James ends England drought, tops Danes
With a flash of early brilliance, Lauren James ended England's run of more than seven hours without a goal from open play to seal a 1-0 win against Denmark at the Women’s World Cup on Friday in Sydney.
The Chelsea star scored after six minutes of her first start at the tournament to put the Lionesses on course for back-to-back wins in Group D. Collecting the ball outside the area, she curled a right-foot shot beyond the reach of goalkeeper Lene Christensen to score what turned out to be the winner for European champion England.
“It was a dream and something I’ve been thinking about, but most importantly I’m happy to help us win,” James said. “I kind of had a thought and then as soon as it hit the net, it was just relief.”
For all of James’s brilliance, England still required the width of the post to secure another narrow win. Denmark substitute Amalie Vangsgaard was close to scoring a dramatic late equalizer with a header in the final moments of regulation. The forward, who came off the bench to score a 90th-minute winner against China last week, beat England keeper Mary Earps, only to see her effort come back off the woodwork.
Earps had already been called upon to push away Katrine Veje’s cross that was heading into the top corner as Denmark finished the stronger.
A turning point appeared to be an injury to England midfielder Keira Walsh late in the first half. She needed to leave the field on a stretcher after what appeared to be a knee injury.
Argentines rally for draw
Argentina scored two game-saving goals in a flurry of five minutes during the second half to salvage a 2-2 draw with South Africa in Dunedin, New Zealand. The draw gave both teams a single point in Group G. Sweden and Italy, the co-leaders of the group with 3 points each, play Saturday.
Sophia Braun sent the ball soaring into the top right corner of the net in the 74th minute to get Argentina on the board. Romina Nunez tied it with a header in the 79th.
Linda Motlhalo scored in the 30th minute for South Africa when she knocked in a pass from Thembi Kgatlana after play slowed because Argentine players thought South Africa was offside. It was intially ruled that, but overturned on video review. Kgatlana later added a goal herself in the 66th minute.
The draw gave South Africa its first-ever point in the Women’s World Cup, but it was the second successive match the Banyana Banyana built a lead only to lose it, coming after a 2-1 loss to Sweden in their opener.
Shorthanded China still wins
Despite playing with 10 players for more than an hour, China defied the odds to secure a 1-0 victory over Haiti in Group D play in Adelaide, Australia. Forward Wang Shuang scored her first-ever Cup goal in the 74th minute when she converted a penalty after VAR adjudged her teammate Zhang Linyan was fouled in the area.
This victory marks the second time in Women’s World Cup history that a team has won with 10 players on the field — and the first time since 2011.
After a relatively uneventful opening 28 minutes, the game changed dramatically when China midfielder Zhang Rui received a red card for a tackle on Sherly Jeudy. Zhang was initially given a yellow card but, after VAR review, the decision was changed to direct red.
Haiti thought it had a late lifeline when it was initially awarded a penalty kick of its own in stoppage time, but VAR reversed the decision.
Renard in doubt for France
The status of France star Wendie Renard is now in question for an important match against Brazil. Renard was injured during France’s 0-0 draw against Jamaica but played the entire 90 minutes in the opener.
The French captain trained with her squad ahead of Saturday’s match against Brazil in Brisbane, Australia, but if she can’t play, Les Bleues could be in big trouble in Group F. Brazil romped to a 4-0 win over Panama in its opener behind a hat trick from Ary Borges and are holding strong as the group leaders.
In other games Saturday, Sweden is aiming to improve on its opening-game performance in a match against Italy, and Panama plays Jamaica in Perth, Western Australia state.
Canada not happy about pact
The Canadian women’s soccer team confirmed it has reached an interim labor agreement with Canada Soccer covering compensation for 2023, including prize money from the ongoing FIFA Women’s World Cup.
But there was no celebration in a social media post announcing the deal, which was reached Monday.
“As the extent of Canada Soccer’s financial constraints have been revealed, we have been forced to choose between compensation and the funding required to hold necessary training camps,” the statement reads.
“We have been forced to choose between receiving a fair share of the rewards from our teams’ successes at the World Cup and our commitment to equal pay and equal treatment with our men’s national team. These are choices we should not have to make.
“We are deeply disappointed to find ourselves without a more complete agreement at this crucial stage in our calendar.”
The interim deal ensures “at minimum” equal pay with the men’s team, the statement said. But there are “many more important items” that still have to be settled, the women said.
“This isn’t over. We and the men’s national team remain committed to finding a long-term solution that provides for fair and equal treatment for our current national teams and investments in the future of Canadian soccer, but for now, our team just wants to focus on soccer.”
In a subsequent social media post, the women said they would make no further comment on the issue until the end of the tournament.