Just seeing her mention her favourite Jamaican dish—curried goat with rice and peas—and you could see that reminiscing smile appeared during Shania Hayles interview with the Jamaica Football Federation press officer.

The former England U-19 striker, now 24-year-old, who last played for Jamaica in 2022 against Paraguay, earned a recall after some outstanding displays after signing for her new club Newcastle in July.

“I was excited to be back, obviously Jamaica is in my family,” said Hayles after coming from a training session as the Reggae Girlz prepare for the International Friendly against France on Friday.

Born in England, Hayles qualified to represent Jamaica through her grandparents and made her debut against Nigeria on June 10, 2021.

Hayles has hit the ground running for Newcastle scoring in her second game and an assist against Sheffield United on September 22. Then in October, she recorded her first professional hattrick against Charlton Athletic in a 3-3 draw prompting a fan of social media to suggest this: “Is she available against Chelsea next week? Men’s team in dire need of a striker.”

“When I got the call, it just showed that all the hard work had paid off that I’ve been on the journey so far,” said Hayles. “I think I just had a fresh start from last season. New team, so I had a lot to prove. I just went in with a lot of confidence and I think grabbing the first couple of goals early on is always good for a striker.”

Hayles added, “So, when I got them, I went on to more and getting my hattrick at the weekend was a proud moment for me, because that was my first career one.”

The 42nd-ranked Jamaica are in France to play the 10th-ranked team in the world as this match is the first meeting between the teams since the 2023 Women’s World Cup when Jamaica surprisingly held France to a 0-0 draw en route to historically qualifying for the second round knocking out Brazil in the process.

Following the French game, The Reggae Girlz will play the 50th-ranked South Africa twice in Jamaica on November 29 and December 2. The Jamaican team are preparing for the World Cup qualifiers, aiming to reach their third consecutive FIFA World Cup and Hayles is loving the vibes in the camp.

“Everyone’s so lovely. It was really nice to catch up with the girls,” she noted.

With Jamaica’s captain and Ballon D’or nominee Khadija Shaw absent, the door is open for Hayles to stake a claim in this Jamaica team that is getting stronger by the minute with the recruitment drive in England.

“Goals are a big thing. That’s part of my game and just being confident and kind of showing what I can do,” said Hayles who is raring to go at this second chance with the Reggae Girlz. “I think before, I probably wasn’t as ready as I am now. So, coming back a lot more confident and I’m just ready to give everything for the team. I felt good. Coming off the back of a nice weekend from scoring goals is always good to come into camp with it’s just been refreshing seeing all the girls meeting new faces and yeah I feel comfortable.”

She added: “When I’m comfortable, I play, I play well. We have a big match-up. Even though it’s a friendly, it’s a very strong team. You know, I think everyone is happy to have such a strong friendly international game. I think, you wanna play against some of the best national teams, so for me, France is up there. It will be a hard game, a tough game, but It’s one I’m looking forward to.”