England Women got their Euro 2022 campaign off to a winning start on Wednesday evening, beating Austria 1-0 at Old Trafford.
Beth Mead scored the only goal of the curtain-raiser after 16 minutes as Sarina Weigman's side edged past their Austrian counterparts in front of a record crowd.
There is room for improvement ahead of Monday's second group game against Norway, but three points will have been the main objective on matchday one.
Our no.1, Hannah Hampton, was part of Weigman's matchday squad on Wednesday but was made to wait for a maiden major tournament appearance due to Mary Earps' fine form between the sticks.
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The atmospher, however, was raucous as England walked out to a near-69,000 crowd at Old Trafford.
They got off to a slightly nervy start as Austria enjoyed plenty of possession in the opening exchanges.
But those nerves were calmed inside 20 minutes.
Fran Kirby, playing the role of orchestrator behind the front three, clipped a lovely pass over the Austrian defence towards Beth Mead.
Mead latched onto the ball without hesitation and hooked an effort over Manuela Zinsberger which crept over the line to cue scenes of delirium.
England had lift-off.
The lead could, and should, have been doubled before the break.
Ellen White twice saw glancing headed efforts drift wide of the post after good deliveries from Lauren Hemp.
Hemp then found herself in front of goal during added-on time but was thwarted by the imposing Zinsberger.
The second half passed by without any real chances being created by either side.
While the conviction with which England secured their opening win of the tournament will still leave questions, they have a base to build upon for the rest of the campaign.
Next up is the visit of Norway to Brighton's Amex Stadium. Kick-off is at 8pm.
