Cuiaba

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Cuiaba

Brazil Come From Behind To Hand Ferns Rare Hiding

by Jeremy Ruane

CBF President, Joao Carlos Oliveira, presents a memento of the Football Ferns' visit

to team manager Claire Hamilton in Cuiaba photo courtesy CBF

"Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned", goes the old saying, and when those women are Brazilian, and you've beaten them on their own patch three days earlier … ooh boy, were they angry!

Los Canarinhas came out all guns blazing against the Football Ferns at Cuiaba's Arena Pantanal on 1 December, turning around a half-time deficit to trounce the Kiwis 5-1 on 1 December, three days after Tony Readings' charges had deservedly prevailed 1-0 in Sao Paulo.

Even before half-time, the hosts were well in the ascendancy, with the combined efforts of Ria Percival and Rebekah Stott required to repel their first attack of note, a sixth minute raid which featured Cristiane and Andressa Alves.

Four minutes later, Cristiane was causing problems again - she's a handful at the best of times, but Brazil's number eleven was irrepressible in this game. She got past both Stott and Ali Riley en route to the by-line, from where she fizzed a low cross towards Marta, arriving on the far post.

Erin Nayler wasn't having a bar of this prospect, however, smothering the ball before launching a counter-attack which featured Riley's left flank raid - she was a constant threat to Brazil down that wing.

On this occasion, her initial cross was blocked, but the second attempt picked out Amber Hearn, who had Jasmine Pereira lurking behind her with just Erika and goalkeeper Barbara between them and the game's opening goal.

The bounce of the ball didn't favour the heroine of the Football Ferns' first game victory, allowing Erika to step in and clear her lines, one of few occasions on which the angelic-faced defender - a non-playing substitute in the first match - had cause to impose herself on proceedings.

That's because the bulk of the action was taking place at the other end of the park. Andressa directed a twenty-five yard free-kick straight at Nayler in the twelfth minute, after Katie Duncan had taken one for the team when bringing down Formiga from behind as the veteran midfielder thundered downfield.

Two minutes later, Marta got to the left-hand by-line and pulled the ball back for Cristiane, whose first-time snapshot cannoned to safety off Andressa, the midfielder getting in her team-mate's way at a crucial moment.

Unperturbed, Brazil pressed on, Cristiane, Marta and Andressa Alves all featuring in a move which culminated in Formiga curling a gem of a twenty-five yarder beyond the flailing fingertips of Nayler but against the far post, off which the ball cannoned to safety.

There was no let-up for the visitors, with Formiga volleying just wide after being picked out by Andressa's seventeenth minute corner. Percival and Stott combined again to again frustrate their hosts soon afterwards, as Brazil, urged on by a significantly larger crowd than had been seen in Sao Paulo, continued to pound away in search of the opening goal.

They didn't need encouragement such as Pereira's stray pass in the 25th minute - not her first of the game, it must be said, but certainly her last, as she was withdrawn from the fray moments later.

Cristiane was the beneficiary of this gift, and down the left she promptly powered, prior to firing in a low cross towards the far post was Andressa was arriving on cue. So was Abby Erceg, who was unruffled in clearing her lines despite the presence of the midfielder on her shoulder.

The water break, which came after this clearance, gave the Football Ferns a welcome respite from the heat of Brazil's attacks, if not the heat in Cuiaba - the team awoke to 94% humidity, so you can imagine what such heat was like to play in.

It also gave Readings the chance to make a tactical change, with Rosie White entering the fray at Pereira's expense. The impact she made was instant, as her presence allowed Percival to raid down the right, a key element of the Football Ferns' armoury.

Straight away, the fullback was on the attack, working one-twos with White and Hearn before sending a cross careering over the head of the flying figure of Gregorius. Seconds later, White won possession near the right-hand by-line, and fired in an instinctive cross to the far post which Gregorius couldn't quite make contact with.

She certainly made contact with the ball in the desired manner on the half-hour, however, as she gave the Football Ferns the lead, albeit very much against the run of play to this point.

Percival and Stott combined with Duncan, who pinged one forward from half-way for Hearn's and Gregorius' benefit. Erika intervened, but guided her attempt to head the ball to safety straight to the Elfen Saitama striker.

Gregorius deftly controlled the ball before executing the perfect volleyed lob over the advancing figure of Barbara from the edge of the penalty area - 1-0 New Zealand. Again. Surely lightning couldn't strike twice in the land of Jogo Bonito?

Brazil were stunned, so much so that it took them fully six minutes to rediscover their attacking mojo. But when Cristiane's around, there's always danger, and she dragged her team back off the canvas with a devastating forty yard through the middle of the park into the penalty area, where only the combination of Percival's timely tackle and Nayler's bravery prevented one of women's football's finest strikers from equalising.

Two minutes later, Formiga pounced on a Betsy Hassett error and sent Marta scurrying through the inside left channel, from where she angled a shot towards the far corner of the net. Nayler plunged to her left to save with some authority.

The Football Ferns held their opponents at bay for the remainder of the half, and, indeed, could have doubled their advantage in the shadows of the half-time whistle, with Riley once more the heartbeat of the attack.

Her direct approach down the left took her past two opponents before Erika's intervention earned the Kiwis an attacking throw-in. Riley's long lob was flicked on by Hearn to White, who skipped past a defender before unleashing a rising drive which careered over the angle of near post and bar.

Unbeknown to White, Gregorius was careering through the middle of the goalmouth, completely unmarked. Had the current Liverpool striker squared the ball to the former Liverpool striker, it would have put the Brazilians in a pretty pickle at 2-0 down.

