TAUNTON School student Georgia McGovern has been praised for her displays for England in the first round of the Under 19 Volleyball European Championships held, ironically, in Georgia.

Despite only recently turning 14, Georgia was in the starting six for the opening game against the host country.

After a fantastic start, the team found it difficult to compete with the physicality and dominance of the opposition and unfortunately lost in three sets.

The following day they faced the tournament’s favourites, Belarus.

Georgia, who lives near Taunton, once again led the English offence as the primary setter for the team.

This time she managed to score on the service line with a great ace cross-court and fought hard at the net to win one of the contested points.

Even though they went on to lose the game 3-0, the team played with pride and fought for every ball.

Head coach, Rachel Laybourne, said: “Georgia was a fantastic addition to the U19 team.

“Despite only recently turning 14, she showed a level of maturity and experience in the setting position which far exceeded our expectation.

“We look forward to working with Georgia over the next four years as she continues to develop physically, mentally, technically and tactically.”