- goal scored by E. White
- goal scored by L. Bronze
- goal scored by R. Daly
- goal scored by E. Toone Goal type PEN (PEN)
- goal scored by E. White
- goal scored by L. Bronze
- goal scored by R. Daly
- goal scored by E. Toone Goal type Penalty Goal
Riise's reaction
England coach Hege Riise reflects on her first game in charge and we also look at some previous meetings with Northern Ireland
New England coach Hege Riise was left happy after watching her new squad clock up an impressive win over Northern Ireland.
The Norwegian was appointed last month following the departure of Phil Neville, but has quickly got down to work with the Lionesses on the training pitch at St. George's Park.
And that resulted in a game which saw a hat-trick for Ellen White, a 150th cap for Jill Scott and four new debutants.
"We had six goals, four players getting their first cap, and also we pushed for 90 minutes and wanted more goals," said Riise after the game.
"We tried to find the pockets of space and run at them, and we showed character.
"We could've scored even more goals, but I would say the performance was good today, I’m very pleased with the energy we put into the game.
“She’s [Ellen White] a leader, she wants to score goals and is always looking for runs in the box, she got three goals and three great goals as well.”
Previous encounters
England and Northern Ireland have met seven times over the years, with the Lionesses enjoying an impressive win rate against their rivals in that time.
It's fair to say goals haven't been in short supply during those encounters either, although it's now over a decade since the nations last met in 2007.
Below is a list of our previous encounters...
England 5-1 Northern Ireland
7 September 1973
International friendly
Twerton Park, Bath
A brace from Lynda Hale and a strike from Jeannie Allott were supplemented by two own goals from the opposition in the first game between the nations.
England 7-1 Northern Ireland
19 September 1982
Euro Qualifier
Gresty Road, Crewe
Northern Ireland 0-4 England
14 May 1983
Euro Qualifier
Seaview, Belfast
Northern Ireland 1-8 England
25 May 1985
Euro Qualifier
Allen Park, Antrim
England 10-0 Northern Ireland
16 March 1986
Euro Qualifier
Ewood Park, Blackburn
It was double figures for England in this game, with the Lionesses squad including the likes of Hope Powell, Marieanne Spacey, Gillian Coulthard and Kerry Davis.
England 4-0 Northern Ireland
9 March 2005
Algarve Cup
Paderne Portugal
After almost ten years without meeting, the teams clashed at the 2005 Algarve Cup when goals from Karen Carney, Vicky Exley (2) and Rachel McArthur gave Hope Powell's team a convincing win.
England 4-0 Northern Ireland
13 May 2007
Euro Qualifier
Priestfield Stadium, Gillingham
A crowd just shy of 4000 witnessed this victory during the qualification campaign for the EURO Finals of 2009. The goals in Kent came from Kelly Smith, Katie Chapman, Lianne Sanderson and an own goal from Northern Ireland's Una Harkin.
Northern Ireland 0-2 England
6 March 2008
Euro Qualifier
Mourneview Park, Lurgan
Our last meeting against Northern Ireland came almost 13 years ago, when goals from Fara Williams and Faye White earned the points in Lurgan.
International Games
Lionesses run riot
A hat-trick from Ellen White, 150 caps for Jill Scott and four debutants in an eventful return to action for England
A hat-trick from Ellen White helped England get a new era off to the best possible start, as the Lionesses saw off Northern Ireland by 6-0 on Tuesday afternoon.
The Manchester City striker helped herself to two first-half goals at St George’s Park, before Lucy Bronze added a third ahead of the break in a barnstorming performance from the home side.
White’s third wasn’t far behind as she fired in just after the interval, before Rachel Daly made it five with a poacher’s effort as she latched onto Bronze’s ball into the middle.
Ella Toone added a debut goal from the penalty spot with 15 minutes to play, as Hege Riise’s spell in charge got off to the perfect start with a comprehensive victory in Staffordshire.
The Lionesses signalled their intent right from the off, with White's first effort of the afternoon being smothered by visiting goalkeeper Becky Flaherty in the early stages.
And the visiting shot-stopper had to be on her toes once again within the opening ten minutes, as she repelled Bronze’s close-range header to keep the scores level.
But Flaherty was left helpless soon after, as White was gifted possession on the edge of the Northern Irish penalty area after a wayward pass from the visitors and calmly slotted home her 37th international goal into the bottom corner.
And her 38th wasn’t far behind, as the 31 year old latched onto Bronze’s centre before directing a header inside the far post to double the hosts’ advantage midway through the first half.
Bronze then got herself on the scoresheet just before the half-hour mark, as the right-back ghosted into the penalty area to convert Lauren Hemp’s cross the Lionesses the convincing lead their performance deserved.
That’s the way the scores stayed until the break, but it didn’t take England long to get their fourth after the interval, as White capped off her fantastic performance to earn herself the match ball.
The sensational striker collected captain Jill Scott’s pass while shrugging off the attention of Julie Nelson on the turn, before fizzing in her third of the game with an unstoppable effort past Flaherty.
Tuesday’s affair was a special occasion for Scott, as she made her 150th international appearance, becoming just the second woman to do so after Fara Williams, and marked the occasion with a dominant performance in the centre of the park.
The visitors continued to hustle for every ball, and looked to spark an attack of their own as Rachel Furness flicked a ball into the channel, only for Simone Magill’s cross to be collected by Ellie Roebuck in the England goal.
It could've been even better for White soon after, when she thought she had a fourth on the hour mark, only for her effort from Chloe Kelly’s centre to be chalked off for offside.
But England’s fifth wasn’t far off, as Daly converted Bronze’s inch-perfect ball into the penalty area, giving the Houston Dash winger a well-deserved goal after a superb performance on the wing.
After being introduced in the second half, Kelly was causing all sorts of problems for the Northern Irish defence, and that proved too much for Rebecca Holloway, who brought the striker down as she rampaged into the penalty area.
The task fell to Manchester United’s Toone to take the spot-kick, and the England debutant made no mistake from 12 yards, as she calmly sent Flaherty the wrong way to round off the scoring.
