Germany

5-1

England

Stegemann 28, Smisek 36, Prinz 66, Muller 75, de Mbabi 86

 

Scott 26


Women's International Friendly
4.15pm (GMT), Wednesday 25 October 2006
Waldstadion, Aalen

Casey Stoney is confident that all of England's young players will have gained an incredible amount from the experience of playing the World Champions.

Casey was one of the more experienced players in the team that took the field in Aalen, winning her 40th cap despite being only 24-years-old, but she feels that everyone who took part in the game will have grown immensely as a result.

"We just played Germany and they are the World Champions, it isn't going to get much tougher than that.

"I think it is far better to have played this game now rather than two months before the World Cup. Now we have the time to look at what we need to improve for China.

"I actually thought we played well for the first hour, but they have got a lot of quality and they're a very powerful side.

Despite losing the match by a 5-1 scoreline, Casey is convinced that the likes of Jill Scott, Siobhan Chamberlain and Anita Asante will learn a great deal from coming up against Germany.

Casey told TheFA.com: "To play in that game must be an eye-opener for those players, it shows them straight away the level they have to reach.

"Far better that it happens now than a few months before the World Cup, at least now we have the time to work on our game and improve.

"We've played the best and I think we can be proud of how we coped in the first half, we know what where we need to be as a team next September and we're confident we'll be ready."