CLACKS sports coach Leanne Ross has spoken of the "huge honour" she will feel when steps on the field for Scotland at a major tournament this week.

The experienced midfielder is part of the squad travelling to this year's European Championships in the Netherlands.

This is the first time in nearly two decades that Scotland has had a football side – men or women – taking part in a major tournament.

Ross admitted she feels lucky to have played the game for so long, and is hoping her side can inspire the public watching at home.

She said: "It's a huge honour to play for Scotland. It's something that I've always really dreamed about when I started playing football, and I think I've just been really lucky in the fact that I've played for so long.

"I think the fact that we've qualified is the biggest success," she added. We've been trying for a long time now and I just think we need to take the experience as it comes.

"The biggest thing for me is that we give the biggest showing for ourselves and that we try and inspire as many people to play as possible."

Ross is also hopeful that the experience of representing her country at a major tournament gives her something extra to pass on to the children she coaches in Clackmannanshire, and is desperate for the women's squad to come across as positive role models for the players of the future.

She said: "For me as a footballer, it is about the lifestyle that you have to lead, but also about the transferable skills that you can learn through sport.

"So, if I can encourage kids to go along and try to find something that they enjoy doing, that would be fantastic because they can learn those transferable skills which will help them in later life.

"Hopefully they can just have a role model to look up to and to see that it is possible to play on the big stage or live your dreams."

Ahead of the European Championships, which get underway on July 16, Ross and several other members of Scotland's squad have had chants written for them by comedian Des Clarke, and she reckons hearing her name being sung could give her a lift on the pitch.

She added: "It's obviously great when you're a player to have the crowd chanting your name so it'll be interesting to see what affect the chants have on all the players.

"It gives you that little boost knowing that there's somebody there supporting you and that wants you to do well."

Scotland play their first game of the tournament on Wednesday, July 19, as they face England.

Leanne and co then tackle Portugal the following Sunday, July 23, before their final group game against Spain on Thursday, July 27.

The Euro 2017 final is scheduled for Sunday, August 6.

As official sponsor of the Scotland women’s football team, Vauxhall Motors is uniting the nation to #GetIN this summer and make some noise for the team. 

Comedian Des Clarke is working with Vauxhall Motors to create a series of rallying chants in support of the players and team. Learn them, shout them, support them at vauxhallfootball.co.uk