Guro Reiten and Sam Kerr gave Chelsea a 2-0 half-time lead at Kingsmeadow before Brighton’s Danielle Carter halved the deficit just after the interval.

England then netted the all-important third goal against the Seagulls, three minutes after coming on, and the striker highlighted the resilience from the Blues as a key factor in securing the three points.

She said: ‘At 2-1, nothing is set. They were putting us under a lot of pressure, and they were giving us some tough decisions to make. Both teams have improved massively. It would have been a mistake to underestimate how strong they [Brighton] were going to be.

‘They will take points off big teams. We were more resilient this time round. This time last year we weren’t as calm and composed.

‘We’ve grown a lot as a team, and we’ve got even stronger, and I think that showed. Thankfully in the end we were able to extend that lead a little further to get the three points.’

In our fixture against Brighton last season, no supporters could watch on as the Blues fell to a 2-1 defeat, but Chelsea ensured there was no repeat this time around and England admits having our fans back at Kingsmeadow made a huge difference.

She added: ‘I love the fans. Having them here, back at home is the best thing.

‘They really lift the team and even when things aren’t necessarily going our way, they are there as a 12th man.

‘You can always hear them chanting and it’s always great to have them behind us.’

Chelsea turn attentions to the Champions League as we welcome Wolfsburg to Kingsmeadow on Wednesday evening. Tickets for the 8pm kick-off can be purchased here.