Topic: FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 – AUNZ | 20 July–20 August (*)

[Gerry Attrick]

England have been bad. Not really creating many good chances and have looked wide open. As good a record as Russo has she doesn’t convince me. She’s lumbering and clumsy with the ball. It’s like watching France with Giroud up front.

[kellan]

England have been bad. Not really creating many good chances and have looked wide open. As good a record as Russo has she doesn’t convince me. She’s lumbering and clumsy with the ball. It’s like watching France with Giroud up front.

Russo (and Toone, to a lesser extent) had quite a poor club season following the Euros. Daly should be getting the nod over her. I'd even play Beth England before her. Instead she gets promoted from sub to starter. She hasn't shown much in the friendlies to explain why. But the rest of the team have also looked lacklustre in recent months. Nothing of that opening half suggests they've turned the necessary corner.

[Barneylfc∗]

Haiti have been pretty good for their first ever appearance

[gerrardisgod]

Just a load of aimless crossing and no creativity. You’d worry about Bright up against a stronger team too, doesn’t look fit at all and full of mistakes.

[AndyInVA]

Just a load of aimless crossing and no creativity. You’d worry about Bright up against a stronger team too, doesn’t look fit at all and full of mistakes.

A bit harsh I think. Some nice passing and movement. Several balls just didn’t fall for them. Shooting and set pieces have been disappointing if anything. Haiti keeper has played well. I’m hoping England get at least another before it’s over.

[Crosby Nick]

Feels a bit Moyesie’s United versus Fulham at the moment.

[TheShanklyGates]

Great save from Earps.

England have been so poor.

[The North Bank]

Who is the England number 6, Harriet Maguire?

[stockdam]

Great save from Earps.

[stockdam]

Haiti have defended well and they are a strong competitive team. England have had most of the ball but Haiti have had their chances.

[TheShanklyGates]

Who is the England number 6, Harriet Maguire?

She hasn't played a competitive game since March due a knee injury and it shows. It's the classic England World Cup playbook of rushing a star player back from injury and then being surprised when they're half fit and perform poorly.

[stockdam]

Strange end to the game. Ref blew early then decided to play another 20 seconds.

[Gerry Attrick]

Absolutely honking from England. That level will get them killed by a good team. Haiti should’ve punished them.

[Barneylfc∗]

England will struggle to get out of the group on that performance. Very lacklustre and will need huge improvement to get anywhere in the tournament. They shouldn't be relying on a retaken pen to beat Haiti.

[The North Bank]

She hasn't played a competitive game since March due a knee injury and it shows. It's the classic England World Cup playbook of rushing a star player back from injury and then being surprised when they're half fit and perform poorly.

My bad, didnt want to single her out but that was some shocking defending

[stockdam]

Absolutely honking from England. That level will get them killed by a good team. Haiti should’ve punished them.

I think you are not giving Haiti the credit they deserved. They defended well and looked good on the break. They packed their defence which made it difficult to break down. Their defensive positioning was good. They have decent forwards who will create chances.

I think Haiti will do better than most people think.

[Gerry Attrick]

I think you are not giving Haiti the credit they deserved. They defended well and looked good on the break. They packed their defence which made it difficult to break down. Their defensive positioning was good. They have decent forwards who will create chances.

I think Haiti will do better than most people think.

Haiti are ranked 53rd in the world. When you go that far down in the women’s rankings you’re talking about a chasm. Any team in the top 10 would expect to kick the living daylights out of them. Haiti brought their best stuff but England brought some of their worst for years and years.

[Redbonnie]

Early days in the tournament for England and I expect them to build as we go on.

[rushyman]

This China v Denmark women's game is just about the lowest quality football that will appear on tv

It's like an under 9's game

[Red Impact]

This tournament has been great so far for the game here in Australia/NZ. Publicity gaining traction and the subject of many a conversation now which is awesome.
I’ve also found the football thus far to be relatively quite enjoyable. Perhaps the quality has been a little lacking in the final third but that’s often an argument that even gets brought up even during the men’s tournament particularly throughout the group stage.
Anyways, it’s really bringing people from all walks of life together here and seeing the competitiveness and ability in some of these players has made me proud of how far the women’s game has come (and it’s only just the beginning) and watching my daughter look on with such interest is fantastic
As a side not, it’s refreshing seeing how sportingly the women approach instances within the game as opposed to how the men do at that level.

