Kazan Blues... Back to Reality

Sitting here it’s crazy to think that two weeks ago we were in Kazan, waking up having just fulfilled our goal of winning gold and the night before we had just been crowned World University Champions 2013. And now I am back to reality, back at my day job, and back to life as I live it in Gloucester.

I miss these girls (and staff)

But looking back, I have to say this past week has been a bit of a comedown but nonetheless enjoyable. A bit of a paradox I know. Kazan was an incredible experience and it’s quite obvious that I loved every single moment of it. Waking up on the first morning back in the UK, just over a week ago, was a bit of a shock to say the least. I missed greeting the girls as I walked blurry eyed down the corridor for monitoring in the morning, I missed having the choice of 7 different cuisines for breakfast and I missed our daily schedule and operating day by day timings. I missed life in the athlete’s village and I missed being part of Team GB. Twitter informed me that I wasn’t on my own and that most of the team were also experiencing major ‘Kazan Blues’ which is understandable given what high we had been on. It wasn’t just the highs but life in the village itself I missed. I enjoyed being able to focus solely on playing football, something which is rare in my day-to-day normal life. I enjoyed not having to worry about work or deadlines, or about what I needed to do. I enjoyed being a full-time athlete, even if it was only for a month.

Hillsong Conference
Gathering with 12,000 people for Church

However that evening I got to return to doing something I love and something I passionate about; being a Youth Leader at my church, One Church Gloucester. Here I have the opportunity and chance to invest in the personal and spiritual development of the young people of Gloucester and it is a role I love playing. I get to hang out with some pretty cool young people, I get to have fun and that evening we had our Summer Party. An evening of worship, chilling out with friends, getting messy with water and flour and lots of food. Definitely winning if you ask me.

The rest of life since being back in the UK has been all go and I have kept myself busy. Catching up with friends, a road trip to Glasgow to collect my boyfriend and his friend who had just completed the gruelling Land’s End to John O’Groats cycle, returning to club duty with Bristol Academy, an unplanned trip to the Royal International Air Tattoo (I missed the junction on the dual carriageway and ended up here), a weekend trip to London to go to the Hillsong Conference at the 02 Arena, a trip up The Shard, a chance to be back with my church family on Sunday, the list continues. Oh and obviously back to work, which has included trips to Bournemouth, Bridgwater, Taunton and Yeovil.

Enjoying our beautiful Capital City from the Shard

There is no doubt that every day since getting back from Kazan I have woken up wishing I was waking up in apartment 19, with my roomies Kerys and Sam. But then again I am excited at what chances and opportunities life provides me day-to-day at home. It’s a bit of personal debate that I have and often one that many followers of women’s football ask me. The experience in Kazan has shown what can be achieved when we are given the opportunity to focus solely on football and dedicate ourselves to it; we can win medals and become world champions. It echoes the discussions taking place around the women’s Senior England team at the moment. Is it worth investing in the women’s game enough to allow players to become full-time footballers?

If this opportunity ever did arise it would be one that I would grab with two hands. To be able to dedicate your whole life solely to playing the sport you love isn’t an opportunity that comes along very often, especially in the women’s game. It’s something that is norm in the men’s game, but for us women, we often have to juggle a full-time job, family commitments, an education, whilst trying to commit ourselves to our sport, which ultimately is a hobby rather than a career.

Article of our Kazan success in my local paper

But then again I love all the other opportunities I have in life. I love my day job where I have a chance to work and develop sporting opportunities for students in further education. I love being part of a vibrant and growing church where I get to serve as a youth leader. I love studying a masters and having the chance to better academically develop myself in the world of Sport and Development. I love coaching and having the chance to invest in the holistic development of young footballers. I love being a trustee for the charity ‘Umutima’ which sets about creating opportunities to unlock the potential of young people through education and sport here in the UK and abroad in Zambia. Ultimately I love every opportunity life provides me with, I love the people I get to do them with and I thank God every day for this. I am living a truly blessed life!

I suppose this could be viewed as the ‘perks’, I use that word loosely, of women’s football. Not only do I get to have the opportunity to be part of experiences such as that in Kazan but I get the chance to develop a career, an education and a life alongside football. I am unbelievably grateful for the opportunity to go to Kazan and I really hope it is not the last tournament I get to go too. I have memories to treasure, to smile upon and to laugh about, I have a group of girls who will remain friends for life and I have a gold medal, wow, a gold medal. I am truly honoured to have been involved in the journey to Kazan and there will be days when I wake up and wish I was back there, today included, but the memories I have are those I will treasure. These memories will spur me on in life and in football to want to better myself so that the chance to be involved in similar experiences will become possible. Yes I am back to reality, my everyday life, but this reality is pretty awesome so I can't complain. As good as Kazan was and as great as life is, I am living each day with the belief that ‘the best is yet to come...’

