Brighton a special place for England's Ellen White

Ellen White is not the first person to list Brighton as one of their favourite destinations for a weekend away.

But what makes this particular admission more pertinent is the fact that White will visit the south coast next Saturday, when she will be trying to fire England a step closer to next summer’s World Cup finals.

The Notts County striker is part of Mark Sampson’s 23-strong squad to take on Montenegro at the Amex Stadium.

White said: "I can’t wait to play a game down there. I think Brighton is such an amazing place.

"There’s just something about it that you don’t get anywhere else; it’s so quirky and chilled. There are so many different things to do.

"I love Brighton - the Lanes, the shops, the pier, the amusements, everything.

"In fact, we rented a house down by the seafront for New Year’s Eve – and I spent all day trying to beat the 2p machines to win a prize for my niece!

"That’s why it makes it extra special for me to go there for such a big qualifier."

Next week’s match represents Sampson’s first home game in charge since he took over from Hope Powell in December. He has been at the helm for five matches so far - three wins and a defeat in the Cyprus Cup and a 1-1 draw with Norway.

England made a flawless start to their qualifying campaign under interim boss Brent Hills winning their first four games without conceding a goal.

White scored three times during that run - one against Belarus and a brace against Turkey - and she wants to help her team-mates make it five wins from five.

She added: "We are pleased with how we’ve done so far. We have scored a lot of goals and haven’t conceded any yet. We’ve put in some good performances and are deservedly sitting at the top of the group.

"Mark is still getting to know us all as players and as people, but it’s been case of ‘so far so good’.

"It has been really enjoyable. We had a good training camp in La Manga in January and the four games in Cyprus gave Mark a chance to start implementing his philosophies.

"Now we need to keep progressing and the real work begins against Montenegro. We’re ready to kick on."

Tickets are still on sale, priced £5 for adults and £2.50 for children and concessions. A family ticket is available at £10 (two adults, two children).

Squad in full

Goalkeepers
Siobhan Chamberlain (Arsenal), Mary Earps (Bristol Academy), Carly Telford (Notts County)
Defenders
Laura Bassett (Chelsea), Gemma Bonner (Liverpool), Sophie Bradley (Notts County), Lucy Bronze (Liverpool), Alex Greenwood (Everton), Steph Houghton (Manchester City), Alex Scott (Arsenal), Demi Stokes (University of South Florida), Casey Stoney (Arsenal)
Midfielders
Anita Asante (Malmo), Karen Carney (Birmingham City), Jade Moore (Birmingham City), Jill Scott (Manchester City), Fara Williams (Liverpool),
Forwards
Eniola Aluko (Chelsea), Natasha Dowie (Liverpool), Toni Duggan (Manchester City), Lianne Sanderson (Boston Breakers), Kelly Smith (Arsenal), Ellen White (Notts County).