Tag: Netherlands

Euro Roundup: Restructing the WSL, International Action and New League Leaders

Posted on by RJ Allen

There’s been a fair few changes in the top of women’s football in England. Since the WSL started, it’s gone from one league to two and also more recently changed from a summer to a winter season. The later was to move it in line with other European leagues and the league system in England itself. There is to be more change which will occur next season.

The FA announced in September 2017 that there was to be a restructuring of the women’s football pyramid at the elite level and new licensing criteria. These changes will see WSL1 expanded to 14 teams, become the top tier and the league would have full time professional players across the board. WSL2 would be Tier 2, have 12 teams and it would be semi professional and part time. WPL (Women’s Premier League) would maintain it’s regional structure. Several WSL teams applied and were successful in their bid but there were spaces left. Some teams chose not to apply at the time and could apply in this open process now with WPL sides also showing interest.

This will end on Friday, March 9th. We now know the names of these tiers. WSL1 will revert back to its previous name of WSL, WSL2 will become the FA Women’s Championship and WPL will become the FA Women’s National League. The branding and further details about this will be revealed at the end of the season.

International Cups

It seems like it wasn’t long since international teams were kicking off their year at La Manga and now we have moved on tournaments where teams can claim silverware for the first time this year and test themselves against others they may or may not play against in this World Cup qualifying year.

The Algarve Cup and the Cyprus Cup both ran at the same time. The Algarve Cup saw 7 European teams participate including Euro 2017 champions Netherlands. After the group stages were over the final placing matches were put together and the final was Netherlands vs Sweden. When these two met in the Euros, Netherlands won 2-0 in the quarter finals. However, the inclement weather conditions lead to the final being called off and both teams sharing the trophy.

The Cyprus Cup had 10 out of 12 teams participating from Europe such as Spain, Italy, Switzerland and Wales. All the top teams in each group had the same points after winning 2 of their matches and drawing as well so it came down to goal difference. That meant that Italy faced Spain in the final and 3 other placing matches ending up as all European ties. Belgium and Switzerland faced other opposition in South Africa and North Korea respectively. Spain went on to win the Cyprus Cup beating Italy 2-0. They had won the Algarve Cup the year before. As for the rest of the European sides, Switzerland finished 4th after losing 2-1 to North Korea. Belgium finished 5th after a win against South Africa. Austria finished 7th, Wales 8th, Czech Republic 9th, Slovakia 10th, Finland 11th and Hungary last.

Finally, the top 3 European teams, according to FIFA rankings, headed over to the States for the third edition of the SheBelieves Cup. The US and France took the previous titles and the US managed to win the cup again but not by much. The cup kicked off in style when England took everyone by suprise and thrashed a sorry France side. The first goal was scored in the 6th minute by Toni Duggan and soon enough it was 3-0 at half time. It took less than a minute for Fran Kirby to rub more salt into French wounds and put England 4-0 up.  France later got a goal but it took a deflection from Millie Bright to go in.

Meanwhile, Germany was defeated 1-0 by the US. Germany have not had the best year so they looked to try and get something in the next game which they did. They drew 2-2 with England in a bizarre game. Both Germany goals were gifted to them with the Lionesses not clearing quick enough and an own goal. England showed character to get back into it twice which previously they may not have done. France improved from their previous match and drew 1-1 with the US. That left England with the upper hand as their goal difference was larger than that of the US. It looked to be a great showdown between the two with both sides having some good chances. It was an own goal by Karen Bardsley however that meant that the US would win with the Lionesses finishing second. There was a lack of communication between her and Millie Bright which lead to it.

France beat Germany 3-0 earlier in the day to finish third.

