Lola Brown described scoring in England women’s Under-17s opening World Cup victory over Kenya as an “amazing feeling”.

The Young Lionesses won the game 2-0, getting their campaign off to the best possible start.

Brown’s penalty opened the scoring in the first half of the contest in the Dominican Republic and she was delighted to contribute with a goal.

She said: “As a little kid, you dream of scoring in a World Cup. It’s just a great feeling,

“It’s a team effort, though. We all had to work really hard for each other. It was a really tough game but we got the three points because we worked for them.

“We know how hard the World Cup is going to be, they’re all good teams. We will see where we can get better and move on to Mexico next, trying to build momentum from winning the first game.”

Boss Natalie Henderson reiterated that sentiment, praising the way her side came through a difficult encounter.

She said: “It feels really good. I thought Kenya were really tough and gave us different challenges. There are bits of our performance we want to tidy up but the first game in a major tournament is really tough and it’s a great experience for these girls.

“We got over the line, which is a great feeling. I feel real pride for my players. These opportunities for their development you cannot replicate. It gives them hunger for more.

“This is a tough group. Mexico will be different to Kenya and will bring different challenges again.

“We want to keep overcoming those and get better.”