the Player of the Match accolade on its own.

Overall it was a great team performance that improved on our previous games and showed our resilience. Once again, Katie Chapman proved titanic. She showed just how important she is for us, after starting the game strongly in midfield, she then showed the same qualities when asked to drop back to centre-half for the rest of the game and she did a great job.

Less then an hour after the game, X-rays at the local hospital confirmed the damage to my cheekbone and that I would need an operation to fix it as soon as possible. We had just reached the semi-final for the first time in years but with this news my tournament sounded like it was over.

However, when I got back to the hotel I was told that it had been arranged for me to have the operation the next day, by the same surgeon that did John Terry’s back in 2007; the same surgeon who had repaired the broken nose I sustained during the quarter final in the 2007 World Cup. I would be in good hands and back with the squad by Sunday, with a chance to be back in contention should we progress further, albeit perhaps having to wear a protective mask!

Sunday’s semi-final against Holland was, without doubt, the most stressful and nerve-wrecking game I’ve never witnessed since being part of this England team. Sitting there on the bench, unable to have any impact, and seeing the girls controlling the possession and trying to break down a team that we knew beforehand would settle for extra-time and even penalties as their way of progressing to the Final, was so frustrating.

We knew that we would be able to produce the better football and when Kelly grabbed the first goal I thought that we would go on to score more as Holland would have to abandon their defensive tactics and attack. But credit to them, they hit back just three minutes later and forced the game into extra-time.

However, just before extra-time got underway the whole squad got into one big huddle and you could sense the desire and belief amongst everyone that we knew we were simply not going to miss out on this opportunity.

The passion was there to see on everyone’s faces and in their voices, and it transferred itself into the performance in extra-time. We could, and perhaps should, have converted three great chances in the first-half of extra-time before Crouchy [Jill Scott] grabbed the winner, sealing our place in the Final and, when the whistle went it sparked scenes of pure joy and elation from us all.

Monday was a rest day for the girls that played or got on, and a blow-out session for those that did not. Attention then turned to the second semi-final between Germany and Norway and I’m sure the whole hotel could have heard us screaming and shouting at the TV! It turned out to be a 3-1 win for the Germans who we will now face in the Final.

This will be the biggest game of our careers and we cannot wait to get going. Now we know who our opponents are, our preparations can begin properly. We travel to Helsinki today and we have to focus on the job in hand. Germany are a great side and they are looking for their fifth European title in a row, so of course we know it won’t be easy. We respect them, certainly, but we definitely do not fear them. We have got better and better as the tournament has progressed and we hope we can keep that going on Thursday. I still don’t think we have hit top form and there would be no better time to peak than on Thursday…

I didn’t get to sleep until 3am this morning after last night’s game.

It’s always hard after a match, some players manage to drift off but I found myself listening to music and surfing the internet, willing my eyes to close but I was just too wired from the game to be able to shut them. I woke up about 8am this morning and felt a mixture of elation and relief.

Elation because I felt we had put in a performance against a top side that we could be happy about and relief because despite the see-saw ride of the past week, we had made it through a pretty tricky group and could look forward to a date with the hosts on Thursday, in our first European quarter final since 1995.

I think we can be honest and say there were a lot of improvements to be made across the team after our opening two games, we didn’t put ourselves in a great position but I think everyone was a lot happier after last night’s game, though I still think there is much more to come from us. What I do feel is that the vibe and mood in the squad is more upbeat this morning and I think the result last night felt like a victory as it’s got us through to where we want to be, and that’s in the next round.

Credit to Sweden, they are a very good team with lots of energy and they pressed us all over the pitch. We haven’t played against a 4-4-2 formation in the tournament yet and they made life very difficult for us in the first half. I don’t think we could get our passing game going as fluently as we would have liked yet I still feel we threatened well and played more expansively after a nervous start. We might have got a little luck with their disallowed goal but it was a great relief to get our noses in front and I was delighted with my goal.

I said in the press conference after the game that it was most probably the most important goal of my career. I was pleased with the header, I tend to do better when I don’t have too much time to think about scoring and rely on instinct and seeing the header go in was a great moment. The last England goal I scored was against Belarus right at the start of the qualifiers, which was a while ago now, so it was good to get back to scoring. I always feel I should be a threat at corners and free kicks with my height and having hit the bar in the last game, it was sweet to see that drop over the goalie.

But just as important was Alex Scott’s goalline clearance right on half time. Sweden had just converted the penalty which was harsh on us and were coming much more into the game. Alex was carrying a knock but I thought her grit and determination was outstanding and that clearance allowed us to keep some momentum and go in level at the break.

I think we had the better of the second half, we passed better, created some good openings and finished the game strongly which was pleasing. It was a good test for us against one of the favourites in the tournament and this has given us a huge boost going into the quarter final stage.

