England 5-0 Estonia: Danielle Carter nets second successive Lionesses hat-trick

Danielle Carter picked up her second international cap and her second England hat-trick as the Lionesses cruised to an easy 5-0 win against Estonia.

It was a straightforward end to their home qualification campaign for Euro 2017 as they brushed their opponents aside.

In their penultimate competitive match before next summer’s tournament, the Lionesses’ roadshow rolled in to Meadow Lane, home of Notts County. Head coach Mark Sampson tinkered with his team, giving minutes to squad players, and starting with the internationally inexperienced Carter and Nikita Parris up front.

Arsenal’s Carter had waited a year since her first cap to be recalled to the team. She scored a hat-trick on that first run-out against Estonia last September; she did the same here.

Manchester City midfielder, Scott, doubled England’s lead last night – Photo: Marc Atkins / Offside.

She took just nine minutes to open the scoring, turning and hitting the ball past goalkeeper Getter Laar.

Jill Scott added the second, nodding home a rebound after Parris’ optimistic shot hit the bar; and then Carter got another, left entirely unmarked in the centre of the box before happily tapping home Parris’ cross from close range.

Her third came from Karen Carney’s free-kick, squared across from the right and lashed home from the edge of the box.

Carney got the fifth and final goal, an injury-time penalty which was perhaps harsh on a hardworking Estonia side who steadied the ship in the second-half.

“A lot of the things we wanted to get from the game we got,” England head coach Sampson said.

“A clean sheet, five goals, three more points.”

England next face Belgium away on Tuesday.

*Carrie Dunn is SHOOT’s Women’s Football correspondent. Her book ‘The Roar of the Lionesses: Women’s Football in England’ is out now – available in all good bookshops.*