Japan on Saturday edged tournament hosts Australia 1-0 in the AFC Women’s Asian Cup final to win the continental title for the third time in the last four editions and disappoint a record crowd of 74,357 at Stadium Australia in Sydney.
Maika Hamano scored the decisive goal in the 17th minute, turning 5m outside the box and firing the ball past diving Australia goalkeeper Mackenzie Arnold and into the corner of the net.
The Matildas, Asian champions in 2010, gave as good as they got in a high-quality final and ultimately paid the price for their inability to convert the chances they created.
Photo: AP
Record goalscorer Sam Kerr was well shackled inside the penalty box and her fellow striker Caitlin Foord failed to make the most of a string of chances.
The Nadeshiko were forced into desperate defense in the final 10 minutes as Australia, roared on by the largest crowd in Women’s Asian Cup history, poured forward in search of an equalizer.
Substitute Emily van Egmond had two shots blocked, and Alanna Kennedy’s header from Ellie Carpenter’s cross was well saved by Japan goalkeeper Ayaka Yamashita.
Former world champions Japan, playing in their seventh Asian Cup final, held onto add another Asian title to their 2014 and 2018 triumphs.
Taiwan’s Lee Hao-yu on Friday went 0-for-3 in his MLB debut for the Detroit Tigers against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park, becoming the 19th Taiwan-born player to reach the big leagues. The Tigers ultimately lost 1-0 in 10 innings, ending their six-game winning streak. The 23-year-old started at third base and batted eighth for Detroit. He was promoted from Triple-A Toledo ahead of the four-game series against the Red Sox at the latter’s home stadium, replacing injured utility player Zach McKinstry. “Being right-handed, and given our schedule, I think six of the next 12 games are going to
Matheus Cunha on Saturday fired Manchester United toward the UEFA Champions League with a 1-0 win at Chelsea, while Tottenham Hotspur remain in the relegation zone after twice blowing the lead to draw with Brighton & Hove Albion. Chelsea failed to take advantage of a United defense ravaged by injury and suspension as a fourth straight league defeat for the Blues left their Champions League hopes in ruins. United have missed out on the riches of Europe’s elite competition for the past two seasons, but are closing in on a return thanks to an upturn in fortunes under interim manager
Denmark’s double Olympic badminton champion Viktor Axelsen, long a rival of Taiwan’s former world No. 2 Chou Tien-chen, yesterday announced his retirement at age 32, saying back problems meant he could no longer “compete and train at the highest level.” Axelsen, who won gold at the Tokyo Games in 2021 and again in Paris in 2024, had back surgery in April last year and said he had not overcome his physical issues. “Accepting this situation has been incredibly difficult,” he said in a statement. “But I have now reached a point where my body won’t allow me to continue.” Axelsen retires as one
Italian soccer is at its lowest ebb in nearly 40 years after a wholesale European exodus at club level followed the nation’s failure for the third successive time to qualify for the FIFA World Cup, and compounded a leadership and structural crisis. The exits suffered by Bologna and ACF Fiorentina on Thursday in the UEFA Europa League and UEFA Conference League respectively meant no Italian teams are left in European competition this season. Italy’s last remaining UEFA Champions League contenders, Atalanta BC, went out in the round of 16 last month. It is the first time since the 1986-1987 campaign that Italian clubs
RSS