Rachel Maltby

Rachel Olivia Maltby was born on 25 March 2007 in Northamptonshire.

Maltby began playing football with a local boys' team, Long Buckby, at the under-six level. She later stopped playign football to pursue gymnastics and swimming, but returned to football at the under-nine age group. She then played for a Rushden & Diamonds boys' team, where she was noticed by an Aston Villa men's scout. In her youth, she played as a forward. ^[2]

Maltby has represented England at both the under-17 and under-19 age groups. Having previously played as a forward, Maltby transitioned to the left-back position during her time with the under-17 team.^[2]

In 2024, she was called up to both the UEFA Women's Under-17 Championship and the FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup (in which England finished fourth).^[5]

On 21 August 2026, Maltby was called up to represent England at the 2026 U-20 Women's World Cup.^[6][7] Maltby scored the equaliser in England's opening game, a 1–1 draw to Canada.^[8] During a 5–1 victory over Tanzania, she recorded a hat-trick.^[9] In doing so, she became the first English player to score a hat-trick at an U-20 Women's World Cup in eight years, following in the footsteps of Lauren Hemp in 2018.^[10] Maltby scored again in the team's 1–2 loss to Brazil, marking a goal in each group stage match.^[11] Of her four group stage goals, three were penalties: this made Maltby the first player to score three penalties in an U-20 group stage.^[10][12] She provided a further three assists in the group stage.^[11]

As of match played 4 October 2026