Our golden generation

She may be based in Malaysia, but Lauren Purchase has been named in the Wales U17 side for upcoming Euro qualifiers.

The youngster is the daughter of Dacre Purchase and Caroline Morris who were pupils of Llanfair Caereinion and Welshpool High Schools respectively. She is also the great grand daughter of former Welshpool mayor, John Gwilt.

Her story is remarkable. Living in Kuala Lumpur has not prevented her from chasing her dream to play for Wales and after numerous 14,000-mile round trips to training camps and matches, Lauren has got her chance with a place in the U17 team for the UEFA Euro Qualification Tournament in Denmark between Wales, Denmark, Macedonia and Russia later this month.

Whilst training with the national squad in Cardiff this summer, Lauren was also invited to play with top tier Regional Talent club (RTC) Birmingham FC after a successful trial process in June.

Lauren qualifed to attend the RTC trials through her international football experience, where she was an integral part of the Wales U16 team during the UEFA tournament in Slovenia in April, against Sweden, Northern Ireland and Slovenia.

She is just one of several teenagers who are currently making an impact on the game. Ryan Astley, from Llanfair Caereinion, has signed a professional contract with Everton, while Max Williams, from Welshpool, played with the Wales U17 side last week in Bosnia after impressing early season with his club side, Salford City.

Only last month, Carrie Jones, who was with the Berriew Juniors set-up, made her full Wales debut before her 16^th birthday and has joined Cardiff City for the current season.