The SWNT 'outsider' shining in USA & making family proud

Standing at 6ft 2in, Georgia Brown stands out in most crowds.

But the English-born Sporting Club Jacksonville defender had concerns of being seen as "an outsider" when she was called up to the Scotland squad for the first time last month.

With just two appearances for the under-23s earlier in the year - following a five-year hiatus from the international scene - the 23-year-old was understandably apprehensive about "difficult" moments.

But one-and-a-half camps and two caps later, any worries Brown had have gone and she can't wait to travel halfway round the world to pull on the dark blue jersey and meet up with her supportive dad.

"It's been my dream, so to suddenly be here, I'm loving every minute," Brown told BBC Sport Scotland at the SWNT camp in Spain.

"You can see I've got a massive smile on my face, always. The girls are great, the coaching is great, the vibes are great, so I can't complain.

"My dad was honestly talking about coming to America in October, which is why he came to Morocco, because that's half the distance. He is very supportive.

"Then we played in Scotland, which was easy to get to and now Spain. I don't think he was going to turn down a week in the sunshine, let's be honest."

Late developer, brother's messages & Warburton

It was her dad, Gary - a former semi-professional goalkeeper with Scottish parents - who got her involved in football after she was "bored of sitting on the sidelines" at brother Matthew's games.

He was in the Swindon Town academy and young Georgia would be "dragged along". But when local club Highworth Town started up a team, Brown couldn't wait to be involved.

A move to Oxford United came at 16, something which "was a bit bad from me as a Swindon supporter" but she didn't quite feel ready for the leap.

"I think I'm a little bit of a late developer," said Brown, who made her Scotland debut in last month's 4-3 defeat by Switzerland.

"I wasn't quite ready to take that jump into pro-level and really have an impact, so I wanted to give myself a little bit more time and I went out to the USA."

At the University of South Florida, she gained her Bachelor in Biomedical Science while impressing on the pitch with the South Florida Bulls.

She was one of the first signing's this summer for Sporting JAX - where former Rangers manager Mark Warburton is head of soccer and ex-Hearts boss Liam Fox is the men's head coach - and Brown is impressing many in the USL Super League.

Just not always her brother.

"I'll always get a pre-game text giving me some advice, and a post-game text giving me some feedback," Brown explained.

"I always know if I do get a text saying 'you've done good', that means I've actually done good, because the compliments don't come along too much!"

'It means everything having them there'

Should her career continue to blossom, her brother might need to swallow his sibling pride and pay out more plaudits.

He and dad Gary - who "will never tell me he's proud of me, but, he likes to tell other people" - were in the stands when the defender came on for her debut in Dunfermline last month.

"There was so much emotion and adrenaline going through me at that moment," Brown recalled. "Just looking up and seeing them in the stands, you just want to put even more effort in. It means everything having them there.

"I was on for about 10 minutes, and I just remember I was running around like crazy when Caroline [Weir] scored as well. I just wanted to celebrate, but I was like, 'no, we're still a goal down, we've got to get back in position'."

Brown has broken into a squad who are about to embark on a World Cup qualification campaign in the new year, with hopes high of reaching a first major tournament since 2019.

She doesn't carry the scars some in the side do from play-off pain against Finland and Republic of Ireland in recent years and has her focus entirely on Brazil in 2027.

"That's the goal, getting to Brazil," she added. "Especially after the men qualified, now hopefully we can build on that momentum and do something similar.

"Whatever I can do in that part, whether it's coming on for a set-piece, bringing my aerial presence in, helping the team late on in the game or any other scenario, I just want to help them get to our goal of Brazil."

Should Brown and Scotland do that, dad Gary and brother Matthew might just be able to admit their overwhelming pride.