by Asif Burhan at the Stadion Galgenwaard, the Netherlands

Having never won a knockout game at a World Cup, midway through the second half of their game against Norway in 2015 in Ottawa, Mark Sampson brought on a 29-year-old with no tournament experience to lead the line.

Everyone remembers Lucy Bronze’s stunning winning goal but it was Jodie Taylor’s assured hold-up play and measured lay-off which made the first-time strike possible.

Taylor was in the team to stay, scoring a fine solo goal against Canada in the quarterfinal and almost repeating the trick in the first minute of the semi-final against Japan.

England have sometimes struggled for goals in the intervening period as Taylor has battled with injury since joining Arsenal. Now she was back on the big stage — fit and hungry and playing a crucial role in England’s 6-0 thrashing of Scotland on Wednesday night.

“It meant a lot,” she said. “The last two years have been quite a tough ride. Just to be here fit and healthy is a huge achievement for myself. I want to thank the medics for getting me in a good place and Mark for still believing in me and having a lot of confidence in me. Without that, I probably wouldn’t be here.”

Overlooked by Hope Powell, Mark Sampson brought Taylor into the England setup in 2014. “Ever since I’ve known Jodie from club football, everyone’s been aware she’s a world-class player — simple as that. I’ve not seen better in the game at anticipating passes in behind, moving into positions to receive the ball.

“What Jodie has certainly added to her game in the last 12 months in particular is that ability to use instinctive finishing.”

Former Estonia women’s manager and now Watford boss Keith Boanas tried to sign Taylor for Charlton Athletic 10 years ago and feels her hat-trick was just-reward for someone “that hunted every opportunity to play as high a level as she could.”

Having left England to play in Australia and the United States, “she obviously gained experience from each one and is now a well-educated, thinking player who added to her natural ability and instincts. With all the strength and conditioning added she is potentially at the peak of her career.”

For Scotland, it had all started so brightly as the top-scorer for Women’s Super League champions Man City, Jane Ross, tested Karen Bardsley within 30 seconds with a shot from distance.

Ross failed to finish the game after damaging her shoulder in a tackle and Scottish coach Anna Signuel fears her tournament could be over, though “we don’t know that yet, they sent her away to the hospital.”

Playing their first-ever tournament match, Signuel believed “it was a big occasion for many players on the pitch, I think that showed maybe sometimes.

“We’ve got to move on and we rise again, that’s what Scotland stands for.”

For England, after all the pre-tournament hype surrounding this fixture, the pressure is now off after recording only their second win in a tournament opener this century.

Sampson claimed that “they’ve found a way now to enjoy these situations, to thrive under them, and demand more of them.

“We know the bigger the occasion, the bigger the pressure, clearly the better this England team perform. We’ve got to get our heads around Spain, we’ll have a difficult game on Sunday.”

Boanas feels “the England staff and senior players will not allow any complacency to set in.

“They will be analysing the game themselves and the Spain v Portugal game and begin focusing on Sunday’s game as soon as possible.”