Chris Sutton: Ignore the trolls, Sarina Wiegman… plenty of us ARE bothered by the great Lionesses!

Lauren Hemp is from seven miles up the road from me and you can feel the local pride in what she’s doing with England. 

I don’t think I’m being disrespectful to say Norfolk isn’t exactly a footballing hotbed, but we can say we’ve got a Euro 2022 finalist and we’re celebrating that fact. 

There have been some great pieces in the local newspaper — the Eastern Daily Press — on how Hemp and the girls are inspiring a new generation. That they are. 

Sarina Wiegman and the Lionesses are helping to inspire girls across England with their game

Like many of you, I’ll be sitting down tomorrow night at home with my family, including my daughter, Sophia, to cheer on the Lionesses. 

There are probably still a few dinosaurs out there claiming they aren’t bothered. 

Well, plenty are, because a peak audience of 9.3 million tuned in to BBC1 to watch England beat Sweden in the semi-finals. 

I imagine a few more will watch Sunday’s final against Germany, potentially making this the most watched broadcast of the year.

Chris Sutton believes more kids will be inspired by moments like Alessia Russo’s backheel

Ian Wright spoke very sensibly on the Beeb about girls needing to have the opportunity to play football in PE. 

There will be kids who now want to do ‘The Russo’ by scoring a backheel on the playground, so let’s give them that chance.

This tournament has captured imaginations. 

Women’s football is here to stay, and it’s growing, so let’s hope Sarina Wiegman’s team can bring it home at Wembley on Sunday night.