IT has taken more than half a century but at last the late Jack Howe has some company.

Until recently the former Hartlepool United goalkeeper was the only person to hail from the town to have sported the Three Lions.

It was in the late 1940s that Howe, the grandfather of former Pool striker Steve Fletcher, and then playing for Derby County ran out for his country on three occasions.

In the years since no-one has come close to following in his footsteps.

That was until now.

For the town now has another international hero and this weekend marks the high point of her, yes her, footballing life.

Lindsay Johnson may have come to the game relatively late but the 25-year-old is making up for lost time and is set to star in the biggest tournament for the so-called fairer sex that this country has ever seen.

The curtain raises on Euro 2005 today and, while it might not be making the same headlines that the men's equivalent did in 1996, it means just as much to the eight nations taking part.

Played over two groups at venues throughout the north-west, England find themselves alongside the Scandinavian trio of Sweden, Finland and Denmark with Germany, France, Norway and Italy in the other.

For Johnson, 2005 has been a year she will never forget and her call up by England boss Hope Powell has been the icing on the cake.

The Everton central defender, one of only a handful of players who can say they have played for both the red and blue halves of Merseyside, was asked to join the Under-21s as an overage player for the Algarve Cup in March.

After several impressive performances, Johnson is now challenging for a starting place in the England backline.

Her versatility means she can play across the back four and her strength at the heart of the Everton defence saw her singled out as their Player of the Match in this season's narrow 1-0 FA Women's Cup Final defeat to Charlton Athletic.

Even so, her inclusion came as a somewhat of a surprise.

"I was on the train at Manchester and I got a text off one of the girls saying 'have you had your call yet'," she said.

"We weren't supposed to get the call until the Tuesday afterwards but she (Powell) did it early on the Friday. Just as I was replying to the text I got a call from Hope.

"I was shocked really. I knew I was borderline for the squad because I am quite new to the set-up. I had a 50-50 chance as far as I was concerned."

Despite her surprise, Johnson says she believes her progress over a relatively short space of time has merited her inclusion.

"I have been in the set-up for just under a year and the more I have played the more confident I have got," she said. "I put in some good performances in the Algarve and every game since then I have been quite solid and have improved each time. I had a good game in the FA Cup final and I am playing my best football at the right time.

"Playing with better players improves your game. Before the final cut we had seven Everton players in the England squad and now we have got five. It's good to have that kind of quality around you."

Johnson is under no illusions about the task facing England with little or no weakness to be found among their rivals. But even so if team spirit is anything to go by then she believes they have as good a chance as anyone.

"The general feeling around the camp is brilliant. Everyone is positive and everyone is buzzing and we just can't wait for next week," she said.

"There are no big egos. We are really competitive at what ever we do though. That's good and just shows the character we have in the team. Even our chill-out time, like the team building we had last week, is very competitive."

Rather than putting added pressure on her and her team-mates shoulders, Johnson believes home turf will be an advantage when the tournament gets underway.

"It won't put weight on our shoulders. We are looking to use it to our advantage, really, and we hope the fans can help us to get further in the tournament," she said.

"Initially we have got to get through the group stages. It's going to be hard but we have missed the Germans which is good. If we get through there then we can start to think about what is next.

"Because it's such a small tournament there isn't a weak team. Everyone is quite similar in the way they play and they are all quite big, strong, fit and quite technical as well.

"Once you are through the group stages I think it will be quite open from then on."

Johnson is not sure how much game-time she will get as coach Powell is keeping her cards close to her chest. But whether it's half a game or half a dozen games, she says she is determined to make the most of any chance afforded her.

"Hope knows her starting 11 and I don't think I will be in that," she admitted.

"But I am just hoping to get some minutes. It's my first major tournament and I am just really pleased to be there.

"At the end of the day I would love to get as many minutes as possible, but I really want the girls to win. If that means I am not on the pitch when they do it then so be it."