Little Kicks: Lola Smith

The Little Kicks/Born Kicking youth feature turns the spotlight on ten-year-old Wakefield winger Lola Smith, who plays for Ossett Town Juniors and Tingley Athletic and counts Lionesses star Beth Mead as her football hero and reason for taking up the game. Smith talks through her footballing habits and superstitions, from always playing in skins to celebrating with a post-match milkshake, and predicts Manchester City, Manchester United and Arsenal will finish as this season’s top three, despite hoping her own team, Liverpool, gets there instead. She also shares her ambition to one day wear an England shirt, and offers encouragement to other girls thinking about getting into football: to simply give it a go. A cheerful snapshot of grassroots enthusiasm feeding the game’s next generation.