The first one is your first World Cup, so you go into it with a lot of pressure, trying to take it all in, but you are just so focused.
— Alex Scott
I want people - boys and girls - to be sat at home watching me alongside the likes of Rio Ferdinand or Frank Lampard, thinking that it's normal, that we all know what we're talking about, and that they're not judging me at home just because I'm a female.
Being away with a national side at a tournament can be hard - you train, go back to your hotel, and often, you sit in your room, watching TV or speaking to people at home. If there's no communal area, it can feel like being in prison, staring at the same four walls all the time.
I was an attacking full-back but was told by Hope Powell to just sit back when we played U.S.A. in the 2007 World Cup. It's hard to rein yourself in, but the team comes first.
In the 2007 World Cup, Kelly Smith went to another level, scoring twice against Japan and dragging the team forward with an infectious enthusiasm. She changed the dynamic, and we all followed her lead.
You have to listen to the anthems, allow the emotion to come, but then need to snap back into the match and your specific task.
Football is for everyone, no matter what background you're from, what age, what level you play at. This is what it's all about: coming out today, having a good time, and getting involved.
I was never motivated by money. I wanted to be an FA Cup finalist. I wanted to walk up the steps at Wembley. I wanted to win the league. I still only ever want to win trophies.
Football made me want to train and stay disciplined. It kept me away from things like drugs. Young people are faced with the temptation to stray all the time.
To walk out at Wembley in an England shirt is a big deal for a girl who remembers playing in her local football cage down the park in Poplar with the boys.
I don't like to make comparisons between former managers because they all bring a unique style.
When I played for Boston Breakers in my early twenties, I really stepped up my training, which meant running drills until you're sick.
If a player wants to be the best, then they also need to give themselves a talking-to. You need to look inwards.
There's always a responsibility as a pundit, whether you're male or female: the way you present yourself, making sure you've got your facts right.
I watch a lot of live music, and I love the theatre, especially musicals.
I love travelling to the games and doing them pitchside with Gabby Logan.
We don't really compare ourselves to the men's game or what they do. For us, it's about trying to get more people involved in the women's games.
I played in three World Cups, and I would say that it was the last one that I enjoyed the most.
During the 2012 Olympics, I decided to put on some cheesy pop because I knew Ellen White liked it. The first song was 'Reach for the Stars' by S Club 7, and before I knew it, everyone was singing it - suddenly it was our song.
When I finished playing, I didn't think I would be able to replace the buzz you feel at kick-off, but when the light on top of the camera turns red, and you're about to go live to the nation, it is a very similar feeling.
Putting the need of your team above personal self-interest is a difficult thing to do.
I have played in matches where individuals have frozen and gone into their shells: they don't want the ball, they don't communicate, and they don't do their jobs. Fear turns them to stone.
Every player has their own story, but I always thought of playing on my estate with dreams of what I might be able to achieve.
For me, football is football. I'm a fan; I'm passionate. I feel lucky to be in the position that I am.
No matter what happens to our game, money won't be a motivation for me.
Although more teams are going full-time professional and there's more money involved, our main incentive is simply to play for the love of the game.
I knew that, to be the best right-back in the world, I had to improve my fitness so I could run up and down constantly for 90 minutes.
Most of my football education was under Hope Powell, and were some of her training sessions boring? Yes. But were they necessary? Yes. We fully understood what we needed to do as a defensive unit.
I've adopted that mentality: every day I do weights and core in the gym in the morning and train on the field in the afternoon. And I'm strict with my diet - I include protein in every meal and snack.
The U.S.A. have a 'football arrogance,' which means winning is in their DNA - nothing else is good enough.
As a pundit, I have to tell the truth. I think players will respect that. Well, I hope they do.
I love music - in my playing days, I was always the team DJ.
I'm just happy I get paid to train every day and play football. I can't ask more than that.
My first thought for the off season is to go somewhere hot and on the beach.
You'll be someone's favourite, and someone else is going to hate you, aren't they? I know that I can't please everyone, but what I can do is be myself and be true to my values.
I was in charge of the music in every team I played for, and that is a huge responsibility, believe me!
I've realised that there is no magic trick to television; it just comes down to hard work and being prepared for every appearance and trying to get your point across as clearly as possible.
When I was in the GB Women's football team at the 2012 Olympics, it was obvious who was in the first XI and who was making up the numbers. Kelly Smith was going to be first-choice striker no matter what, and the other forwards in the squad mentally checked out as a result.
The knockout games of a major tournament are when you see players' true characters.
I was fortunate enough to play in a number of finals, and I can still remember waking with butterflies in my stomach. It is at moments like those you realise why you fell in love with football in the first place.
I see I'm changing the game and opening doors for others, from my beginning from the east end of London. It's not a sob story; it made me the person I am today. It's seeing kids from any area or background you're from. There's a chance; you can make it.
The enjoyment of playing football gave me a positive pathway, but I could have taken a very different path.
I don't get wrapped up in the politics of going down to win a penalty or getting an opponent sent off.
We need to give our goalkeepers the same level of training that we've given to our outfield players.
When I was younger, my food and fitness were less controlled - I just loved football.
My body shape has transformed as sports science research has developed. It used to be thought that footballers needed to be big and do lots of weights and little cardio.
Sure, I do feel I am an ambassador for women's football. But that hasn't changed. It's been like that since I started at eight years old. I'm still me.
While I was playing football in the U.S., I learnt to play the guitar, and I'm picking it up again now.
It's no secret that I love dancing and music.
When I started, when I was eight, I never thought I would make a career out of being a woman footballer.