Made the back page of our local paper, The Citizen

Kazan it's Been More Than a Pleasure

Thursday 18th July 2013

The sound of the 5am alarm was not welcomed this morning as not only did it come after only one hour sleep, but it indicated that our time in Kazan was over and today we would be heading back to the UK. It’s crazy to think how quickly the past few weeks have flown by but what an experience it has been. On waking up we had half hour to be out of our rooms and so adopting the role of a headless chicken begun as we rushed around ensuring we had packed everything and nothing was left behind. Despite my bag looking relatively empty, it slowly became a struggle to fit everything in and I reverting to sitting on top of it whilst zipping it up. But job done it was time to bid farewell to what had become my bedroom for the past 2 weeks. It made me sad as that room, with my roomies Kerys and Sam, was the creator of many memories during our time in Kazan and waking up tomorrow in my own room just won’t quite the same.

Off to breakfast we went, our last ever visit to the legendary food hall where we (yet again) treated ourselves to a McDonalds breakfast, some muffins and pretty much anything else we fancied. We wanted to stock up on food for the journey home which was going to take us pretty much all day. As much as I love travelling, which I do, the journey home is always the least exciting bit especially when this journey was going to take me about 15 hours from leaving Kazan to arriving at home in Gloucester.

The airport floor became our hotel beds

We got on the bus to head to Kazan for our first of two flights. The lack of sleep was already beginning to show as most of the team drifted off to sleep for the half hour drive; I think most of the day was going to be spent trying to catch a few winks as and when possible. Boarding the plane and off to Moscow we went, for what turned out to be a rather interesting flight. I’m not usually one to be scared of flying but this pilot definitely made us all a little edgy with his ability – I swear on landing, which is when I woke up, we looked like 1. We were about to land in a forest. 2. We were going way too quick to stop. It was a nervous moment for all and we were relieved to get off the plan in one piece at the other end.

A four hour wait was in store for us in Moscow, returning to the area where we had previously been when we came to Moscow; it felt like the clock had been rewound 2 weeks. And to be fair I wouldn’t have minded if we could do it all over again! Sleep, food, card games and Wi-Fi all helped pass the time as waited for the final leg of our journey back to the UK. The discovery of ‘Dobble’, a card game one of the rugby girls had, made the latter stages of our wait entertaining and it’s definitely a game I am going to invest in.

Farewell Moscow

Boarding the plane, we bid farewell to Moscow, and to Russia, a country which had provided all of us with memories that we would treasure for life. The next 3 and a half hours were spent, for me, mainly sleeping which even meant I missed out on the food but I think my body was more appreciative of the sleep than it would have been of the food. Nearing London the pilot announced that there was ‘clear skies at Heathrow and it’s currently 29 degrees’. Now that is something you very rarely hear and slightly softened the blow of having to leave Kazan. For once I was able to look out over London and spot all of the tourists hotspots – Wembley, Big Ben, The Shard, Emirates, the 02, Windsor Castle – I think the pilot took a little detour.

Welcome to London

Landing down in London signalled the end of our journey to Kazan and to the World University Games. It was actually over. As a mass Team GBR stumbled through arrivals, through passport control and to baggage collection. We were here and it was time to say goodbye. These girls had become family over the past 4 weeks, we had had our ups and downs, but we had united together to become winners. Friendships had been made for life and I know we wouldn’t be forgetting this experience anytime soon. It was also sad to say goodbye to the boy’s football team, a group of lads we had become well acquainted with over the past few weeks. It was a little emotional to say the least but although this was the end of our journey to Kazan, I know we would all stay in touch!

Jumping into my car and back to Gloucester I headed, via Bristol to drop my teammate Jemma off. As it was a Thursday, a training night for my Club, I popped in to see some of the girls and it was great to catch up with a few of them. 10:30pm came and I was ready for bed. What a day it had been, what a few weeks it had been.

This experience will stay with me for life. I have come home with memories I will forever treasure, with newly formed friendships and an experience which has bettered me as both a footballer and a person. I feel blessed to have been able to have the opportunity to be part of it and I am so proud of what we have achieved. It’s a moment in history, winning a gold medal playing the sport I love and enjoy what more could I ask for. I am truly honoured to have been involved in the most incredible experience in which words fail to articulate, wow, what a journey.

