Jill Scott announced her retirement from football on Tuesday, within just one day of White’s resignation. An abundance of admiration, appreciation and sadness has been immersed across all social media platforms, with many of her teammates acknowledging her excellence throughout her sporting career.
A personality both on and off the pitch, Scott leaves behind an incredible career, which has made her the second most capped player in English football history.
With an impressive 161 appearances, scoring 27 goals across 16 years, her legacy in the game is nothing short of brilliance.
The 35 year old’s unforgettable journey began in her hometown Sunderland, before spending seven years at Everton and then joining Manchester City for her final years playing in 2013. While at City, Scott also had loan spells back at Everton and Aston Villa.
Her club career reflected her “positive impact on and off the pitch”- as stated by England manager Sarina Wiegman- in which a familiar highlight would be winning the Women’s Super League title with Man City in 2017. Netting in City’s 2017 Women’s FA Cup final victory over Birmingham is also likely to be on her list of achievements in the WSL.
A hugely popular player among teammates, Jill was awarded an MBE for services to women’s football in 2019, highlighting her vital role in the women’s game, which she will hopefully continue to do in a non-playing role.
In the words of the legend herself, “No sad faces!! We’ve had too much fun for any tears”.
Inspiring and encouraging, Scott’s mentality teaches the young generation of young footballers that they can achieve anything, as she mentions in a humble manner “Imagine if you would have told me that I’d go on to play for England for 16 years?”
Women’s football has lost another big name on the pitch, but Jill Scott MBE plays on through the positive impact she has had on the beautiful game.