England captain Leah Williamson felt “10 times taller and 10 times stronger” as she made her long-awaited England return for the time in a year against the Republic of Ireland.
The Lionesses picked up their first win of their Euro 2025 qualification campaign with a 2-0 victory in Dublin courtesy of first-half goals from Lauren James and Alex Greenwood.
The reigning world champions could have been three goals to the good before the half-hour mark but Greenwood smacked a second spot-kick off the inside of the post.
The miss left the door slightly ajar for a dramatic 15-minute finish to the match, in which the hosts managed to register all of their shots on goal and put England under earnest pressure.
Williamson, 27, played a key role in keeping the clean sheet amid the heightened tension of the final throes. She was also composed on the ball and enterprising in her passing. England have struggled to keep clean sheets without Williamson and fellow defender Millie Bright, both recently out with injury.
"I just really, really love playing for England," Williamson told ITV after the match. "When I put this badge on, I feel 10 times taller, 10 times stronger. The girls are such a great group and I loved every second of that."
The Arsenal defender last started for England last April in a friendly against Australia, just over a week before she ruptured her ACL and missed the Women’s World Cup campaign.
And Williamson said that returning to the starting XI for her country was her fuel throughout recovery. "These days with ACLs, you come back hopefully in a healthy way, but I wanted to be good enough to play for England again," she said.
"The standards are so high and the players that have been here have made them higher. This was the thought and I felt today was the completion of that journey."
During the national anthem, Williamson said the emotions almost overwhelmed her as she spotted her mum in the crowd.
"When it finished, that was the most emotional I was. I wanted to stay in the game and be present but it's been a journey. It's a nice feeling," she added.
England manager Sarina Wiegman voiced her pleasure with Williamson’s performance: "I have to look back but my first reaction is that I'm happy with her performance and she did well.”
"I think she was very front-footed, alert. Her overall passing was good and in some moments she won duels that were really necessary [for us] to win."
England's win at Aviva Stadium was paramount after drawing with Sweden in their opener. France lead the group by two points after defeating Sweden, who Englnad face in May. Williamson said England "will get better" having looked off the pace this month.
Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.