Clinton enjoys England's success with fans
As a young footballer, is there anything better than watching England secure their place in the knockout stage of the Women's World Cup than getting to watch it alongside a professional footballer?
On Tuesday, United Women midfielder Grace Clinton joined a group of young players at Hotel Football to watch England beat China 6-1 in their final group game.
Clinton, who spent the second half of the 2022/23 season on loan at Bristol City, sat with the fans and chatted to them about the game, decisions and their footballing journeys so far.
During the event, fans were also able to participate in games and competitions to win items from Clinton and had the chance to ask questions about her career.
Grace Clinton at Hotel Football
GalleryOur midfielder hosted a watchalong and did training drills with young fans when the Lionesses played China.
Organised with Player Progression Coaching, players were given the opportunity to take part in training drills with Clinton on the roof-top pitch at Hotel Football.
Speaking during the event, Clinton said: “It’s been unbelievable. I haven’t done anything like this before. It’s been nice to connect with our fans one-on-one.
“When I was younger I’d be the only girl wearing a football shirt and now you look around and often see more girls than boys wearing them. It’s amazing to see.”
The forward has played internationally up to England U23s so far in her career and has been enjoying getting to see her fellow United team-mates Mary Earps, Katie Zelem and Ella Toone all perform in Australia and New Zealand.
She added: “It’s great to see my team-mates performing and playing so well. It was great to see Katie [Zelem] start [against China], that was a big one for me because I know how great she is.
“She really deserves it and to see her get her moment was really special.”
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