England captain Millie Bright is on track to be fit for the Lionesses’ World Cup opener against Haiti on Saturday.
Bright has been out of action since March with a knee injury, but she made her comeback over the weekend.
The centre-back took part in a behind-closed-doors friendly at The Sunshine Coast Stadium on Saturday, with England drawing 0-0 against Canada.
The match was not a formal fixture and as such roll-on-and-off substitutes were used.
England head coach Sarina Wiegman used 21 players during the game, with goalkeeper Ellie Roebuck and striker Beth England the only two members from England’s 23-player squad not to feature.
The minutes were Bright’s first since she injured her knee in March and the hope will be that she can now feature against Haiti on Saturday, when England begin their World Cup campaign.
The 29-year-old has been taking part in full training during the Lionesses’ pre-tournament camp on the Gold Coast.
Bright spoke at the end of June, before England flew out to Australia, and she said then that she was “really confident” of making the Lionesses’ opener in Brisbane.