The Final 24 Hours

Wednesday 17th July 2013

We have only just won a gold medal and we made sure we celebrated in style. What a night spent with the girls, I loved it. And wow didn’t we feel the lack of sleep this morning. After only a few hours’ sleep, the 10am alarm resounded and up we got all set to go and support the Rugby 7s guys and girls in their bronze medal matches against Canada and South Africa. It was time to cheer on some more Team GB athletes to victory, another medals was in arms reach.

With the teamies at the Rugby 7s

What a beautiful day it was as well, the sun was out shining and it was time to make the most of our last day in Kazan. Unfortunately all of the screaming and shouting from the game last night was showing its effects and it’s fair to say we weren't quite in the fine voice we would have been hoping but we still tried our best to cheer the guys and girls on. First up were the girls facing Canada, with two friends from back home, Mason and Debs featuring I was excited to be there watching. For a number of years now I have always wished I had tried to play rugby or at least taken it up for a summer or something, particularly rugby 7s (I think my body shape is better suited to 7s than 15s), so I loved that we had the chance to go and watch. For the girls it wasn’t their day, and they ended up on the back of a 36-0 defeat; a result I know they will be hugely disappointed with. But for a sport which has made its debut at the Universiade this year they should take credit in finishing 4^th and being part of the inaugural Team GB Rugby 7s squad to attend the Games. 

The Team GB Rugby 7s girls in action

Next up was the boys who faced South Africa and clinched the bronze medal winning 31-14. It was great game and they performed well, overcoming the sweltering heat to get themselves on to that podium. Another medal for Team GB… it was turning out to be a very successful days in the camp. I am now more interested than ever to take up rugby 7s or at least try it. I think I may get together with a few friends and enter a rugby 7s tournament when we are out of season. It would be a great way to stay in shape and I think it would be so much fun.

Ash modelling our Closing Ceremony outfit
Cargo paints, GB flag belt and polo!

Back to the village we went and time to tackle the depressing job of packing. Up until this point I had put off the thought that we were going home as quite frankly I had loved my time in Kazan so much that I kind of didn’t want to go back. Now the reality of going home was evidenced in the process of packing, something I did not want to do, but as we packed we laughed and joked about the good times we had experienced. Words really do fail to articulate how special this experience has been.

The closing ceremony occupied our last night, which was set to be a cracking evening to round off what an unforgettable experience it had been. As we were unable to make the opening ceremony and had heard so many great stories from it we were excited at what tonight had in store for us. Off we went, all of the remaining Team GB athletes, united as one to celebrate what we had all achieved in Kazan. Our flags at the ready we arrived at the Kazan Arena where we congregated with all of the other athletes. As we were there representing the United Kingdom, we had to wait until the end to enter the arena (as it was done in alphabetical order) but I had to say the wait was more than worth it. Based on my experiences in Serbia my hopes weren’t that high but what we were greeted with next literally blew me away and left me speechless. Walking in to the stadium all we could hear was cheers and clapping, little did we know it was for us. 

The face says it all. Blown away!

The noise grew louder and as we stepped foot into the arena the place went wild. It was packed, a total sell out, and there must have been 50,000 people there cheering, clapping and waving at us. The volunteers were in the centre of the stadium floor, high fiving us and taking pictures. I literally did not know what to do but out came the camera as I began to record what was one of the most captivating moments of my life. I had to capture it to show everyone at home the magnitude and effort Kazan had thrown into making the closing ceremony what it was. As we completed our lap the faces of the girls and other athletes summarised our feelings, we were literally speechless, and all of these people had come out to see us.

To say I was overcome with awe at this moment would be an understatement; I was in utter shock as I walked around waving to thousands of people cheering me on. People I didn’t know, people I would probably never meet, but people who had been inspired by the spirit of the Universiade and wanted to thank us and celebrate with us, the athletes, for playing our part.

Check out my video I made of us walking into the Opening Ceremony. You will be blown away: http://youtu.be/PAk98FPxTUc

The ceremony was incredible and Kazan put on quite a performance. Music, dance, acting, video montages – it was crazily good. The traditionally hand over of the flag took place where it was passed to Gwanju, South Korea who would be hosting the next games in 2015. Speeches were made which reflected on the Games. “These twelve days represent the triumph of sports, beauty and harmony. These twelve days had changed Kazan forever” were the words spoken by one of the gentleman responsible for the Games. It is fair to say not only had they changed Kazan forever, they had impacted upon and changed every athlete, coach, member of staff and volunteer who attended the Games.

