Welsh heartache as James blows it in Euros shootout
THE anthems rang out into the night sky, telling that Wales would give until the last. Yma O Hyd — ‘Still Here’ — declares the one which seems so fitting given that when Gareth Bale walked away, the hopes of another tournament challenge seemed lost.
And last night, it was indeed not to be. It came down to a penalty shoot-out this time and in the final reckoning, Dan James could not convert his kick.
The minds were willing and the defence absolutely resilient but the small moment of genius which the team have always relied on at the last was not there, in the face of an indomitable white wall.
Not long before the end, a free kick materialised in the kind of place where Bale would generally step to despatch them on these occasions. Harry Wilson sent it into the wall.
The electricity bolts shot through this place even before a ball had been kicked. There is a big enough Polish population in Britain to draw a substantial away support, with their flares, their Lewandowski tops and their audacious attempts to drown out the Welsh national anthem.
Buoyed by the early noise which almost blew the roof off, Wales drove at the Poles and pressed them hard, looking for the same early breakthrough which had eased the tension against Finland four days earlier. But this time there were serious obstacles in the way.
Neco Williams, whose right flank was the prime attacking front in the first half, found full back Przemyslaw Frankowski giving him full attention, suffocating his chance to run free. Kieffer Moore, starting instead of David Brooks, found centre half Pawel Dawidowicz snapping into him.
The Red Wall delighted in telling Lewandowski he was ‘just a s*** Kieffer Moore’ but there was no way beyond a phalanx of uncompromising, white-shirted Poles in that rearguard.
Briefly, moments of beauty from Wales opened up the pitch for them. A 30-yard diagonal from Ethan Ampadu, the wonderful 23year-old central midfielder who has blossomed at Leeds United this season, for Williams, deterred by Frankowski again. Then a smart run into the six-yard box and byline by Harry Wilson, but he found no one in a position to attack the ball he had laid back.
Moore and Ben Davies got in each other’s way when leaping for an aerial chance. And when the same players combined to get the ball in the net before half-time, Davies had strayed offside by the length of a boot when nodding on Moore’s header into the net.
Page and his coaching staff were in full celebration mode when the flag went up and with no one better to mock, the Poles in the stadium’s Grandstand turned around to taunt those behind them in the media seats. It was evident from the very start that it was going to a take piece of magic to unlock the defence that was being urged on by intermittent roars of ‘Polska.’
Intermittently, the Polish threat revealed itself, too. Roma’s Nicola Zalewski drove through the Wales central areas and found a cute reverse-pass for Piotr Zielinski, which had Wales holding their breath, but nothing came of it.
If there was comfort to be taken, it resided in Wales’s record against stronger sides during the past 18 months of this often bewildering qualifying campaign. There had been a win and a draw against Croatia but Armenia, the world’s 97th-ranked side, had taken four points off them.
It was a clear sight of goal that Wales so sorely needed. Moore finally found his radar after the break, rising to meet Williams’ cross and send in a header which Wojciech Szczesny leapt superbly
to glove away, right-handed. Three good headed opportunities came and went for Moore. His angles were askew when the first came along in the first half. He headed the third into the turf.
Brennan Johnson flattered to deceive, too, as he has done with Wales so often. He set off like a missile in the early stages but went off the boil and was replaced by Daniel James. After a promising start, Wilson also failed to make the same imprint he had against Finland last Thursday.
Everyone here sensed a growing jeopardy. Jordan James was booked for a nervy challenge. Chris Mepham lost Lewandowski from a corner, though he headed over. Lewandowski finally ran flat out at the Welsh rearguard.
The Welsh central defence of Davies and Joe Rodon stood up well and the balanced midfield pairing of Ampadu and James worked again, imbuing that back-line with poise and balance.
The hope was that James could provide the ignition that Wales were looking for as they seemed to run out of ideas. As the game went into extra time, he was still looking to deliver.