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| Two Arsenal Ladies named in Honours List Two members of the Arsenal Ladies squad have been included in the Queen's Honours List. England star Kelly Smith has been made a Member of the British Empire (MBE) in recognition of her services to women's football. The talented forward returned to Arsenal three years ago after spending eight successful years in the United States. She is an established international and featured at last year's World Cup Finals in China. Smith helped the Ladies win an unprecedented 'quadruple' in 2006/07 and was a driving force as Vic Akers' side followed that up with a domestic 'double' last season. The 29-year-old scored 15 goals in 25 games, including two in the FA Women's Cup Final against Leeds United. "It is an honour and very exciting," Smith told Arsenal.com. "I am flabbergasted to be honest. I think I will be more nervous going to Buckingham Palace than I would be before any football game. "I spoke to [Arsenal team-mate] Faye White who got one last year. She said it is just a great day out. "In fact the letter telling me about the award went to the Club. Faye recognised it and told me what it was. So she actually knew about this before I did." Scotland captain Julie Fleeting has also been made an MBE in recognition of her services to the women's game. The prolific striker joined Arsenal in January 2004 and scored a hat-trick in that year's FA Women's Cup Final. Fleeting is the mainstay of her national side and boasts an goalscoring record for club and country. The 27-year-old scored 29 goals in 24 appearances for Arsenal during the 2006/07 campaign and plundered 15 in just 16 appearances last season. "It’s quite a shock but I’m absolutely thrilled," said Fleeting. "Hopefully it can do a lot for women’s football, the fact we are getting recognition. "When I first started playing you don’t really think too much about it, but after a while you want to achieve as much as you can, and you need a lot of support. "We are getting a lot more now than when I first started playing." Smith and Fleeting are following in the footsteps of two of their Arsenal team-mates. Rachel Yankey was made an MBE in the 2006 New Year's honours list and Club captain Faye White received the same honour a year later. |
| QUOTE (Coney @ Jun 15 2008, 08:15 PM) |
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