ENGLAND midfielder and proud Barrovian Georgia Stanway has shed light on growing up through grassroots football in Cumbria to becoming one of the sport’s biggest talents.

In an article penned for England Football, the 24-year-old Lioness has opened up about her introduction to the beautiful game growing up in Askam and Barrow.

Stanway is with the Lionesses in Australia as they continue to prepare for July 22’s World Cup Group D opener against Haiti.

She said: “My earliest football memory was with my brothers.

“I had to join in or I would get the ball kicked at me, but it was something that I fell in love with straight away.

“I remember going to [my brother’s] under-7s training. I was on the sidelines with all the parents and one day, they let me join in. I don't think they realised what I was like and that I was going to kick a few shins and cause a few problems.

“From that day, they let me join in and I never really looked back.”

The Bayern Munich player started her football journey as a child at Furness Rovers before joining her first girls’ football team, Dalton Girls.

READ MORE: England star Georgia Stanway was 'going places' from early age

She said: “We lived in a house at one point that backed onto a local rugby club so I could hop over my fence and I had as much grass as I wanted. For me, that was massive. I used to do sessions and bounce the ball off the wall until my mum told me I wasn't allowed anymore.

The Mail: A Mail archive picture of Georgia aged nineA Mail archive picture of Georgia aged nine (Image: NQ)

“Those are little things that you remember and take for granted at the time, but then you look back and realise they were the things that you needed.”

Stanway subsequently joined Blackburn's centre of excellence around the age of 13 and was with the club until signing for Manchester City aged 16 in the summer of 2015.

She said: “Once my parents were on board, that's when I knew that this was going to be my life. And me doing what I am doing now, is was my way of giving back to them for everything they've done for me for me to get to this situation.

“They were getting out of work as quickly as they could to take me down the M6 motorway and even things like fuel costs, because it's not cheap.

“That's kind of how I ended up being who I am now. I’m forever grateful for what they’ve done. Every single time I got out of the car, whether it was at training or at home, I made sure I said thank you. It is those little things you should do for your parents to show them the love.”

The Mail: Georgia aged 15 Georgia aged 15 (Image: NQ)

Georgia said her hometown of Barrow was ‘so supportive’ of her footballing career.

“So many different companies jumped on board,” she said.

“To this day, I am sponsored by a car company which provided me with transport, driving lessons, and a car to get from A to B.

“Local gyms got on board, making sure that I had free access to their equipment and every now and again, in the paper, there were also little grants where businesses would come forward and wanted to back someone based on their individual achievement that month.

“Even at the EUROs last summer, the number of messages my mum was receiving – her phone has never been so busy in her life."

Last year, Georgia joined the German giants on a three-year deal in the summer after spending seven years at Manchester City.

A key cog in England's EURO 2022-winning team with her dynamic performances from midfield, Georgia proved to be one of the stars of the tournament on home soil last year.