A closer look at the career of Ellen White after she hits 50 goals for England

Ellen White completed a half-century of international goals as England Women beat North Macedonia 10-0 on Friday night.

Beth Mead scored four goals and Ella Toone a hat-trick but they had to share the spotlight with the Lionesses’ record scorer, now just three behind Wayne Rooney’s record for all England internationals.

Here, the PA news agency looks at White’s career to date.

50 up for White

White’s hat-trick in November’s astonishing 20-0 win over Latvia took her past Kelly Smith’s England record of 46 and she has now extended her scoring run to 21 in 22 games.

Smith surpassed Kerry Davis’ mark of 44 and White has surged past the pair after a series of inspirational performances – most notably at the 2019 World Cup where she netted six times as England reached a second consecutive World Cup semi-final, and had a potentially crucial seventh disallowed by VAR in that loss to the United States.

Her prolific form continued through the 2020 SheBelieves Cup and the current World Cup qualifiers, with Friday’s header her 10th goal in seven appearances in that campaign.

Having scored on her debut against Austria in 2010, she notched 17 goals in her first 26 caps to the end of 2013 before a spell out of the team and a goal drought.

Her goals in back-to-back European Championship qualifiers against Serbia in June 2016 were her first for England in nearly three years but sparked a major return to form.

While not part of her England total, she also scored six goals for Great Britain at the Tokyo Olympics and two more in a warm-up friendly.

Rooney record in sight

Rooney scored 53 England goals, with Harry Kane chasing his record for the men’s team and White winning the race to 50 with her counterpart number nine.

White’s 50th goal came in her 105th cap, two fewer than Rooney took to reach the landmark, while Kane has 49 in 69 caps.

White told ITV Sport: “Obviously it’s a massive privilege, it’s a dream for me to play for England.

“For me it’s about any way I can contribute to the team, obviously delighted to get on the scoresheet but for me it’s all about the team and us winning and progressing.

“But yeah, it’s an incredible feeling to be among those amazing players, it’s really lovely.”

If selected, White’s next chance to add to her tally will come in Tuesday’s qualifier against Northern Ireland – who were beaten 4-0 by England in October but did keep White at bay, with Mead bagging another hat-trick on that occasion.

After that, the race will move to the summer with England’s women taking on Belgium, Holland and Austria in June and July while Kane and his side face Hungary twice, Germany and Italy.