Niamh Charles’ journey to the World Cup has not been straightforward. New to the squad, having been a reserve player for the Tokyo Olympics and having narrowly missed out on Euros squad, the versatile Chelsea player is unlikely to get many minutes in Australia. She will not care too much though, because a recurring back injury in her late teens could have ended her career prematurely and it has given her perspective. She knows her time will come.
“The first time it happened I was on a training camp with England and I just sort of got contact in my back and I think it was to do with my coccyx, whether I’d sprained it or had some of the ligaments damaged around it, because it is so sensitive and so central,” Charles says.
