LATE AND GREAT
Canada wears New Zealand down in the second half to secure its spot in next round
It took a while but Canada eventually broke down a solid New Zealand resistance and booked its spot in the second round of the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup.
Jessie Fleming and Nichelle Prince each scored for Canada in a 2-0 win in front of 14,856 at the Stade des Alpes on Saturday.
The win gave Canada the maximum six points through two matches and guarantees them at least second place in Group E with a game left against the Netherlands in Reims on Thursday.
The win extended Canada’s unbeaten streak to 10 games, having yet to lose this year. The record is 11, set in 20102011.
“I think we’re just excited as a group to get the win,” Fleming said. “I know just coming into the group stage we wanted to get three wins, so we have two out of three and have one more to go. We’re really excited to be able to help the team with that win.”
Fleming scored three minutes into the second half to give Canada the lead, turning in a cross from Prince, who added the second just over a half-hour later.
Canada dominated the game, finishing with 70% possession and 22 attempts on target to just two for New Zealand. Canada had six shots on net to none for New Zealand and eight corners to one. They completed 523 passes to 145 for New Zealand.
It was the first time Canada has defeated a continental champion at a World Cup and they’ll face another one when they take on the European champion Netherlands, who defeated Cameroon 3-1 earlier in the day in Valenciennes. New Zealand are the Oceania champions.
“I’m very happy to get another three points in this group, we played very well and I think that’s the most exciting part about it,” Prince said. “We’re building off each game and we’re playing really great soccer and it’s cool to be able to see us play so well and play our game.”
Canada played keep away from New Zealand in the first half, who like Cameroon before them, piled players behind the ball and were content to defend and try to score on a counter attack.
Canada had an unheard of 73% of the possession in the opening half, but were unable to break through. The best chance fell to Christine Sinclair off a corner kick in the 18th minute. Janine Beckie swung the kick to the near post where Sophie Schmidt flicked it and Sinclair was first to it and sent her header off the crossbar. The ball bounced to Kadeisha Buchanan, who had her header cleared off the goal-line.
“The message at half time was to continue what we were doing, we were creating more and more opportunities and the chances were getting bigger and bigger and I think that was exactly what we did,” Canada head coach Kenneth Heiner-Moller said. “There was more aggressiveness in the penalty box as well. We got the goals in the second half, but the lead-in was in the first half where we passed the ball around very good and you can only stand against that for a certain period of time, and we benefited from the first half the way we played in the second half.”
In the second, Canada played more direct and Fleming’s goal came after a ball was sent over the top of the New Zealand back line by Beckie for Prince to chase. The speedy forward blew by her defender and took the ball to the end line before cutting it back to Fleming, who directed into the lower corner past New Zealand goalkeeper Erin Nayler.
“Janine put a great ball in behind and I wanted to use my speed to get in behind,” Prince said. “So I took that first touch forward and I know that we’ll always have players coming into the box and Jess was in a great position for that cutback.”
Two minutes later Sinclair had an opportunity to increase the lead but was unable to keep a low cross from Beckie below the crossbar. Prince came close in the 71st minute when she got to a cross by Sinclair and headed it toward the top corner of the net, but Nayler made an outstanding diving save.
“I don’t think at any stage we got a foothold in the game,” New Zealand coach Tom Sermanni said. “I thought we were thoroughly outplayed. I thought we never really at any stage had an opportunity to be in the game so I have to congratulate Canada for an outstanding performance. I felt that some of the things we did well in the previous game we didn’t do well in this game. I don’t think won a challenge, I don’t think we won any loose ball and I don’t think, at any time, got close enough to put pressure on the Canadian players.”
Sinclair is four goals from breaking the all-time international scoring record — men or women — currently held by retired American striker Abby Wambach.
Sinclair created Canada’s second goal when she headed a cross from Ashley Lawrence off the base of the goalpost. The ball bounced to Prince who poked it into the open net.
Sinclair will have at least two more games to get closer to the record. If Canada wins
the group, they’ll play the Group D runner up in Rennes. If Canada finish second, they’ll play the second place team from Group F in Paris.
Before Saturday, Canada had never advanced past the group stage in a World Cup tournament held in Europe. They made the semifinals in 2003, losing to Sweden at the tournament in the United States.
“It was frustrating that first half, we dominated and we just weren’t able to put one in,” Sinclair said. “Kenneth came in at half time and said the work we put in that first half will earn us goals in the second half and it happened. It’s hard to keep that up for 90 minutes defensively, I’ve been on the other end of that and I know what New Zealand was going through. But the end, you’re just dead tired and the holes started to open up for us.”