[Bioluminescence]

This is great article on what the World Cup means for girls and how much progress has been made in recent years. Young girls now have role models and players they can aspire to be - it's so important.

[sinnermichael]

There is literally no escape from Sam Matterface.

[Hazell]

There is literally no escape from Sam Matterface.

Doesn't shut up does he? It'd be good if commentators realised they don't have to talk to fill up every second.

[The G in Gerrard]

Jamaica kit is great.

[TheShanklyGates]

So after England's narrow win over Haiti yesterday, Sweden needed a late winner to squeeze past South Africa and France are still 0-0 with Jamaica with about 20 minutes left to play. We're certainly not seeing the high scoring blowouts that have typified the group stages of past World Cups.

Has the gap between the best and the rest in women's football finally started to close or are the big teams underperforming?

[Barneylfc∗]

Looks like blatant cheating there from Renard to get Shaw sent off

[Crosby Nick]

Looks like blatant cheating there from Renard to get Shaw sent off

Very cunning.

[Barneylfc∗]

That's a diabolical attempt at a pass from Becho at the death. Just completely rushed it when she had loads of time to pick out a player.

[TheShanklyGates]

Great effort that from Jamaica.

[afc tukrish]

Very cunning.

Stunt?

[RayPhilAlan]

This tournament has been great so far for the game here in Australia/NZ. Publicity gaining traction and the subject of many a conversation now which is awesome.
I’ve also found the football thus far to be relatively quite enjoyable. Perhaps the quality has been a little lacking in the final third but that’s often an argument that even gets brought up even during the men’s tournament particularly throughout the group stage.
Anyways, it’s really bringing people from all walks of life together here and seeing the competitiveness and ability in some of these players has made me proud of how far the women’s game has come (and it’s only just the beginning) and watching my daughter look on with such interest is fantastic
As a side not, it’s refreshing seeing how sportingly the women approach instances within the game as opposed to how the men do at that level.

That's mostly true, but I was at the Holland v Portugal game last night, and I thought that several of the Portugal players were getting a bit Bruno-Fernandes-y as the ref's calls kept going against them. Fun to watch, though!

[looneysbin]

Went to the France v Jamaica match last night and had a great time. I'm quietly shocked but thrilled that Sydney managed to get 39,000 people to a women's football match at 8pm on a rainy, winter's Sunday night, between two teams from another hemisphere. As it should be, eh? The crowd gave support to both sides but as the game wore on it was clear the locals were beginning to favour Jamaica for the upset (I sure was!). I wasn't sure what to expect from the French team given their off-field troubles with the old coach and their record of underachieving, and I think the media/pundits have sorely underestimated the lower ranked teams coming into this tournament, so I was hoping Jamaica would shock them. Really pleased Jamaica came away with a draw, they were absolutely tireless, and their LB and LM were only beaten once or twice all game. A real shame Shaw was sucked into a silly challenge at the end for the second yellow, she's such a physical threat and important for defending set pieces. Worth noting Jamaica have had troubles with their federation (sadly like Nigeria, Canada, and others), so to stick together and get a hard fought result - their first point in a WC - is great.

Also went to the Matildas v Ireland match. Great but stressful (!). Australia was lucky not to concede at the end. Ireland fans won the fan battle on the night with their songs, pretty clear us Australians supporting the Matildas don't know how to football crowd - no real songs or chants apart from the tired 'Aussie Aussie Aussie' and the wave. The stadium DJ even played Sweet Caroline at one point, clearly had no idea either. Hopefully some Matildas fan culture naturally develops during this tournament.