League action

In the WSL, recent fixtures saw the current two go head to head in a crucial match that could decide the title further down the line. Before this fixture however, Manchester City suffered their first defeat of the season to Birmingham City who they knocked out of the FA Cup a few days before. This left the door open for Chelsea to take advantage and go into top spot which they did. They faced a tough Yeovil Town side but took the win 2-0 and went to the top by 1 point. The resulting match between the top two ended in a 2-2 draw with Chelsea failing to maintain their 2-0 lead in this game and the equalising goal from Georgia Stanway was unstoppable. Elsewhere, Arsenal kept themselves within reach after a 1-0 win at Everton. They are 6 point behind Manchester City but with a game in hand so it could be a close run in for the title.

In Belgium’s Super League, it was top vs bottom and the gap showed as Anderlecht thrashed Heist 11-0. Heist are set to go into the relegation round but OH Leuven could get themselves out of the relegation zone if they beat Standard Liege just above them and with other results too.

In Germany’s Frauen Bundesliga, Wolfsburg maintain their lead after beating SC Sand. Meanwhile second and third placed teams Freiburg and Bayern Munich slipped up a bit with Freiburg losing to bottom placed Duisburg and then beating Bayern 6 days later.

Finally in Spain, Atletico Madrid have taken top spot in the Primera Division. Barcelona lost to Athletic Club who are third in the league. Atletico Madrid beat Sporting de Huelva 4-2 and Barcelona kept the gap to only a point with a 4-1 win against Valencia.

Around the World of WoSo: Farewell to HAO

Posted on by RJ Allen

HAO Says Goodbye to the USWNT:

It was a bittersweet week for fans of the U.S. Women’s National team as midfielder Heather O’Reilly officially retired. While it is sad that she will be gone as a member of USWNT, the good news is that we get to remember all the amazing things she accomplished over her 15-year career at the National level. The other good news is that she is only retiring from International soccer but will continue to play for her NWSL club team, FC Kansas City. Simply known as HAO to her many fans, O’Reilly had a historic career–231 caps, 47 goals, 55 assists. These came along the way as she won the U-19 World Cup in 2002, three Olympic Gold medals (’04, ’08, and ’12), and most recently became a World Cup Champion in 2015. HAO also holds the record for most games played consecutively at 74. She was a crucial part of creating a new team image during the transition from the 99ers, even getting to wear the number nine that was passed down from Mia Hamm herself all those years ago. I’d be lying if I said seeing Mia on the field to honor HAO didn’t make me emotional, because it did.

In her last game in a U.S. jersey against Thailand last week, HAO scored one last goal and grabbed an assist to lead the gals to a 9-0 victory. It was certainly an emotional night for all; teammates, coaches, fans and any soccer fan who knew how special she was to the sport over the years. I think it’s safe to say she will be remembered for her iconic game face and record setting beep test numbers. She was the very definition of determination; every practice, every game, no matter if she was starting or on the bench, Heather O’Reilly gave it her all. Like many fans, I am forever grateful for her work and her dedication to make this team great for so long.

International Break for EURO 2017 Qualifying:

This past week, several NWSL players were off for their respective countries for European Qualifying. Countries that have made it and the NWSL players involved:

England- Rachel Daly (Houston Dash),

France- Amandine Henry (Portland Thorns FC)

Iceland- Dagny Brynjarsdottir (Portland Thorns FC),

Scotland- Kim Little & Rachel Corsie (Seattle Reign FC).

Other countries who have qualified are Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland. 

Hoyas Continue to Impress:

Last week, Georgetown upset the number three team in the nation (Virginia); this week they managed one better. The Hoyas needed a double overtime goal (102nd minute) from Grace Damaska to best West Virginia, who are ranked number one. Another impressive outing, considering the Hoyas are ranked 16th, and will surely crack the top 10 when the latest rankings are released. With the win, they snapped a two-year streak of 30 games won at home by WVU. With huge wins like this on their resume, Georgetown is surely grabbing everyone’s attention. Up next, the Hoyas will host Providence on Sunday while WVU travel to Richmond on Friday.

