Rachel Daly paid tribute to her late father by kissing her wristband, which had ‘Dad’ written on it, after scoring against China.
England made light work of China in their final group stage game at the Women’s World Cup.
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They ran out 6-1 winners at the Hindmarsh Stadium in Adelaide with Lauren James in flying form, scoring twice and grabbing two assists.
But after the Chelsea star went off, there were more goals to come as her replacement Daly swept a fine volley in from close range late on.
And as she raced off to celebrate, she kissed her wristband in a tribute to her late father, Martyn.
Written on her wristband was the word ‘Dad’, who she lost in September 2021.
“He was the reason I played football, going back to birth really,” the 31-year-old has previously said.
“I don’t think I’d have got that passion for the game if it wasn’t for him.
“When I get on the pitch, it’s not just about me performing, it’s me performing to make my dad even more proud than he already was.
“I think I carry that weight with me, but it’s a nice weight to have because it’s every game I want to do better and better.
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“I know I’m making him proud up there.”
She paid a similar tribute after England won the Women’s Euros in 2022.
The Aston Villa striker took to Instagram after the Lionesses beat Germany 2-1 in the final at Wembley last year.
She posted the picture of her father, along with the caption: “That was for you.”
Martyn was also a footballer at semi-professional level, playing for Harrogate Town and Knaresborough Town in the 1980s and 1990s.
England’s crushing victory over China has made sure that they topped the group and are through to the knockout stage.
They will face Nigeria in the first knockout round while Denmark also qualified from their group after beating Haiti.
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