Squad named for Finland Finals

UEFA Women's Euro 2009™
23 August - 10 September 2009
Finland
Follow it live on Eurosport!

England Head Coach Hope Powell has announced her squad that will contest the UEFA Women's European Championship in Finland.

After naming her final squad for the finals, Hope Powell spoke about the nuances of selection and the many factors that went into choosing the 22 players who will travel to Finland.

"The hardest part of choosing the squad was selecting cover," Powell admitted. "We have had a few injuries and there are players who die for the cause and give 100%, so we have to be mindful of how we manage that. We have a lot of young talented players coming who perhaps weren't quite ready yet. A lot of factors come into play and that's what went into selecting the 22 players.

"Emily [Westwood] can play in defence as she did at the China Cup in 2007, and did very well. She came off the bench in qualifying against Spain and Czech Republic and made a difference - there may be a question of whether she could play 90 minutes, but undoubtedly she is an impact player. It is factors just like that which formed part of the thinking for the squad.

"Dan [Buet] and Jess [Clarke] have come through the system strongly and have something to offer. They are both a little bit raw, but sometimes that is a good thing. I think they bring something that we need at this moment in time.

"We have been monitoring Karen [Bardsley] for a long time now, the reports from her club have been very good. She is a full-time player in America now and has developed physically and the presence she offers is enormous."

Looking back on the past experiences that England can count on, Powell is sure that both the European Championship in England four years ago and the World Cup in China will stand England in good stead going into this tournament.

"We learned a lot from Euro 2005, and then the players grew in stature two years ago at the World Cup," Powell explained.

"Going into a major tournament to have those previous experiences in the bank can only help us try and progress. We've experienced the highs and the lows, what we should be doing what we shouldn't be doing.

"It's now about how we are on the day and the matches to get us through."

Last month Hope assembled a 30-woman squad for two final warm-up games against Iceland and Denmark at Colchester United and Swindon Town respectively. Those two fixtures provided players with their last opportunity to stake a claim for Euro 2009 selection.

England lost 2-0 against Iceland, while a late goal from Jody Handley secured a 1-0 victory over Denmark. Now, however, England's sights are set firmly on Finland, where they are due to face Italy, Russia and Sweden in Group C.

As with all qualification campaigns, England's route to Finland was by no means straightforward and with Spain and Czech Republic involved it went down to the wire.

The final group fixture between England and Spain saw The Three Lions need a draw to claim qualification, and it was only thanks to a 77th minute strike from Kelly Smith that England managed to gain a 2-2 draw.

The England squad includes some old and some new faces. Veterans such as Kelly Smith, Faye White and Sue Smith provide vast experience, while the likes of Danielle Buet and Jessica Clarke will be looking to make an impact in their first international tournament.

As such, the average age of the squad is 25.4 and the caps per player average is 40.

Don't forget, you can follow England's progress in Finland on TheFA.com, as well as keep up to date constantly with our Facebook and Twitter pages.

The Squad