England international Lauren Hemp says Norfolk has a special place in her heart as she prepares for Sunday’s Arnold Clark Cup match with Spain at Carrow Road.
Lauren was born in North Walsham and played for Norwich City before joining Bristol City, at the age of 16, and going on to play for Manchester City and win the FA Women’s Cup with the Citizens in 2020.
The 21-year-old striker has more than 50 caps for England as well but has never played as Carrow Road for the Lionesses, so Sunday’s match against Spain, which kicks-off at 3.15pm, is a special occasion for her.
“Norfolk has a very special place in my heart,” she said. “It’s where I grew up. I started playing football and I fell in love with the game there, so I’ve got a lot to thank Norwich City for.
“I think, to be honest, one of the whole stands is just going to be filled with my family. Obviously, Norfolk's quite far away so they don’t get to come to many games but having this one so close, they’ve not really got much of an excuse.”
The Arnold Clark Cup is a four-team tournament that is being held at three different stadiums across the country: The Riverside, Carrow Road and Molineux.
England will take on Canada in their opening match at Middlesbrough (February 17, 7.30pm), before then taking on Spain (February 20, 3.15pm) and going on to face Germany in the final match at Wolverhampton (February 23, 7.30pm).
The teams playing in the tournament are all inside the top 10 FIFA rankings and it will be a good test for England, who will be hosting the European Championships this summer.
“I think it’s really important that we test ourselves against top opposition,” added Lauren, who recently scored four goals in a 20-0 World Cup qualifying win against Latvia.
“If we want to give ourselves the best possible chance of winning the Euros in the summer, then we need to be playing teams likes this and be competing against them on a regular basis… It will be great to see where we’re at and what we need to work on. I’m itching to get going.”
Tickets are still available for the match against Spain at Carrow Road on Sunday and can be purchased here. A big atmosphere is expected as 11,000 people have already bought their entries, but for those that haven’t yet Lauren has the following message.
“I think for people who are thinking about travelling to the tournament, it’s a great show for women’s football,” she said. “We’re playing against three fantastic opponents so there are going to amazing games on show and unbelievable players there. For us, it gives us a massive boost seeing the fans and seeing them support us. It doesn’t go unnoticed, and we hope as many people will be there as possible to support the Lionesses and give us that boost going into the Euros in the summer.”