Goals from Lianne Sanderson, Eniola Aluko and Jess Clarke gave England an excellent start to the Cyprus Cup as they beat Finland 3-1 yesterday.

Finland captain Maija Saari converted a late penalty after Gemma Bonner was shown a straight red card for denying Annika Kukkonen a clear goalscoring opportunity.

Manager Mark Sampson will use this tournament as a warm-up ahead of the World Cup in Canada three months away and will be pleased with the professional performance from his players.

The result was never in doubt after new Arsenal striker Sanderson converted Alex Greenwood’s cross after 21 minutes.

Aluko doubled the lead in the second half thanks once again to a cross, this time from Clarke.

And the Notts County winger got herself on the scoresheet with seven minutes remaining with a clinical finish into the roof of the net.

Bonner’s sending off in the 89th minute was a sour note in what was a terrific performance but Sampson knows they face tougher opposition in their next three matches, starting with Australia tomorrow.