They're known for their unbeatable footwork and savage speeds as they bid to become the first England team to win a major trophy in 56 years.
But not even the Royal Family get a free pass from the Lionesses when it comes to winning a game of football.
Prince William experienced their skills first-hand after being wiped out in a side tackle by Jill Scott.
During a charity match with the squad, the Duke of Cambridge joked that the foul warranted a yellow card. But the tackle only cemented William’s support as one of the team’s biggest fans and has become a running joke between them ever since.
Midfielder Jill, 35, said: “It stems back to about 10 years ago when we did a charity event and I slipped and side-tackled him and actually wiped him out.
“The running joke whenever he sees us is, ‘No yellow cards this tournament Jill!’.”
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A few years later, during a kickabout at Kensington Palace, William, 40, quipped that he still had a scar on his leg from the tackle – and got his own back by scoring a goal past Jill.
In 2020 Jill got the MBE for her services to women’s football and the prince sent her a handwritten letter, saying: “Keep up the good work.”
Speaking on her BBC podcast, Jill Scott’s Coffee Club, she said: “That’s probably the best thing I have ever received. You know what, next time I see him I might say, ‘Can I come to Buckingham Palace?’ He’s a great guy.”
England forward Ellen White, 33, added: “He absolutely loves Jill. From the times we have met him, he’s straight to Jill, chatting. He’s such a nice guy.”
Jill, who joined Aston Villa on loan in January, had to pick up her MBE at a post office due to the pandemic, meaning William couldn’t present her with the honour in person as she’d hoped.
She said: “I just got this postage slip to go and pick it up. I thought it was actually a hoodie I was waiting for.
“And there was my MBE. I didn’t even have to sign for it. So I posed in the post office.”
William will be at Wembley to cheer on the team in tonight’s Euro 2022 final – and he could be joined by seven-year-old daughter Princess Charlotte.
The prince, who is president of the Football Association, congratulated the team on reaching the final, saying: “The entire country is so proud of everything you’re achieving. We believe in you and will be with you all the way.”
William recently revealed on a visit to the Lionesses’ training camp that Charlotte is a keen footballer and loves playing in goal.
He told the team: “Charlotte wanted me to tell you that she’s really good in goal. She said, ‘Please tell them that.’ Budding star for the future.”
William regularly called up the team and arranged Zoom chats to support them before the World Cup semi-final in 2019.
Ellen said: “He’s really genuine. He’s really supportive of the team.”
Jill now wants to get the royal Aston Villa fan at one of her games. “I need to reach out,” she said.
Jill lifted the lid on what goes on at training camp and some unconventional secrets behind their success, including jam on toast and late-night coffee.
She said: “My snacks probably aren’t too healthy. I do like toast though. Toast and jam. I do like to let the toast go cold then put the butter on so that it stays on.”
Jill, who owns a coffee shop in Manchester with her partner Shelley Unitt, still sips it at 8pm, saying it doesn’t disrupt her sleep.
She added: “The recce I do before we go anywhere is where the best independent coffee shops are. I’ll get a message saying, ‘Right Jill, where we going?’."
But life is a bit more regimented during training at the squad’s St George’s Park camp in Burton-on-Trent, Staffs.
Manchester United forward Ella Toone, 22, who was 11 when she first met Jill at a football event in Manchester, said: “You’re with everyone 24 hours a day and you can’t switch off. But it’s good to go away with the girls and learn from their experience.”
Jill said: “We turn up now and the food and everything is just all prepared for you.
“Everything is done for you, it really is. It really creates this environment of ‘no excuse not to perform’. A lot of credit’s got to go to the staff.”
Sunderland-born Jill says training camps today are very different from when she started out. For a start there was no kit made for women.
She said: “I remember playing for Sunderland. There was this old physio guy called Jockey Scott and all his kit had the initials ‘JS’. I was buzzing because I could get my initials. But this kit was so worn away.
“It’s completely different now. The younger players probably get sick of hearing, ‘Well, back in my day…’ “On a serious note, it’s brilliant, it’s what we always strived for… making it better for the next generation.”
