Arsenal Women’s Jill Roord admitted to ‘not really knowing’ about the north London derby, before scoring a hat-trick against Tottenham on Sunday, writes Art de Roche.

The summer signing shone in a 6-0 victory at Meadow Park and is excited for more clashes with her new rivals in the WSL, as Arsenal defend their title this season.

The next meeting will be in November and is set to be played at the new Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Roord said: "I wasn't really aware of the rivalry ahead of the game but it's cool to have these derby matches.

"It's great to say I played against Tottenham and scored a hat-trick. Having the next match at the men's stadium will be amazing and I'm really looking forward to continuing the rivalry there."

The 22-year-old has been used in various midfield roles by manager Joe Montemurro during pre-season, mostly as a sitting midfielder, but on Sunday she had more licence to venture forward.

The same can be said for midfield partners Danielle van de Donk, Kim Little and Jordan Nobbs, which Roord enjoys.

"Joe's style is similar to how we play with Holland and how I want to play," she added.

"I'm a technical midfielder that loves to have the ball at my feet and that's exactly how Joe wants me to play.

"I can play in all midfield positions. I started a bit deeper, playing more simple passes but I used to be a number 10 so I like getting in the box and scoring.

"I really like the midfield we have at the moment. If I start in the number six position, I'm not restricted to that.

"Everybody likes to move and the midfield here is very dynamic which is nice."

The north London derby signalled the end of pre-season but before the WSL campaign kicks off on September 8, there is an international break.

Roord has been selected for Holland along with van de Donk and Vivianne Miedema, while Leah Williamson and Beth Mead are in Phil Neville's England squad and Leonie Maier will feature for Germany.

"It's a bit weird, but I'm happy the season is about to start," added Roord.

"I don't mind pre-season but I can't wait for the season to properly start and then we have the Champions League almost immediately so we're ready for the big games."