Fast Goals: The Wright Stuff (Debbie Wright)

Debbie Wright scored just nine seconds into Beechfield United’s Greater Manchester League game at Oldham Athletic, and explains how. She was surprised, she says, because it was the opposition’s kick-off, and simply had to stay composed in front of goal; her team-mates congratulated her but seemed as shocked as she was, and the manager admitted he only looked up as the ball went past the keeper. Wright began playing at 21 when she signed for Manchester United and has since played at various levels, scoring fifteen in fourteen appearances this season as a centre-forward. Beechfield sit top of their league having lost once, a marked improvement she credits to the whole squad. She puts her readiness down to a fixed pre-match routine.