FSU has a pair of Aces:

Florida State has two players who are playing very well and have grabbed my attention: Megan Connolly (M) and Deyna Castellanos (F). The two have combined for seven goals and two assist in eight games so far. Connolly had a breakout season last year and now as a sophomore, she is aiming to do even more damage. The 19 year-old Irish international is leading the Seminoles in shots with 24, one of which was a game winner against Middle Tennessee earlier this season. The other notable standout is 17 year-old Castellanos, who hails from Venezuela and is only a freshman. She already has three game winners in her catalog; against Texas A & M, UConn, and added another versus Miami on Sunday. Castellanos is second on the team in shots, with 23. The Seminoles have started the season strong with seven wins and one loss. Their next two opponents are Wake Forest and number three ranked Virginia after that. This team is worth keeping an eye on to see what they can do against other top ten teams. With Connolly and Castellanos engineering the offense for FSU, I think they could go very far into the College Cup.

USWNT Friendly with the Netherlands:

Sunday night proved to be a very competitive match between the United States and the Netherlands. Not that I wasn’t expecting one, but the Dutch really impressed me with how they executed their game plan. They started out fast and the Americans were exposed in the first two minutes when forward Shanice Van De Sanden pounced on a loose ball to give the Netherlands the lead. For most of the Dutch found ways to stretch our defense, which was interesting in itself considering we had three centerbacks on the backline.  Fielding Whitney Engen, Julie Johnston and Becky Sauerbrunn, the U.S. struggled to find a rhythm in the first half hour. Meghan Klingenberg was the only true outside back starting the game and she had a sub-par game to say the least. She got beat more than enough to count and for me was the worst player on the field in the first half. With ten minutes until halftime, the United States finally got on the board. Tobin Heath broke free on the right side and found Carli Lloyd alone, who tucked inside the eighteen to blast it top shelf for the equalizer.

 The second half was a little bit more organized than the first for the United States, but still the Dutch continued to win battles in the air and work through Van De Sanden and Danielle Van De Donk. In goal for the U.S. was Alyssa Naeher and in her 14th appearance, she was tested plenty. As the game went on, Naeher seemed to get settled in and that showed as the Dutch couldn’t get anything else past her. After an own goal in the 50th minute by the Netherlands, the United States tightened up on defense and brought on subs to push the match up a notch. Two of those included Crystal Dunn and Megan Rapinoe. On several occasions, Dunn blew past multiple defenders but couldn’t control in the final third to get any dangerous shot off. The third and final goal came by way of a Rapinoe cross that was headed back towards the Netherlands goal by Lloyd and Allie Long made sure it found the back of the net.

Overall, I really enjoyed this game by both teams. While the U.S. certainly have areas to improve, for a friendly it was solid effort. As for the Netherlands, I am excited to see what they can do next. They really impressed me with not only the style they perform with, but the physical nature they imposed. I was familiar with a few players before the match and now I am exposed to a handful of quality players. Nothing but respect and newfound love for the Netherlands, they have a solid foundation to build on.

Arkansas Shocks Florida:

The Razorbacks had yet another tremendous outing at home against a top five opponent; the first you may recall was beating number two Duke almost a month ago. This time they beat SEC rival Florida for the first time in program history. The Gators were ranked fourth and went into the game with a three game win streak in which they scored 13 goals over that span. Arkansas was more than up to the challenge, scoring twice in a three minute span in the first half. Junior Jessi Hartzler dominated Florida’s defense to give Arkansas the lead and never looked back. It was a brilliant individual effort and as the game went on, the rest of the Razorbacks started to believe they could once again pull off an upset. Florida managed to get a goal back early in the second half but that wasn’t enough to fully recover. Even with a two hour lightening delay, the crowd of 1,155 stayed until the end. Florida drop to six wins and two losses. They look to recover against Auburn on Thursday in Gainesville. Arkansas climbs to nine wins and one loss; the best start in program history. They face off against Alabama in Fayetteville on Thursday.