Winner of five trophies with City, scorer of some of our best and most important goals and now a fully-fledged senior England international, the youngster has already achieved more than most do in a lifetime.
A million memories, dozens of glorious games... but which stands out above the rest?
In the second edition of our new series, presented by Marathon Bet, Stanway recalls her favourite game in sky blue, which marks its one-year anniversary on Monday…
The pick
My favourite game ever for City was definitely when we won the FA Women’s Cup in 2019.
We played West Ham in the final and won 3-0 and it was just a surreal day.
For me personally, it was a big game. I’d always wanted to play well on a big stage. In that game, I got Player of the Match - and I scored.
There’s no better feeling than winning and lifting the trophy was incredible.
Playing at Wembley
Playing there is a massive deal in itself. There was an amazing crowd and all my family were in the stands.
The team had travelled down the day before on the coach from the CFA to London. Of course, it’s a long journey and it can be hard to keep your emotions in check so we got a few films going, played cards and Uno, chatted... You’d even find the odd person asleep! Everyone was doing whatever they could to pass the time.
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On away days, Janine Beckie always bakes some healthy snacks too. We’re allowed the odd treat on an away day because we know they’re healthy.
When we got to Wembley, we had a bit of a tour of the stadium. We weren’t allowed in the changing rooms, as they were setting them up to look special, but we saw the pitch.
When you’re in there, it looks huge with the amount of seats and the pitch is massive.
Then we went across to the hotel and stayed over. Everyone was so excited.
Pre-match
I think it was a five o’clock kick-off so we were trying to kill as much time as we could. Everyone was so excited.
Turning up at the ground, we did a pitch walk just before the fans started coming in. Our families could arrive earlier. They were in Hospitality and we were FaceTiming them from the middle of the pitch, showing them around, and they were wishing us good luck.
I don’t like to think about the game too much beforehand. I like to keep a normal routine - have chat with everyone, keep myself as relaxed as possible.
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It helped me that day. I knew I didn’t have to impress my family, I knew I didn’t have to try too hard. Sometimes, when you try too hard, things don’t go your way.
I knew I had to work hard and I knew my family were supporting me. They wanted the best for me and for the team to win... and I knew that after a few drinks, they’d settle down as well!
When we went into the changing rooms, it was mad! They had all been kitted out: City badges everywhere, our dreams and goals; words we go by, our values. It was mad walking in, surreal. Looking back now, it doesn’t seem real.
Scoring at Wembley
It will definitely go down as one of my favourite goals: scoring at Wembley on such an occasion to help us win the FA Cup with so many people there, so many City fans... It was incredible.
I’d tried so hard all game to try and score. I’d had a few shots and I’d snapped at a few. I’d had one that was quite close...
Then, Keira Walsh scored the first goal and knew then I had to try and score and get in tie with my mate!
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The ball came to me and I took a few touches to put it back on my right foot and hit it. It took a deflection which helped and it rolled into the right-hand corner.
I turned and just ran to celebrate. I ran towards the corner where our families were and I made eye contact with my family, which was nice.
When I turned around again, the girls were all running at me. It was an unbelievable feeling and extra special for the fact it was at Wembley.
Looking back
I still look back now, scrolling through pictures, and try to remember what it was like: the game, the atmosphere, the celebrations...
Everything merges into one. When we came to the end of the day, celebrating, we didn’t want the day to end. It was incredible.
I remember Lauren Hemp coming on in the second half. She scored an amazing goal and topped off the whole performance.
It was definitely a day to remember.
