England: Beth Mead scores sensational Wembley hat-trick against Northern Ireland

GiveMeSport

scores

By Nancy Gillen

Published Oct 23, 2021

Beth Mead became the first woman to score a hat-trick for England after hitting the back of the net three times against Northern Ireland at Wembley

Beth Mead became the first woman to score a hat-trick for England after hitting the back of the net three times against Northern Ireland at Wembley.The Lionesses came up against Northern Ireland as part of their 2023 Women’s World Cup qualifying campaign.It was the first time a competitive England Women match was played at Wembley, with 23,225 exuberant fans turning up for the occasion.The Lionesses were frustrated in the first-half, failing to score despite numerous opportunities.A combination of poor finishing, hitting the woodwork and an impressive performance from goalkeeper Jackie Burns kept Northern Ireland in the game.

This all changed when Beth Mead and Beth England entered the field of play in the 64th minute.

Mead immediately made an impact, putting the Lionesses 1-0 up with her first touch of the match. With Northern Ireland’s resistance broken, England also earned the status of super substitute just minutes later, tapping home a Lauren Hemp cross.

The Lionesses were well in control, but Mead did not sit back. She struck another two times in quick succession, completing a hat-trick in just 14 minutes.

The remaining 15 minutes of the match remained goalless, with the full-time whistle blowing on a 4-0 victory for England.

Speaking after the game, Lionesses head coach, Sarina Wiegman, praised Mead’s performance and joked that she hoped the forward could replicate her exploits every game.

“Yeah, she feels good and she did well, and really happy for the team that she got a hat-trick.

“I’m going to make an agreement with her that she does that every game.”

As a result, the Lionesses have now won all three of the World Cup qualifying matches, following wins against Macedonia and Luxembourg.

Beth Mead has enjoyed a sensational start to the Women's Super League season, recovering well after she was not selected to represent Team GB at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.

She has scored three goals and racked up three assists for domestic club Arsenal, helping the Gunners to the top of the WSL table with five successive victories.