Lionesses Hail “Beautiful” Hill Dickinson Stadium

England Women’s first visit to Everton’s Hill Dickinson Stadium has been hailed as a triumph by Lionesses past and present.

Sarina Wiegman’s team became the first England side to play at the waterfront venue, following their 3-0 win over Ukraine on Tuesday night.

And Lionesses players and the Football Association, have expressed their joy at experiencing the “beautiful” stadium.

England legend and former Everton star Jill Scott MBE, who visited Hill Dickinson Stadium during her nationwide charity challenge for Comic Relief/Sport Relief, said: “It's the first time I've been to the stadium and oh my God, it’s incredible.

“Everybody inside is so lovely too. They couldn't do enough for us and I said ‘I'll definitely be back’ because Everton means so much to me.

“This was the club I moved to from Sunderland because I wanted to play for England and I made my debut when I was at Everton, so it just means the world to me and it was so nice to see that badge!”

Current Lioness Alessia Russo added: “It was an amazing ground and everyone here is so lovely, so we’ve had a really good experience.

“We stayed in Liverpool for a few days and it's a massive football city, so it's nice to come here and put on a good performance and celebrate with all the fans.”

Teammate Niamh Charles, who hails from Wirral and now stars for Chelsea, added: “I've absolutely loved the last few days being back home.

“To come here with England is really, really special and to come to this new stadium, it's really, really impressive. Hopefully, we can come back here more with the Lionesses.”

That was a sentiment echoed by Sue Day, Director of Women's Football at The FA, who feels that Everton’s new home dovetails perfectly with the Lionesses ambitions to showcase women’s football around the country.

She said: “I think the passion of the fans in this city is just brilliant. Then you come to Hill Dickinson Stadium and it's a beautiful stadium.

“It's just so imposing on the skyline - and part of the message that we want to show people is that the Lionesses deserve women's football to be played on stages like this.

“It's been branded for the Lionesses, and it feels a really good fit and we’ve been made to feel so welcome.

“Women's football is quite shiny and new and a slightly different brand, and Hill Dickinson Stadium is the same thing, so all of it fits together really, really well and we were really excited to be here with so many passionate fans, and to be able to bring the Lionesses to different places so that they can connect with fans.”

Jill Scott continues her 388-mile sporting challenge to raise money for Comic Relief/Sport Relief. The former Everton midfielder, who was welcomed onto the Western Wharf at Hill Dickinson Stadium on Tuesday by England fans and former team mates following a punishing 99-mile bike ride north from the Midlands, started the third leg from the Budweiser Plaza early on Wednesday morning

The latest leg sees Jill tackle a gruelling 38-mile ultra-marathon into Manchester, before Thursday’s brutal, Tour de France-style 111-mile cycling stage into the North East.

She completes her five-day journey with a homecoming on Friday 12 June at Sunderland's Stadium of Light, following a 28-mile marathon finale.

Jill Scott’s Coming Home Challenge for Sport Relief can be tracked on Comic Relief’s website. To make a donation, visit comicrelief.com/jillscott