ENGLAND youth international Lucy Staniforth has donated her goalscoring shirt from the Under-17 World Cup to the highly-respected North Yorkshire Girls Centre of Excellence.

The Centre, based at York College, has only been operating for three years but has already proved a pathway for two of its students – Kerry Hammond and Hannah Spreckley – to join National League high-fliers Leeds Carnegie Ladies.

Sunderland Ladies midfielder Staniforth scored against Japan in the 2008 U17 World Cup finals for the Three Lionesses, who were eventually knocked out of the competition at the semi-final stage by North Korea.

Her journey from playing junior football with Copmanthorpe to international football for her country is one that York College’s sport development centre director Gail Colling hopes will inspire North Yorkshire’s current talented crop of youngsters.

Colling said: “Lucy is a fabulous young female footballer, playing the game at the highest level. She has developed through the female player pathway system from grassroots football, into a Centre of Excellence and then on to the national level, playing for England U17s and U19s.

“She is an ideal role model for all our young ladies here at the Centre. It inspires them to see the progress she has made, knowing one day, if they show the same commitment, dedication and enthusiasm for the game, they too will have the opportunity to move onwards and upwards.”

Staniforth, who is the daughter of former York City striker and Centre of Excellence technical consultant Gordon, joined the elite North Yorkshire players during one of their development sessions.

The girls have been playing in the North East and Yorkshire Regional League against the likes of Newcastle, Sunderland, Middlesbrough, Sheffield United, Bradford City, Hull City and Lincoln City’s academies.

Lucy’s father, a UEFA ‘A’ tutor, has a team of UEFA ‘B’ FA level three coaches who have helped the centre receive a recent “good/ excellent” report from the FA, making it one of the most progressive of its kind in the north of England.

The FA technical report said: “This is an excellent Centre of Excellence with the real focus on developing the player through appropriate practice. There is a good balance of coach experiences, which is managed by the centre director and the facilities used at York College are excellent.

“It is evident that all the staff have one clear aim – to create the best environment which will give the best opportunities for the players to develop their full potential.”

Players are selected for the centre through school, junior club or parent nominations, which can be made by emailing gail@gail colling.orangehome.co.uk or by phoning Gail on 07870 170251.