Football flourishing in the south west, says England keeper

Bristol Academy goalkeeper Siobhan Chamberlain believes it is an exciting time for football in the south west of England, with Paolo Di Canio's appointment at Swindon keeping national interest high in the region.

Chamberlain is currently with the England women squad in Belgrade preparing for their UEFA European Championship qualifying campaign opener against Serbia this afternoon.

Coach Hope Powell and her players then travel to the County Ground to take on Slovenia next Thursday, and Chamberlain is excited that her teammates will get to experience the buzz that is in the region at the moment.

She said: “It’s a passionate football area. In Bristol we’ve got City and Rovers and there’s obviously a lot of hype around Swindon Town because of Paolo Di Canio and the new players he has brought in.

“There’s a great buzz around the whole region.”

Today's game is England’s first competitive game since their World Cup penalty shootout heartbreak at the hands of France in the summer.

“We didn’t really have that much time to reflect on the World Cup to be honest because we were pretty much straight back into training with our club sides and continuing the WSL domestic season,” added Chamberlain.

“The difficult thing we will have to contend with in qualifying for the Euros is that we are the favourites to win the group and the likes of Serbia and Slovenia will up their game against us.”