Keep Kicking (Editor’s Letter)

Editor Jen O’Neill opens the September 2014 issue by saluting Fara Williams, newly England’s most-capped player ever, alongside Scottish landmarks for Gemma Fay, Megan Sneddon and Joanne Love, who between them have passed 400 caps, and Kim Little’s 100th start. She celebrates Little’s first NWSL season with Seattle Reign and argues that British players thriving in the United States and Australia demonstrate the talent being developed at home. Turning to Fran Kirby, whose debut goal in the 4-0 win over Sweden she calls a joy to watch, O’Neill defends the Centres of Excellence and Player Development Pathway against recent criticism while conceding that true success means delivering on the international stage. She urges readers to fill Wembley for England’s historic meeting with Germany in November, calling it a potential game-changer for women’s sport.