Former champions Norway yesterday hit the Philippines for six to squeeze into the FIFA Women’s World Cup last 16, but co-hosts New Zealand bowed out in tears after a goalless stalemate with Switzerland.
Switzerland topped an excruciatingly tight Group A which saw a heartbroken New Zealand team knocked out by virtue of an inferior goal difference compared with Norway.
Norway, the 1995 champions, needed a win and they did it in style, thrashing debutants the Philippines 6-0 at Eden Park in Auckland.
Photo: Reuters
Sophie Roman Haug scored a hat-trick as the Philippines’ fairytale journey came to a shuddering halt.
With Norway well ahead, New Zealand — who were in pole position at the start of the day along with the Swiss to go through — now needed to beat Switzerland in Dunedin.
The hosts had the better of the first half with a string of chances, the pick of which saw forward Jacqui Hand rattle the post on 24 minutes.
Photo: AP
As Norway chalked up the goals in Auckland, the New Zealanders upped the intensity, knowing only a win would be good enough to advance.
The atmosphere among the sell-out crowd grew more heated as both teams pushed for a goal and New Zealand goalkeeper Victoria Esson might have won it with a header from a corner in added time that went wide.
Many of the New Zealand players were in tears as their run ended.
The Football Ferns made history at this tournament by recording their first-ever World Cup win, but they fell agonizingly short in the end.
The second round of games in Group H saw Germany, one of the tournament favorites lose to Colombia in Sydney.
Colombia scored a 97th-minute winner through a Manuela Vanegas header to snatch a dramatic 2-1 victory over Germany and stand on the cusp of the last 16.
Skipper Alexandra Popp thought she had rescued a point for Germany as she held her nerve to score from the spot on 89 minutes, but in an incredible finish to a pulsating clash, Vanegas popped up deep into stoppage time for all three points with a close-range header.
It came after Linda Caicedo scored one of the goals of the tournament in front of 40,000 fans in Sydney near the start of the second half.
Earlier in the same group, Morocco won a Women’s World Cup match for the first time after Ibtissam Jraidi struck early to give them a stunning 1-0 victory over South Korea in Adelaide.
It was also the first time the Atlas Lionesses’ has scored a World Cup goal
Having been thrashed 6-0 by Germany on their World Cup debut, this hard-earned win kept alive Morocco’s unlikely chances of reaching the last 16.
“We are just so glad that our efforts paid off,” Jraidi said. “I would like to dedicate this victory to Morocco and all the Arab nations at large. It was the fruit of our hard work.”
Colombia top of Group H with a perfect six points. Germany and Morocco have three each and all to play for.
Additional reporting by AP
Yu Yao-hsing on Tuesday nabbed Taiwan’s only goal in the final round of qualifiers for the 2027 AFC Asian Cup, as they fell 3-1 to Sri Lanka at Taipei Municipal Stadium. Early goals from Sri Lanka in the first half left Taiwan struggling to get on the board, and Christopher Tiao’s own goal at 53 minutes sealed the team’s fate in the third round of qualifiers. While acknowledging that the defeat, Taiwan’s sixth in Group D, was disappointing, head coach Matt Ross said he saw reasons to stay positive about the team’s development. “There were lots of positive signs in terms of the
INDIGESTION: Italy failed to qualify for the World Cup for a third consecutive time after a 4-1 defeat to Bosnia on penalties in a loss Gattuso said was ‘difficult to digest’ Coach Graham Arnold on Tuesday challenged his players to “shock the world” after Iraq became the 48th and final team to qualify for the FIFA World Cup with a nerve-shredding 2-1 win over Bolivia in an intercontinental playoff in Mexico, as Bosnia and Herzegovina, Turkey, the Czech Republic, Sweden and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) also secured their places at the finals. Iraq, whose preparations were disrupted by the war in the Middle East, sealed their first appearance at the finals in 40 years and are to play in Group I against France, Senegal and Norway. Goals from Ali al-Hamadi
Teng Kai-wei, the only Taiwanese player on an opening-day roster in this year’s Major League Baseball (MLB) season, took his first win of the year with the Houston Astros in his season debut. Teng entered in relief in the top of the fifth inning against the Los Angeles Angels on Saturday, with the Astros trailing 5-0. He pitched 2-1/3 scoreless innings with two strikeouts, as Houston scored 11 runs during his outing to snatch an 11-9 comeback victory. The win is the Astros’ first of the season and the third of Teng’s MLB career. “It’s my first time pitching for the Astros, so
Top seeded Jessica Pegula on Friday once again fought back from a set down to reach the WTA Charleston Open semi-finals with a 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 win against Russia’s Diana Shnaider. Defending champion Pegula has lost the first set in all three of her matches at the tournament so far, but again dug deep to maintain her hopes of retaining the title. The world No. 5 from the US took 2 hours, 10 minutes to defeat 19th-ranked Shnaider, relying on a formidable service game that included eight aces. Shnaider battled well in the first two sets and broke early for a 2-0 lead
RSS