On Tuesday 30th June Arsenal Ladies and England under 19s footballer Carla Humphrey was on hand to inspire more primary school girls in Cambridge & Newmarket to take up sport.
Carla visited the pupils at The Grove Primary School to host an inspirational school assembly talking about the importance of playing sport and the benefits to young girls in particular. She then visited the pupils at Fen Ditton Primary School before delivering a once-in-a-lifetime coaching session to the girls at Laureate Community Primary School & Nursery.
The talented 18 year old midfielder joined Arsenal in 2006 and has already had plenty of career highlights, winning the Under-17s League and scoring a hat-trick in the final to help her side lift the FA Youth Cup. Carla has also exhibited her creativity at international level, representing England Under-15s, Under-17s and England Under-19s, scoring her first goal for her country in 2012. The goalscoring midfielder is also studying A Levels in maths and psychology alongside football.
Carla commented: "I’m very passionate about getting more girls involved in sport. Attending after school sports clubs, similar to what Premier Sport provide helped me gain confidence in my ability whilst improving and practising my skills within a fun environment. I’m now privileged enough to play for Arsenal Ladies and proud to represent my country at U19 level. By taking part in sports, girls can learn new skills, gain confidence, stay healthy and develop lots of social skills too."
David Perkins, Head Teacher at Laureate Community Primary School & Nursery commented: "We loved welcoming Carla to Laureate. Although we have had some success in promoting girls' sport, with our football team finishing joint third in the district finals and our cricket team finishing sixth, we have had far fewer girls than boys signing up to our sports clubs in general, which is something that we want to change. By hearing from, and being coached by, a female role model, we hope that lots more girls can be inspired to participate in sport and adopt healthy lifestyles; and, with the Women's World Cup currently taking place in Canada, the timing couldn't be better. We are very grateful to our Premier Sport Coordinator, Gareth Simpson, and Premier Sport for organising this.”