What a way to finish the Games, I couldn’t have wished for a better way to top off what has been an unforgettable and inspiring weeks. Our time in Kazan was drawing to a close. We all went back to the village and off to the food hall, despite it being 1am we all indulged in as much food as possible, boy wouldn’t we miss this part of Kazan. A little bit of kit swapping took place but come 3:30am, myself and George, one of the football boys, were still haggling away trying to get our hands on specific bits of kit we had set our eyes on.

It was nearing 4am and bed time was calling. A 5am alarm awaited us and as much as I debated with the idea of not sleeping at all, my body gave in. Our last full day in Kazan was nearly over…

Waking up as Champions

Tuesday 16th July 2013

Roomie Love with our medals

This is definitely a feeling I’m going to relish, waking up as a gold medallist is an experience I have never been through before but the wait has definitely been worth it. Our journey was complete and we had achieved all we had set out to achieve and we could sit back and delight in our achievements.

We love your messages of support

I just wanted to say a quick thank you to everyone who sent messages of support, texts, and tweets for last night’s game. The backing we have had as a whole squad has been unbelievable and I can’t say thank you enough. During our time in Kazan we have created a message board which has been a constant form of encouragement where daily we can see all of those supporting us and cheering us on from home. The support is invaluable so thank you, you know how you are. But a thank you must also go to the other Team GBR athletes who have made time to attend our games and support us. Your chants, shouts and encouragement is heard and felt by all on the pitch and it has been the 12^th player we have needed. Thank you so so much. I'm proud to be a part of Team GB with you all.

Cheeky little pose with my gold medal

To kick start the day we had our last ever recovery session as a team, which for this rare occasion Luke let us do it in the sun. Now we had finished the tournament we wanted to make the most of the weather so shorts were on, sleeves rolled up and the stretching commenced in a grass area outside our block. I was (and still am) determined to go back to the UK with a tan especially as if appears those at home have been experiencing a bit of a heat wave. A quick shower, hair done and make-up on and it was time for our official BUCS individual winner’s photos where we could proudly stand with our cheesiest grins and pose with our medals.

Our afternoon was filled with watching other sports and events that were still taking place around the village. As our schedule since arriving in Kazan has been pretty busy it’s been hard to watch some sports which are off-site as our days off, well rest days, are spent mainly recovering and having our feet up. But today we had the chance to watch both the basketball, where USA was playing Finland followed by a trip to watch the boys in their Final later against France.

USA in action against Finland

The evening came and we were soon boarding the bus to go and cheer on the boys. One of the great things about being part of Team GBR is the support and backing you get from all other athlete’s in the team. We have had some great support which helped us on our quest for gold and we wanted to return the love by supporting as many other games as possible. Arriving at the game there were queues waiting to get into the ground and it was set to be a definite sell-out. Given how gripping their semi-final vs Russia was, I am not surprised and we couldn’t wait to cheer our boys on.

Team GB fan club

As with our game the nerves were showing and the boys had a bit of an edgy first half and found themselves 1-0 down at half-time. The second-half started more brightly with some great attacking play but an unfortunate bounce of the ball deflected off one of our players and the boys soon found themselves 2-0 down. This was not going quite to plan but we had faith that if they could show some of the determination and fighting spirit which brought them through the semi-final then they could get back into the game. They fought hard, chances were created and they didn’t give up. Soon they were back in it, 2-1, game on. To make it even more challenging, another debatable second yellow card saw the boys team go down to 10 players. If they were going to win this game they would have to do it with 10 players, they’ve done it before and tonight they would have to do it again.

You couldn't have written this

It was nearing 90 minutes and the French weren’t going to give up on this one easily. Could they pull it back? We hoped so, chanting and cheering at the top of our lungs, we done all we could to push them. 90 minutes came and the 4^th official’s board went up, 3 added minutes. 3 minutes to get a goal and get back into the game. And wow they done it, I don’t know how, but they did. 2-2, what a game this was turning out to be! We went crazy, well as much as we possibly could seeing as we were all losing our voices, it was quite a moment. Extra-time it was!

