Two debutants stole the headlines in England’s 3–0 win over Australia as Lucia Kendall and Taylor Hinds translated promise into performance on the big stage at Pride Park.
Both players arrived at St. George’s Park last week with little senior experience for the Lionesses but, on tonight’s evidence, plenty to offer as Sarina Wiegman’s squad begin a new cycle after Euro 2025.
Lucia Kendall, 21, has climbed quickly from Southampton’s youth pathway into the Women’s Super League with Aston Villa and was rewarded with a first England call-up and a full debut.
She gave a composed, high-intelligence midfield display, scanning the game, linking play, and picking out clever positions that helped England control the central areas.
““I was not surprised (by her performance),” Wiegman said of Kendall.
“She has done so well with Aston Villa in the first part of the season. She came into our environment and straight away you saw her understanding of the game and reading of the game and connecting with players very quickly.”
Speaking to ITV Sport, Wiegman added, “She picks up really good positions, but she reads the game really well. She keeps things really simple, but that is not always easy.
“She is very young but very powerful, but also she makes spaces for other people, she really looks around, she scans really well with her players. But also when she receives it, she knows what is happening behind her, but she also wins duels – she has impressed us, that is why we felt she deserved a start today.”
Taylor Hinds provided a different, but equally valuable, contribution for the Lionesses from left-back. Comfortable going forward and solid defensively, Hinds used her pace and two-footed ability to support England’s attacks down the left while still showing the concentration required to recover when needed.
Wiegman’s praise underlined the potential she brings: “I think she enjoyed herself. She has a good left foot. She also has a good right foot. She has pace. At moments, you want to go forward and then also do a really good defence.
“I think that she had some very good moments. She got involved in the field and played in possession together with the players on the left side of the field. So I thought that was good. She needed to act one time when they had a counterattack on the other side. So, yeah, that was awesome,” she said.
Hinds, who has experience at WSL level with Liverpool and Arsenal, could provide England with a reliable, attack-minded option at full-back, as Wiegman experiments with her squad.
Both debuts will give the England boss food for thought as she balances maintaining the Euro-winning core with blooding fresh talent ahead of World Cup 2027 qualifiers. Tonight, Kendall and Hinds did more than make up the numbers – they announced themselves as players who can play a real part in England’s next chapter.