The rise of England's new star Fran Kirby is perfectly timed

It came from the other side of the Atlantic as Kelly Smith was preparing for her appearance on Fox Sport as a pundit for England’s friendly with the USA.

Fitting, then, that Kirby would go onto give such a shining display wearing the white No.10 shirt in Milton Keynes on her first England start and in the first match following Smith’s international retirement.

USA may have won – by one goal with England unfortunate to have an equaliser ruled out for offside – but Kirby’s display offered a glimpse of what should become an exciting journey.

Her rise already has been quite extraordinary.

In August she became the first second tier Women’s Super League player to gain a full England cap, scoring against Sweden in a 4-0 win, and with Reading last season she scored 24 league goals in 18 games.

Before starting against the USA on Friday she had played 90 minutes of international football in her three previous appearances.

She was still somewhat under the radar. Until now.

Her first start, her first 90 minutes, her first player of the match. Start as you mean to go on.

“Obviously Kelly was an amazing player, so putting on the number 10 shirt today I did feel a bit of pressure going into the game,” she said afterwards.

“I’m just taking in the challenge and loving the pressure.”

The fact she did start was a surprise but head coach Mark Sampson named an experimental side with the likes of Eniola Aluko, Lianne Sanderson and Fara Williams on the bench.

And afterwards Sampson praised Kirby’s willingness in tough circumstances against the second-highest ranked team in the world.

“Her work ethic, application to do the role we asked of her was really unselfish,” Sampson said in the post game press conference. “For a forward to drop as deep as Fran and Jodie (Taylor) did, you have to have a certain mentality to do that for the team.”

For Kirby, however, those kind of battling performances have become a trademark.

She signed a full-time contract at the end of last season, becoming Reading’s first professional player.

She joined the club aged seven, discovered by a scout while doing kick-ups in the street, progressing through their set-up before going on to earn an England under-15 call-up.

But hers isn’t a simple story of climbing through the international ranks all the way to the top.

In a revealing interview with Anna Kessel in the Guardian, she discusses a state of depression following her mother’s sudden death when she was 14. 

Three years later she boxed herself off and quit football, leaving Reading and an England under-19 camp and turning down a football scholarship to America, before eventually rediscovering her love for the game with a Sunday league side. 

Her first season back in blue and white brought 33 goals. Last season her total in all competitions was 29.

And it wasn’t just the number of goals she scored that made her stand out.

In the Continental Cup she put the put the Royals in front against Chelsea before the team who finished runners-up in the top flight fought back late on.

It was her goal against Arsenal in the same competition, though, that really stood out.

Up against England veterans Casey Stoney and Alex Scott, she delivered another masterclass. 

She received the ball on the halfway line, flicking it around World Cup winner Yukari Kinga with the outside of her boot, before turning and racing away to score.

A moment she admitted still had her shocked months later.

In her thoughts now is another promotion push with Reading and then the little matter of the Women’s World Cup in Canada this summer.

England head to the tournament following a 100% qualifying campaign, in which they scored 52 goals and conceded just one in ten games.

But friendlies against the top two teams in the world have reined in some of the expectation.

The 3-0 Wembley defeat to Germany in November was an eye-opener, although on Friday England did show signs of lessons being quickly learnt.

They were more compact, and set up to restrict the USA’s movement in from the wings. 

Sampson’s side played on the break, rather than the hell for leather they had tried to steam roll the Germans with early on.  

“It showed the progress we’ve made since Germany,” Kirby said. “It’s nice to see we can compete against the big guns.”

Sampson, too, was pleased with the organisation particularly with the team being at the beginning of their pre season.

“We asked a lot of the players in terms of their effort and work ethic we wanted considering the stage of the season they’re at,” he said. “Their intent to apply the principles we worked on this week was outstanding. But we are disappointed because I felt we deserved at least a draw.”

Further progress will be required if they are to threaten in Canada but England will have the advantage of playing half a domestic season before the tournament.

This season has started with Kirby taking the baton from England’s record goal scorer, and as one star’s England journey comes to an end, we can be thankful that another’s is just beginning.