A tense half hour followed as both teams pushed for a goal and if GB would hold out they game would be theirs. But it wasn’t to be as France managed to score in the second half of extra time and there wasn’t quite enough left in the tank for the GB boys to pull it back. 3-2 it finished. What an incredible match, each and every one of the lads should be proud of themselves. They fought until the end, and although not quite what they would have wished for, they leave the tournament as silver medallists. They are a credit to themselves as well as Team GBR.

A night of letting our hair down and celebrating was to follow. Four weeks ago we set out on a journey to win gold and we sit here having achieved that; it would be rude not to take the evening to relax and enjoy. I have a feeling it could be a late one so let the celebrations begin…

Let the celebrations begin. I love my teamies :)

Two words... GOLD MEDALLISTS!

WOW is all I can say at this moment in time. Sitting here, with a gold medal hanging around my neck is pretty surreal. As cliché as it sounds this is what dreams are made off. Many dream of playing for their country, many dream of competing on the world stage and many dream of winning gold medals and together we have managed to achieve all 3 of those. For some people looking in on the outside, they may view this tournament as just a student games and not worthy of recognition but if you take a step back and look at the quality of athletes across all sports you will see that there are youth internationals, world champions and Olympians featuring, all of whom use these Games are a crucial part of their training and competition pathway. With alumini such as Jessica Ennis, Beth Tweddle and Gemma Gibbons all previously attending the Games you can start to appreciate the magnitude of such an event. And the women’s football is no different.

To think that on the 21^st June we all came together as a squad for the first time, spoke about what we wanted to achieve from the Games and talked about going for gold and then just less than four weeks later we have seen those dreams realised is pretty incredible. It’s one thing to say you want to be gold medalists and that’s easy, they’re just words, empty words but it’s a completely different thing to go out and actually achieve it and I am proud to sit here and say we have done that. As a squad, all 20 players, our coaching staff Kay and Rehanne, our GK coach Steve, Team Manager Alex, Sport Scientist Luke, Analyst Wilkie and medical team Katie and Tim, have made that possible and together we are one team. Without each of these contributing, giving above and beyond for each other and putting in the hard work when it counted I wouldn’t be able to sit here now holding a gold medal and for that I will be forever thankful. Football is more than just the 11 players on the pitch and I am proud to be part of a team that has shown that, a team that has united in the quest for gold and has emerged victorious.

Tonight's starting 11

As with all other game days today started pretty similar, with a match day schedule set out. But this wasn’t just any game though, it was the FINAL and we were in it. I have said it before but today 8pm couldn’t come soon enough, and I mean literally, the whole day was spent counting down until kick off. Arriving at the ground the feeling was good, and from the warm-up right up until kick-off our standards were high, everyone was on it and we were ready for the most important 90 minutes of our life.

The game kicked off and we were in, the battle had commenced. It took a while for us to settle into the game, and that may have been accounted to the nerves we were feeling which shone as Mexico took the lead on the 10 minute. The Mexican midfielder broke through the lines playing the ball forwards; despite our attempts to clear the ball it fell to their striker who slotted the ball home, 1-0 they had taken the lead. It was not the start we were looking for but that didn’t deter us from our quest for gold, we had plenty of time to gain a foothold in the game. Our break shortly came from a set play, something we had been looking dangerous from; a header down from Kerys was coolly turned and half-volleyed past the keeper by Naomi. Back in the game at 1-1. Mexico continued to compete and make our job hard, we couldn’t expect anything less, a gold medal was at stake. On the 25^th minute, Mexico took the lead again and we fell 2-1 behind. Come on girls we can do better than this and again we came back into the game, arguably an own goal but rightfully claimed by Izzy to level the score at 2-2.

The faces say it all...

What a first half it had been, 4 goals scored, 2 apiece, the second half was lining up to be an exciting one. Back out we came and we were determined more than ever to improve from the first half and make sure come 90 minutes we could walk, or crawl off that pitch, as winners. Chances were created at both ends as we pushed for that winning goal. It took until the 80^th minute for the next goal to come and little did we know what would follow it. A goal on the 81^st minute by Fran, followed by Aileen slotting one home on the 86^th minute, one minute later Fran doubled her tally with a cracking finish topped off with Dan scoring in the 91^st minute. 6-2 what a finish to the game! We were winners and we had done it in style J I couldn’t have been more proud. The score line, although maybe slightly harsh on Mexico, underlined the talent and quality we had in our squad.

Receiving my medal

All goals we worthy winners and after each one we celebrated more and more in elation as the realisation that the gold medal was ours. When the 6^th goal went in there were tears all round, that medal was ours. What we had set out 4 weeks ago to achieve we had and we were ending as World University Champions. What a feeling.

