John Griffiths has warned against complacency after his England Women’s Under-17s side cruised to a 10-0 win over Latvia in their opening Euro qualifier.
Captain Lauren James bagged four goals on Saturday, while York City’s Jessica Park notched a hat-trick.
Hannah Griffin, Ebony Salmon and substitute Annabel Blanchard grabbed a goal apiece to complete the scoring.
It is the fifth time a Young Lionesses side managed by Griffiths has hit double figures – but they slipped up in the very next match on two of those occasions.
After defeating Lithuania 14-0 last October England lost 1-0 to Slovenia just two days later. And a 13-0 victory over Estonia a year earlier was followed by a 2-2 draw with Poland.
Griffiths said: “We’ve managed to rack up a few other really big wins in the last couple of years.
“But after a couple of those wins we went on to draw or lose the next game, so it’s about staying focused.
“The Latvia game has gone. Yes, we won 10-0 and it was a great performance but that’s in the past now. We will learn from it and look to improve for the next two games.
“We are always learning, no matter what.”
However, Griffiths was quick to congratulate his side for their performance at the weekend.
He added: “We played some exquisite football on Saturday.
“To create 58 goalscoring opportunities in any game is seriously impressive.
“But we only scored 10 of those chances so there are still things we can work on.”
Griffiths, like any youth team coach, is charged with producing senior team players of the future. But he is also aware of the need to pick up results.
The top two nations in each of the Euro groups will advance to the final round of qualifying next spring.
England face Slovakia on Tuesday before rounding things off against Scotland on Friday.
Griffiths said: “With players of this age it’s about creating a winning mentality alongside developing them as players and as people – and remembering that education is equally as important.
“And I must give the players credit; their holistic development has been fantastic.
“They are also here to learn about tournament football, an experience which will hopefully stand them in good stead in the long run. It’s all about long-term development.”
He continued: “We have done our homework, as we always do and we’ll be ready for Slovakia and Scotland. We can’t afford to rest on our laurels.”
