Powell's England continue to grow

The England coach Hope Powell believes her side's qualification for the 2007 FIFA Women's World Cup shows how "the players have just grown and grown in stature" since falling at the first hurdle when hosting UEFA WOMEN'S EURO 2005™.

'Brilliant'
England held France to a 1-1 draw in Rennes on Saturday to pip Les Bleues to top spot in Group 5, and a berth in the draw for next year's finals in China. Powell told thefa.com: "The whole year has been brilliant. To come away from home and get a draw against France is just fantastic and now we have so much to look forward to. I'm just so glad it's over, I think the girls were magnificent, but I think over the whole course of the qualifiers, we deserved it. I'm absolutely delighted."

'Credit to France'
Powell also reserved praise for England's vanquished opponents, saying: "Our backs were against the wall but we stuck to our game plan. We knew it would be tough. A lot of credit must go to the French, they're a good side. Five teams from Europe is not enough - there is too much quality here for there to be only five teams at the World Cup, and that is unfortunate for France. We were unlucky last time, and this time I'm just glad it's us."

Brooking tribute
Meanwhile, the Football Association's director of football development Sir Trevor Brooking paid tribute to Powell and her team. "It's very satisfying for a lot of people who have worked very hard over the last few years," said Sir Trevor. "EURO 2005™ was soon after I arrived and we tried to work on the fitness as it is a very important aspect of the women's game. The higher the level of football the fitter and more consistent the opposition becomes.

'Huge support'
"I thought we were unlucky at that tournament and it was a big disappointment because they played very well but did not get the breaks. As the host nation we got some big crowds and huge support so it was helped raise the profile and that will continue after this achievement."