The celebrations were something special and those moments are precious moments I am sure each and every one of us will treasure for the rest of our lives. Little did we know what this journey to Kazan would be like, what experiences we would go through but it is a journey I am glad I came on and so happy to be part of. We have an unbelievably special group of players and staff and together we have created a team of which I am more than proud to be part of.

A proud moment for all of us

Back to the village we came (after a slight delay due to drug testing) and we celebrated in true style… With a McDonalds! Seeing as it’s free and provided on tap in our food hall, plus the fact that we haven’t been able to eat it since getting here we made the most of it and ordered to our heart’s content. Even those who didn’t quite like McDonalds indulged and it was quite some celebration. Following this we got involved in the traditional kit swap. Similar to pin badge collecting, all of the athletes’ collect their kit that they don’t want and head on down to the centre of the Village to exchange and swap with each other. Looking on it was quite like a market, hustling and bargaining with each other and tonight it was obvious to see where all of the GB athletes were. It appeared that our kit was hot on the market and countries were doing anything and offering everything to get their hands on a piece of our kit. Even the Brazilians, who were once our opposition, suddenly became our best friends!

We done it in style. GOLD MEDALLISTS!

What a crazy day it has been! I am literally buzzing on the euphoria of tonight’s occasion and despite being 4am I am wide awake.  This is a moment which still seems surreal and will take a while to settle in, but every time I look at the gold medal I can’t help but smile with pride about what we have achieved and I am so happy that I have been able to play a part in it.

With all of the medallists

ONE TEAM

Super Sunday

Wow how good it feels to wake up knowing that we are in the final. That no matter what happens we are guaranteed a medal and we have already made history for the WUGS Women’s Football Team. It’s a pretty special feeling but one we don’t want to become comfortable with and one we won’t settle for until we have our hands on that gold medal!

Going for a little paddle

The days between the game days can become quite repetitive at times, especially when we go through the same process of recovering but we know these days are equally as important as the games day as these are the days of rest and recovery to ensure we can maintain our form. We have a fantastic group of staff available on site, 24 hours a day to assist us in this process and a thank you must go to our physio Katie Williams who has done above and beyond to ensure our legs keep functioning and our bodies are kept in one piece. Today’s recovery consisted of a morning of stretching and foam rolling followed by a pool session. Although many of the girls aren’t the biggest fans of being at the pool I have to say I rather enjoy it and it provides an opportunity to get off-site and relax away from village life.

A sell-out crowd for this evening's game

This evening was spent watching the Men’s GB Football Team as they faced hosts Russia in a hotly anticipated semi-final in front of what was expected to be a sell-out crowd. Little did we know what to expect until we arrived at the game to be faced with crowds queuing to get in and I mean literally queuing. Not only were there people inside waiting to get in at the ticket barriers, the police were controlling the gate to stop the stampede of eager Russian fans pushing through. It seemed everyone and anyone from Russia had come out in force to support their boys to the final.

With the unexpected busyness we missed the kick off but as we walked into the ground the sound began to rise and there was without a doubt over 10,000 fans there all to support Russia against about 45 or 50 of us from Great Britain. The odds were clearly stacked against the boys, with their opposition worth a reported 12 million euros including 1 full international, 8 U21 Russian internationals and 2 Champion League players. Even Fabio Capello had come out to watch the game and was hidden away one of the VIP stands. But being the underdog is something us British have learnt to thrive on and the boys did not let this detract them from the task in hand. They were there to win the game and get to the final and we were there to cheer and support them all of the way.

The Team GB Men's Football Team

What a game it turned out to be. An evenly contested first half swung in the favour of Russia when the boys had a player sent off for a debatable second yellow. Despite contesting the ref’s decision, it remained and they would have to play the rest of the game with only 10 players. They held out until half-time but the biggest challenge remained in front of them. Second half started and after piling on the pressure the Russian’s broke the deadlock and went 1-0 up. This could have been a turning point in the game and the boys could have easily accepted that there was no way back but they dug deep, defended resiliently and even with 10 players managed to pull a goal back, it was 1-1. Do they go for the winning goal or hold out for penalties? We were on the edges of our seat and I think more nerves were felt by us that them. Even with a maximum 50 GB supporters, including a group that Aileen had managed to pick up in the toilet (they were British and had been visiting Kazan to work with the University and a local churches group) we were not going to be out chanted. We managed to generate quite some noise and I hope it spurred the boys on even more. We were right behind them, backing them to victory. The Russians sat in the stand next to us were surprised and kept trying to out chant us but it wasn’t going to happen, we would not lose voice!

