I AM so delighted to introduce myself. My name is Bella Katz and I am the new sports editor of the Morning Star — I can’t believe I’m saying this! You may have noticed me covering the Fighting Fund for Keith occasionally, or reporting for Kadeem on the sports pages. 

Speaking of which, I’d like to thank Kadeem for all of his support and advice since I joined the paper. I wouldn’t be in this position without him, or without his encouragement to go out and report. I hope to build on all of the fantastic work he did.

This is a dream job in the sense that it combines my passion for the paper and its values with my great love of sport, which began when my Dad would take me to see Spurs reserves play in Stevenage in the early 2000s. 

If you were lucky, you could see the likes of Edgar Davids, Aaron Lennon and Robbie Keane under the floodlights when they needed to get minutes in after suffering an injury. The first time I went to White Hart Lane, I was mesmerised. Special trips to the Bill Nicholson suite provided some of my favourite childhood memories.

My intentions for the Sports desk include building a social media presence for sport specifically, continuing to run political sports stories and showcasing the exciting growth of women’s football, as well as bringing in more female voices to the back pages of the paper. My aim is to engage more readers with our sport content long-term. 

I’m excited to kick off my tenure with none other than Women’s Football Weekend — what are the chances! There are some great matches to tune into, and we have some interesting content in store for you.

I am so honoured to have this opportunity, and I hope you enjoy what I make of it.