After the Lionesses marched their way to a 2-0 victory over Republic of Ireland on Tuesday evening at Dublin’s AVIVA Stadium, The Halfway Line had the chance to speak to England midfielder, Ella Toone, following the win on the road.

First reflecting on the performance, Toone reflected “They made it difficult for us, we knew that they would. The main thing is that we got the points, we got the win, we managed to get two goals. Yeah, we’re happy with the performance.”

The Girls in Green definitely turned up the temperature in the final third of clock time, something that Toone derived the positives from in her post-match words. She said, “There are parts that we obviously want to be better at, but, we’ve got time to reflect on that now. Ready for the next camp.”

England’s Wembley Stadium stalemate with Sweden saw Toone make her impact off the bench in the early stages of the second half. Tuesday’s wrestle with Republic of Ireland saw the midfielder earn her spot back in the starting eleven, as she displayed her strengths from the outset.

Reflecting on her individual position within Sarina Wiegman’s Lionesses side, Toone said “It’s always nice to play for England, it’s nice to start for England. But, if I don’t start then I’m always ready to come on and change the game. Tonight was a nice night for me, getting back in, playing with the girls, and getting the win as well.”

The Lionesses squad depth is seen to be going from strength to strength, as Sarina Wiegman has been seen to welcome bright young talent into the mix over recent months. Grace Clinton (21) and Jess Park (22) continue to flex their muscles, as the quality of the Number 10 spot in England’s ranks continues to rise.

The introduction of Park and Clinton, additional to the stellar form of Lauren James, and as well as the experience of Fran Kirby, makes the battle for a starting position very competitive as the Lionesses continue to develop. Toone spoke on the importance of competition in a squad of such talent, whilst packing on the praise for those coming up the ranks.

“We’ve got a lot of young talent coming through, very very good players who are in the 10 as well as me. It’s nice to have that competition, it’s really healthy in training, and no matter who plays we are really happy for that person and we want them to do well.

For me, I came into the squad a few years ago now, and I’ve been around a bit more. I feel like I really want to help the young girls to settle into the squad as quick as they can. I’ll try and take them under my wing, and if they need any help they know they can chat to me. As soon as they get in the squad, we make them feel welcome so they can play their best football.”

Tuesday evening’s victory in Dublin saw Leah Williamson make her return to the international stage, as the England captain made her first appearance for the Lionesses in 364 days. Reflecting on having England’s skipper back in the side, Toone packed on the praise for her teammate.

“It’s really nice. She’s a big character, she’s a big person to have in the squad, a big presence, and a leader. So to have her back after such a long time away from us was really nice tonight, and it was like she never left.”

The women’s game continues to reach new heights, as 32,742 fans piled through the turnstiles of AVIVA Stadium to show their side support in what was a highly anticipated meeting. Reflecting on the exponential growth that women’s football has achieved over recent years, Toone spoke with pride of the achievement.

“It’s amazing. They were really loud tonight, but we’ve had to deal with that many times before. I think we’re getting used to those big fans now, big crowds. It was nice to have all of those fans out supporting Ireland, and it made it a great game. It’s nice to see that the game is growing, not just in England but everywhere else.”