The Russian’s kept piling on the pressure and the GB boys found themselves pinned in their own half. To make the game even more exciting a late two-footed challenge on our keeper saw the Russia striker see red and it was back down to 10 players per side. The final whistle drew closer and that meant one thing… penalties!

It's penalty time...

The spirit, determination and work rate from the boys to get them this far was incredible and their togetherness shone above all. They dug deep, worked hard and didn’t give up. Penalties came and the Russians missed their first penalty. The best start the boys could wish for, all they had to do now was put theirs into the back of the net and they didn’t fail. As the 5^th British lad stepped up to take his penalty we were on the edge of our seats, all he had to do was score and a place in the final was theirs. Boom the penalty hit the back of the net and we were crazy! We were absolutely elated for them. Looking around there was about 50 of us just cheering with a whole Russian crowd in silence at what had happened. You couldn’t have written this!

Let the celebrations commence

Driving back to the village we were all without a doubt inspired by what we had seen tonight. The boys desire to stick together was second to none and it showed as they walked away victorious. If we could take a little bit of what they had shown tonight and apply it in our game against Mexico tomorrow a gold medal would be ours.

One more sleep and the final will be upon us. It’s what the past 3 weeks have been building towards, the training camp at Warwick; the 4 days in Moscow followed by the 2 weeks in the Village have prepared us for tomorrow. We came to Kazan to go for gold and tomorrow that time will be upon us. What more could we want, this time tomorrow we could be crowned World University Champions and I know there is nothing less I want come that final whistle.

We can do this! Our time is now...

Going for Gold 

It's Semi-Final Day

Usually I start the blog off by explaining what we have done today but I’m going to jump straight in with it to tell you all WE HAVE MADE IT INTO THE FINAL!!!!! As I write this I am sat on my bed, as high as a kite, buzzing from what happened tonight.

Rubin Stadium where our semi-final was being played

The usual match day routine commenced with monitoring, breakfast and a team briefing where we went through our plan for today’s game. Having already faced Brazil in this competition it could have become quite easy to get complacent with our preparation and not focus on it properly but given the magnitude and importance of today’s game we made sure we covered every base possible and ensued we were all on the same page going into the game. We identified objectives that we wanted to achieve as a unit (GKs, Defenders, Midfields and Forwards) and what we expected from the other units in front and behind us and discussed these. But today rather than viewing these as objectives, they were seen more as pledges that we were making towards each other about what we would ensure we would do once we cross that white line to make sure we gave 110% throughout.

Arriving at the game the cameras were out in full force

Lunch soon followed before another meeting where the team was announced and the final bits of preparation were completed. I wasn’t selected to be in the starting 11 but this did not deter from the excitement I was feeling towards the game. Everyone wants to be out there playing their part, especially today as it’s a semi-final but with a squad of 20 quality players competing for places competition is high and so it should be… We are at World University Games and we are in a semi-final. The quality we have demonstrates the depth of our squad and as much as I am eager and wanting to be on that pitch, I will do all I can to be prepared and ready to play my part if called upon. I know I have a role to play both on and off the pitch, and so does everyone in the squad, and it is those parts, played by all 20 players, that have got us this far and will carry us to the final.

Game Day #5

Arriving at the ground the feeling in the camp was good as we were all laughing, relaxing and enjoying the occasion. You could tell today was going to be a good day. The game now seems a bit of a blur and you can imagine the rollercoaster of feelings we were experiencing as we sat on the bench watching. The first half flew by, and as with our previous encounter against Brazil we found it hard to gain a foothold in the game as the ball kept switching hands. Nearing the half-time whistle we began to gain some momentum and had a passage of play where we created a few chances, if we could continue this into the second half I am sure a goal would follow. We did continue this form and grew into the second half, moving the ball around with quality and causing the Brazilian defence a few problems. On the 65^th minute, Dan Carter became the hero of our team, running onto a pass from Courtney, wrong-footing the oncoming Brazilian keeper and passing the ball into the back of the net. Brazil 0 GBR 1, we had finally broke the deadlock and were one step closer to the final! The team went wild and it was without a doubt some of the best team celebrations I have ever been involved in. The players on the pitch ran over and celebrated with all of us on the bench, staff included and this moment epitomises us a team and the journey we had come on.