Straight after the game, all thoughts turned to who we were facing and when. There were so many permutations so we all wanted to be clear in our heads. It was difficult to know and understand how there could be so many possibilities dependent on the results of both group games last night. I think the draw has been kind to us to be honest, it’s opened up slightly and facing Sweden again or Germany would mean that we have reached the Final of the competition.

We are now focused on Finland here in Turku in a couple of days. Playing the host nation at a major tournament is always special and the squad is looking forward to the game. I’m sure there will be a capacity crowd which means the atmosphere will be pretty hot. I think it has a capacity of around 8,000 but I’m sure the Finns would fill that three times over if the capacity was more, so it will be a huge test for us.

It would be criminal to underestimate the Finnish team and we’ve already had a meeting about that this morning. The hard work starts now and we have a real opportunity to put a marker down in this competition and do well. The Finns will come prepared and have a good crowd behind them, but if we play to our capabilities and take our performance from last night into the game, I’m sure we have a good chance of progressing.

Playing in Turku has an added bonus of meaning we don’t have to move anywhere before the game. We’ve moved three times already in under ten days and it’s hard to get settled and relax when you know you can’t really unpack. We can now stay here for a couple of days, get used to our rooms and focus on the job in hand, and I think it was nice for all the staff and players to wake up this morning and have a bit of a lie-in instead of loading and packing all morning.

We’ve had a recovery day today, there are a few aches and strains within the squad but nothing I’m sure the medical team can’t handle. They’ve been excellent with the players throughout the tournament and we will be ready to go again come Thursday.

I will be trying to look at as many Finland videos as I can get hold off to make sure I’m ready for the game. You can never know enough about your opponents, the way they play and their strengths and weaknesses. We are now at the business end of this tournament and we cannot wait for Thursday afternoon.

Looking back on Friday night's game we don't like to make it easy for ourselves, that's for sure.

We were disappointed to go two goals down, but it was an incredible fightback from the team to keep the belief and respond that quickly. We know we can't put ourselves in that situation again though.

I take responisibility for one, or possibly two of the goals on Friday. As a defender you do that anyway, but certainly the first goal coming from a set piece with a header in the centre of the area - you need to be attacking it.

But we fought back, and obviously it was an incredible goal by Kelly who always likes to produce a moment of magic at these tournaments.

It was like a repeat of her goal at Walsall, although this one was perhaps more difficult because she had to control a ball dropping from the sky and shoot instantly or the chance was gone.

The other two goals were good quality as well; a great strike by Kaz and a terrific team goal by Eniola. We had been getting into those positions against Italy in the first game, but the final ball just wasn't right. This time it was and we scored three very good goals.

There were chances in the second half for Russia to level the game, in injury time they had a free-kick that hit the wall and the Russian number 20 looked like she was going to hit it again. It's all about getting your body in the way during those frantic last few moments.

Near the end I was just shouting to keep people going, because you could see people were tired - but they hadn't given in.
Everyone played their part, Brownie made a fantastic save near the end when she got her fingertips to it. I told her 'you've just kept us in the tournament' and those are the things you need to be telling each other on the pitch.

What was going through my mind in the last few minutes? 'Where are they, switch on, next ball is coming from there, get yourself in the way.' So many thoughts rush through your mind at that time, but you just try to keep yourself and everyone else at it.

Russia were a very strong team, very direct, and on balance I think they have a good chance of beating Italy.
It was a hard, physical game and we had to be switched on for the entire match. In the second half you could see people getting tired, but they still dug really deep.

Having played the majority of the Italy game with ten players, then going 2-0 down very early in this match, it was emotionally and physically draining.

We've had so many things to come back from, some of them are our own fault and some have just happened to us, and I think there are massive positives to come out of these two games.

There was huge resolve from everyone, and a sheer determination to say 'We're not giving up'. But we can't keep putting ourselves in these situations, and defensively we'll have to be better against Sweden.

We know their quality and they have established players, so we have to step up and do our best not to concede.
That's what these games are about; players doing everything they can to be the best that they can be.

Sweden knocked us out four years ago at Euro 2005 in England, and now is the chance to put that right. Games come around sometimes that are opportunities to change people's perceptions, and I think this is one of them.

They have six points and with the way they have played, they might have written us off. But sometimes that can be the best position for us - to go out and prove people wrong. If you've been knocked down and you keep getting back up, it makes you stronger every time.

It is emotionally draining, but your belief grows stronger each time you keep coming back. We can draw on the experiences we have had, and we know we can overcome any obstacle in our way.

One thing we can't do is think of the permutations of what result gets us into the quarter-finals, we have to go into this thinking that we can turn the Swedes over. We just have to play our game, because we have it in our hands. It's not just about the points either, I want to beat Sweden. We have the quality in this team to demand those type of results against the best, and now it's about showing it.

After 2005 when they beat us by one scruffy goal we want to put that memory firmly in the past, sometimes you have to make your own luck and tonight would be a good time to start.