England's match against Austria at the Stadium of Light proved growing appeal of women's football

Wearside has produced so much talent for the national squad in recent years, with a long list of names who have appeared for England after playing for Sunderland Ladies.

Jill Scott, Beth Mead, Steph Houghton, Carly Telford, Lucy Bronze, Lucy Staniforth, Jordan Nobbs and Demi Stokes all served apprenticeships with the Black Cats before moving on.

The FA’s decision to take England on the road to Sunderland on Saturday has allowed young footballers in the area – both girls and boys – to visualise their dreams.

If you can’t see it, you can’t be it.

It was a shame, though, not to see Scott feature in the match as Sarina Wiegman opted to leave the Sunderland-born star on the bench as England defeated Austria by a single goal.

There’s no doubt the former Boldon Girls player would have received an amazing reception.

And what about that crowd as well? The FA sold 13,000 tickets for the game which tells its own regarding the growing appetite for women’s football in the area.

But what was more impressive was that approximately 8,000 of the 13,000 actually managed to make it to the Stadium of Light.

The impact of Storm Arwen continues to be felt across the North East with windy, snowy and icy conditions causing disrupting travel plans for Saturday’s clash.

Metros and trains were cancelled and delayed with fallen trees blocking roads into the city yet many still braved the treacherous conditions and for that, they deserve every credit.

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