England World Cup hopefuls have come a long way

Sep 19 2007 by Paul Garrity, Liverpool Daily Post

THE 2007 World Cup in China has been a successful one for England so far, as they ready themselves for the quarter- finals on Saturday.

The side completed the group stage with a comfortable 6-1 victory over Argentina on Monday, and now face the pre-tournament favourites the USA at the weekend. But reaching the knockout stages shows Hope Powell’s side have come a long way since finishing bottom of their group at Euro 2005.

And as the players have become much fitter, stronger and more comfortable on the ball, they point some of their success to the pre-tournament preparations. When the team take to the field against the US on Saturday, they will have been in China for five weeks, most of which saw them in acclimatisation training.

Leeds winger Sue Smith, who hails from Merseyside, pointed out that this was a major key in their progression.

“We were out here three weeks before the tournament started,” said Smith. “We’ve been preparing, acclimatis-ing, organising our strategies – but more importantly, getting used to the heat out here. I think for me personally, and for many others in the squad, we feel we are very prepared for this.

“I think it’s been shown in the two games that we’ve played. The fitness stuff we’ve done prior to starting and our match fitness is there. I think we will only get stronger as the tournament progresses to be honest.”

But even though her playing time has been limited at the moment, she still admits that it’s a wonderful moment to be a part of the squad. But a turning point for the whole team was the excellent goalless draw with the Germans last Friday.

Smith said: “The result the other day against Germany was fantastic. To draw with them, their such a great team, but we made them look average at times. It’s just great to be a part of that. Hopefully we can just keep it going.”