Fresh off an FA Cup final appearance, Jessica Naz returned to her roots at Oasis Academy Enfield

Jessica Naz (centre) with pupils from Oasis Academy (credit Tottenham Hotspur Foundation)

A Tottenham Hotspur Women star capped off a significant week in her career by returning to her former school in Enfield Lock.

Forward Jessica Naz was placed on standby for England in her first senior call-up earlier this week, having just two days earlier represented Tottenham Hotspur Women in the Women’s FA Cup Final at Wembley Stadium.

She later met with students and her former teachers at Oasis Academy Enfield to reflect on her path from the school to representing the Lilywhites at Wembley, before taking part in a girls’ football session run by the Tottenham Hotspur Foundation.

Jess said: “When I was at this school there weren’t many girls playing football, so to see a whole group of girls is brilliant, and they were all playing with smiles on their faces, which was good to see. I used to be the only girl on this pitch playing against the boys!”

Since helping the club achieve promotion to the Women’s Super League in 2019, Jess has gone on to become a key feature of the Spurs team.

“I think it has been a good season for the club, everyone has been enjoying it and for myself I’ve been building a lot of confidence alongside my teammates”, she said reflecting on her journey. “We’ve done really well and built good foundations for next season.

“It’s been a dream come true to be called up to England and to see all my hard work pay off. I am going to keep knuckling down and hopefully good things continue to come.”

The session was led by a former Spurs teammate of Jess, Renee Hector, who is now a programme coordinator for the foundation.

Asked about the heights Jess has reached, she said: “I knew Jess had endless talent and the world was her oyster. She was probably the best player I ever played with.

“Not only that, she’s a really humble person and it’s been a joy to see the smiles on the faces of the girls here on Jess’ return.

“For them, it just shows the sky’s the limit and they’ll one day have a chance to achieve whatever they want, whether that’s in football or anything else.”

Steve Ambler, teacher at Oasis Academy Enfield, said: “One of my earliest memories at this school was watching Jess play near this pitch, and you could see straight away that she was going to be very successful. She used to run rings around the boys, which was always fun to watch! You knew she was always going to be fantastic, she was so good at dribbling, like a little Messi.”

Philip Rudling, head of programmes at Tottenham Hotspur Foundation, added: “We deliver an increasing number of sessions in schools and the community for women and girls, in the hope of inspiring and nurturing the next generation.

“It’s thanks to the support of various funders like the Premier League Charitable Fund and People’s Postcode Lottery that we can continue giving everyone, regardless of background, a place to belong.”

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