England legends Jill Scott, Ellen White and Anita Asante are inducted into the WSL Hall of Fame – with the FA commemorating trio’s careers at the National Football Museum

• The FA held a special celebratory evening to induct three into the Hall of Fame 
• Ellen White and Anita Asante were at the event, while Jill Scott was also inducted
• Southgate’s loyalty to his players is an issue and a weakness – It’s All Coming Up 

England legends Jill Scott, Ellen White and Anita Asante were inducted into the Women’s Super League Hall of Fame in a celebratory event this week.

Scott and White were both part of the Lionesses side that won the Euros in 2022 while Asante also racked up 71 caps for the national side during an impressive career.

Asante is now part of the coaching staff for England’s U23s while White and Scott have embarked on punditry careers following their retirements after the Euros. White has also become a mother while Scott has become a TV personality, having won I’m a Celebrity Get me out of here last year.

But it was their achievements on the football pitch that was recognised this week, with the Football Association hosting a special evening at the National Football Museum to commemorate their careers.

‘I’m absolutely buzzing, to be honest,’ said Scott, who made 175 appearances in the WSL. 

Anita Asante (left) and Ellen White (right) have been inducted into the WSL’s Hall of Fame

Jill Scott, who has gone into punditry since retiring as a player, was the third inductee

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‘I think over the years, I’ve seen Kelly Smith, Rachel Yankey, Karen Carney, players like that get inducted in.

‘Just to kind of have your name alongside them fantastic players who, over the years, were my heroes, really.

‘Even when we played in England together, I would question why I was even with them players at times. The WSL, it’s been such a big part of my life; dedicated my life to it, really; getting a result on a weekend was literally everything.

‘I hope it just represents that for any young girl out there, you might not be the best player on your team, you might not be the most talented, but I hope that it represents that with hard work and if you want something so badly you have to dedicate every day of your life to it.

‘You have to live this lifestyle where football is kind of the main part of it.

‘So, I hope that’s what it represents. A lot of hard work has really gone into that, and you know what, for any young girls out there, if you have a dream, and then you can certainly achieve it.’

Asante won five league titles and was part of the Arsenal team that achieved the quadruple in 2007.

‘I’ve credited football and the opportunities I’ve had – and what it’s given me,’ Asante said. ‘It’s given me a voice and a platform to use it. I’ve always wanted that for other young players out there.

A special ceremony was held at the National Football Museum to mark the trio’s careers

White spoke of feeling ‘really lucky’ to have had the international career she had with England

‘I want them to feel they have impact beyond what’s on the pitch. I want them to feel like they add value to the game in a number of ways. Hopefully I’ve gone some measure to do that.

‘Young girls – especially girls of colour – can think “I can do that, I can play on the world stage, win trophies and impact the game in the future”.

‘It’s about being a visible role model. I’ve never taken this role lightly. It comes with responsibility.’

White won the WSL with Arsenal and Man City and also retired as England’s all-time leading goalscorer.

‘Now that I have retired, it’s been really nice to kind of look back because I feel like when I was playing, I was always looking forward and forward and I wanted to talk about the team because what was the most important thing for me was about the team.

‘Whereas yeah, now I feel very lucky. I can look back and feel very proud of what I personally achieved. 

‘But I’m not going to sit there and go, “hi, I’m Ellen White, England’s record goal scorer”, but I feel very lucky and what I’ve achieved, the teams that I’ve had, the team-mates, the staff. Looking back personally at what I personally achieved, I feel really lucky.’

IT’S ALL KICKING OFF! 

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