Team line-up vs Brazil

Sometimes it’s easy to feel left out when you’re not on the pitch but with this squad, this team, there is a collectiveness that is felt by all that it’s crazy. A team spirit that pushes everyone to fight for each other on and off the pitch, a team spirit that pulls us together in pursuit of a common goal and a team spirit that has brought us this far and will take us on even further. In that moment everyone who had played a part and been instrumental in our success so far, from the players to the coaching staff to the medical team and more, was part of our goal celebrations and looking around, as we all jumped up and down screaming, we demonstrated what it meant to be one team. 

The game continued as we had 25 minutes left and if we could hold on and keep doing the right things a place is the final was ours. There was little sign of an equaliser from Brazil and Michelle nearly puts us 2-0 with a long range effort which the keeper tipped over the bar. The Brazilians persisted in playing the long ball game but our resilient defending prevailed and there was nothing but frustration felt on their part.

The final whistle blew and brought with it ecstatic celebrations and a place in Monday’s final, where we now face Mexico who overcame South Africa earlier today. The celebrations continued into the changing room, onto the bus (where we sung the best rendition of ‘Living on a Prayer’ that you have ever heard) AND even into the ice-baths. As you can imagine we are buzzing and literally cannot wait for the final now. This is why we came to Kazan, this was our ultimate goal to go for gold and now we are only 90 minutes away! I am so proud to be part of this team and part of this group of players. We are only a step away from achieving something special.

As the final whistle blew, the celebrations begun... This is how much it means to us!

Game, Set, Match

It is fair to say that the emotions of getting through the semi-final were still sky high this morning as the camp was still buzzing and the realisation that in one day we would be

... And stretch

facing Brazil for a place in the final was being felt by all. To manage our recovery and to ensure we were in top condition come tomorrow our schedule was left relatively free with a lot of downtime for us to relax in the best way we felt possible.

This morning was kicked off with a stretching and foam rolling session led by our Sports Scientist Luke. With no sports hall or room available we made the most of the beautiful Russian weather (today was thankfully a sunny day) and found a grassy space outside our apartment block to set up camp for our session.With weather like it was today I couldn’t think of anywhere better to be than outside, although with all of the mosquitos flying around much of the session was spent swatting them away.

Foam Rolling - the faces say it all

The first part of our session consisted of stretching, followed by the gruelling self-inflicted pain that is foam rolling. As painful as the process of rolling your muscles out over foam tubes can be, the end gain is always worth it and will aid our recovery ahead of tomorrow’s game. 

With some of our fellow Team GB athletes also competing in various quarter-finals today we wanted to lend our support and back them to victory; in the same way the Rugby 7s women’s and men’s teams came and cheered us on last night. The men’s football team weren’t competing until 8pm, which was when we had meetings arranged, so we opted to go and watched the Mixed Doubles competing in their quarter-final against Slovakia.

A beautiful day to enjoy some tennis

And wow wasn’t it quite some game. An exciting, tightly fought first set saw Team GB pinch it by winning the tie-break after the games finished 6-6. One more set and a place in the semi-final was theirs, but Slovakia didn’t give up and as they had in the first set, made the GB duo fight for every point taking this set all the way to tie-break again. Some cracking returns and hard fought points saw Team GB bounce back from being 5-0 down to winning 8-6 and clinching the second set. Game, Set, Match and a place in the semi-final was theirs. 

The winning Mixed Doubles Team

This is one of the (many) things I love about being part of a multi-sport event like the World University Games is that not only am I part of a cracking 20 player squad who are here to represent the Women’s Football but we are also part of a larger team, who are here to represent Team GB. Being able to go along to another event, whether it’s tennis or badminton or judo, and support athletes from our country is such a great feeling and one thing I will miss about Kazan once the Games are over. “Let’s Go GB, Let’s Go” The lads continued the great form of Team GB and also secured themselves a place in the semi-final overcoming Ukraine 1-0 where they will now face hosts Russia in the semi-final. The last few days of the tournament appear to be lining up to be a cracking one, not only for us but for many of our fellow Team GB athletes who are also striving for that gold medal.

Kerys, Myself and Aileen

With tomorrow’s game set to be our biggest one since arriving in Kazan we are feeling ready, positive and set to go out into battle. I am confident that every single player in our squad is prepared and set to rise up to the challenge that is the semi-final and we literally cannot wait to get stuck in. Bring on the Brazilians, another 90 minutes to go out and do what we do best!

Let's Go GB, Let's Go!