By Lucas Ball
England under-21s, including Holcombe player Lottie Bingham were defeated 7-0 by Belgium in their final match off the Junior World Cup to seal a fourth-placed finish at the tournament in Chile.
Bingham started two of England’s matches and was involved in a further four as Simon Letchford’s side progressed through Pool D by finishing top of the group to reach the last-eight ahead of knockout clashes against Germany and then eventual champions the Netherlands.
England kicked off with a 5-0 win over New Zealand as Bingham scored her side’s first goal of the tournament before beating the USA 5-2.
A 4-1 defeat to Japan followed – with Bingham scoring England’s only goal – in their final Pool D fixture but England still finished top to set up a tie with Germany for a spot in the last-four.
Scarlett Spavin scored the only goal of the game as Letchford’s side defeated Germany, and she was on the scoresheet once again in the semi-final as England lost 8-1 to the Netherlands.
They finished off their campaign with a 7-0 defeat against Belgium to finish fourth at the tournament.