Great to see such close scorelines in the first round of matches. I'm loving the lower ranked teams giving the 'superstars' a hard time, I feel the higher ranked teams media pundits have been too busy bigging up their teams chances and players and they've become somewhat ignorant or blind to the hard work of smaller federations. Womens football is developing so quickly, absolutely loving it. The only sport I thought I could be professional in as a young girl was swimming, because it was really the main sport shown on TV when the Olympics were on. It never even occurred to me maybe I could be a professional footballer, netballer, basketballer, rugby player, cricketer etc. When I got into football, the only way to watch any football (and not pay for Murdoch's Foxtel) was to put on 3 hours of mens European highlights on a Sunday afternoon on SBS, a TV channel that you couldn't get reception for in every house. So to see sportswomen now on big billboards, in Nike and Adidas ads, getting more publicity than even the mens teams, seeing men and young boys with Kerr and Fowler on their Matildas-specific kit, really blows my mind. For some reason seeing a young boy choose a woman as one of his heroes makes me emotional. I'm just so happy my nieces can easily see women doing these amazing things and being celebrated for it. Leah Williamson said girls can look up to and admire male footballers, of course, but they can never be one. That's why it's so important to make female footballers visible. You've got to see it to believe it. Sounds hokey, but it really is so true. To see such a cultural shift in a few short years makes me so happy for the next generation.

Looking forward to the rest of the tournament, hopefully a few big surprises along the way!

[Gerry Attrick]

The attacking quality is just bad. Without a penalty most teams are clueless on how to score a goal. I think there’s been something like 17 non penalty goals in 13 games now and were it not for Japan kicking the hell out of Zambia it’s about 1 goal a game not from the spot. Increased professionalism is not leading to higher quality.

[kellan]

So after England's narrow win over Haiti yesterday, Sweden needed a late winner to squeeze past South Africa and France are still 0-0 with Jamaica with about 20 minutes left to play. We're certainly not seeing the high scoring blowouts that have typified the group stages of past World Cups.

Has the gap between the best and the rest in women's football finally started to close or are the big teams underperforming?

It's a bit of both, really.

Many of the better sides have been weakened by injury/general absence, and some have also been contending with off the pitch issues in the run-up as well, so they just aren't as hot as they could be. Preparations haven't been helped by the covid delay to the Euros shortening the typical two-year gap between major tournaments down to only 12 months. Put it all together and we've got a lot of teams using Plan B's that are a looking a little undercooked.

At the same time, the lesser sides are making real progress. One of the big reasons for the gap between the best and the rest was the game existing on a two-tier basis: semi professional & fully professional. The latter is becoming increasingly more attainable for players. It makes a huge difference.

[kavah]

Germany looking very good here in the first half  - Although just nearly conceded.
Best I've seen so far - decision making all over the pitch looks almost perfect, they've created a lot of chances.

[elsewhere]

Germany looking very good here in the first half  - Although just nearly conceded.
Best I've seen so far - decision making all over the pitch looks almost perfect, they've created a lot of chances.

They are a compact side that pass well but good God, Morocco was horrid.

[MH41]

This is great article on what the World Cup means for girls and how much progress has been made in recent years. Young girls now have role models and players they can aspire to be - it's so important.

That's a nice article.
Both my daughters play Gaelic football, and the same things are there - a great opportunity for girls to have a sense of community, forge friendships in a team sport etc
They also now have role models in both the men's and women's games now. They love it.
I love watching it too. It's so refreshing to watch compared to the men's game - less dark arts, arguing etc and watching the enjoyment they get out of playing is a joy to watch.
They recently won a few trophies, and it honestly meant more to me than anything I won in my career. It's wonderful to see the woman's game flourish (Football and Gaelic)

However I think one of the reasons why I enjoy watching it is  the openess if the games, the more scoring etc. It's entertaining.

Why I personally find it difficult to watch women's football (soccer) is because of the difference in quality. It's clearly evident even at world cup level.
I love watching athletics. The quality between men's and women's athletics is large too (times & distance) but the technique is the same. Women athletes run, jump, throw with the same excellent technique as men. Same with Tennis?
I think the difference between men's and women's football is the gulf in technique? Is this fair? And if so, why is this? Why should a woman player not be as technically gifted as a man?
Will it just take time and practice and eventually level out, or will there always be a difference technically?
I really hope this doesn't come across wrong, I really am genuinely interested. I believe it's the one thing that could make women's football more popular.

[Gerry Attrick]

Best football we’ll see all tournament from Brazil for their third goal. Genuine quality.

[The North Bank]

Beautiful team goal that was by the brazilians. Panama not at any level to compete though.

[In the Name of Klopp]

What a special goal that was! Peak Barca 10/11.