'I wasn't mature enough for Scotland, now I can make my gran proud'

Miri Taylor made her home debut for Scotland in last month's World Cup qualifying win against Luxembourg Though she only made her first squad in November, Scotland had long been on Miri Taylor's mind. The former England youth international, who spent high days and holidays in Elgin, wanted to represent the country of her beloved late grandmother's birth. But she wanted to do it right.

So she waited until she "was in the right headspace" to compete at international level. Since making her debut off the bench in the friendly draw with Ukraine at the end of last year, the Aston Villa midfielder has looked right at home in the heart of Melissa Andreatta's side. After heading out to the United States for university, Taylor didn't think she was "of a good enough quality to play international football" when she returned and signed for Liverpool three years ago.

"I didn't think I had that footballing maturity I needed to give to a country," the four-cap Scot told BBC Scotland. "At that time I wasn't that player and felt like I couldn't be that for Scotland. I didn't want to jump in the deep end too early and not feel like I was giving my best.

"I needed to re-evaluate where I was and grow as a player and person. " Watch on BBC Scotland, BBC iPlayer and BBC Sport website & app If the early days of her Scotland career are anything to go by, Taylor has made rapid growth in a relatively short period of time. That sums up her story so far.