One goal was the deficit with which they were faced, however, although Los Canarinhas had plenty of perceived injustices they felt worthy of raising with Paraguayan referee Zulma Quinonez on their way to the dressing room.

Needless to say, they got short change from that approach. But whatever was in their half-time tea … the South American champions hit the ground running when the second half began, and the Football Ferns had no comeback in response - they

weren't allowed to have one by their opponents, who at times played like women possessed.

Inside the first sixty seconds of the half, Brazil equalised. Marta's free-kick was headed out by Erceg to Duncan, whose clearance was pounced on by the former five-time FIFA Women's World Player of the Year.

Marta promptly worked a one-two with Erika before picking out Poliana with a cross which the defender met with a header which soared over Nayler's despairing dive and into the top corner of the net - 1-1.

Two minutes later, Formiga pounced on a loose ball and sent Andressa Alves away down the right. Her cross arced just too far in front of Cristiane, who sparked a superb Brazilian raid in the 51st minute with a sumptuous back-heeled pass to half-time substitute Debinha.

Her cross picked out Andressa Alves, who deftly turned her marker before setting up Marta. A white blur suddenly materialised, Duncan hurtling in to brilliantly block the Brazilian captain's shot at point-blank range.

In between these attacks, Annalie Longo had burst through Brazil's defence, having charged down Rafaelle's attempted clearance. The youngest ever Football Fern was indignant that the sphere had struck her chest when referee Quinonez halted her progress, indicating she had handled the ball, not an argument Longo was destined to win.

Instead, she tried again in the 54th minute, heading a Percival cross past the post seconds after Cristiane's twenty-five yarder had been smothered by Nayler, who ignited the counter-attack.

Brazil took the lead in the 57th minute, Erika powering through the middle of the goalmouth to rise above Duncan and head home Andressa Alves' free-kick, the striker having been harshly adjudged to have been fouled near the by-line, from where she delivered the set-piece.

The Football Ferns looked to respond instantly, just-introduced substitute Kirsty Yallop - such an influential performer in the first match - linking with Gregorius, who took advantage of Riley's decoy run inside her to engineer the space from which she picked out White, whose header arced past the far post.

Seconds after Erceg blocked a shot from Marta, Formiga unleashed a shot on the hour which there was absolutely no chance of blocking - a thirty yard screamer which fair flew past Nayler's flailing fingertips and slammed into the top left-hand corner of her net. 3-1, and how!

Two minutes later, Percival tangled with Cristiane on the left and was deservedly booked for her contribution to proceedings … then immediately shown the red card! It took Duncan's intervention - pointing out to referee Quinonez that she and White had been the players booked in the first half, not Percival - which ensured the fullback stayed on the pitch!

Ten opponents or eleven, it mattered not to Brazil. They simply kept on coming, intent on redeeming themselves in the eyes of their fans as they continued their preparations for the Torneio Internacioal de Natal, an annual quadrangular event, this year involving Canada, Croatia and Mexico, which they are hosting later this month.

Erceg's vital headed clearance prevented Andressa Alves' cross from finding its target in the 63rd minute, seconds before Formiga sent a twenty yarder fizzing narrowly over the crossbar, with all bar two Football Ferns inside their own penalty area as Los Canarinhas piled on the pressure.

Nayler battered a shot from Marta round her near post, then looked on with relief as her team-mates scrambled the ball to safety, the maestro having rattled the near post with an in-swinging corner in the 71st minute.

Seconds later, Nayler saved at the feet of Debinha after she had worked a one-two with Cristiane. Then, following more fine work by Marta, substitute Beatriz Zaneratto spurned a glorious chance to make her mark on the scoresheet with her first touch when steering the sphere past the post with the goal at her mercy.

After a rare save by Barbara - to deny Hearn's shot on the turn after she had linked with Longo, Stott's intervention thwarted Andressa Alves once more, before Debinha poked one past the post upon being picked out by Beatriz Zaneratto.

Back came the Football Ferns, Longo picking out White, who chested the ball down in the 83rd minute, but was unable to pull the trigger thanks to Erika's timely intervention.

Seconds later, Gregorius sent Hearn haring off down the right flank, from where she looked to pick out White on the far post. The retreating figure of Poliana got there first this time, firing the ball over her own crossbar, which prompted the officials to award Brazil a goal-kick!

It was the last hope the Kiwis held of getting back into the match, for their hosts swiftly regained the ascendancy and maintained it through till the final whistle. Before it blew, they saw Nayler smother another Andressa Alves effort, substitute Gabi Zanotti rattle the side-netting, and celebrated two more goals.

The first of this late brace materialised in the 88th minute, and saw Marta produce a gorgeous chipped finish to outfox the advancing figure of Nayler after Beatriz Zaneratto had powered through from half-way, sweeping past three players in the process.

Then in stoppage time, after Kate Loye had made her debut as a late substitute for Duncan, Los Canarinhas capped things off with a fifth goal. Debinha did the honours, tucking the ball home into the far corner of the net with the game's last kick after Andressa Alves had teamed up with substitute Thais Duarte on the counter-attack.

5-1 then, the first time the Football Ferns have shipped as many goals in a match since they copped a nap hand from both France and Mexico at the 2011 Cyprus Cup. Yet on this occasion, despite the humid conditions, they again led at half-time, and would have done so by more than one goal, had White seen Gregorius' run through the middle when she was shaping to shoot.

But Brazil wanted this game badly, and in the second half, they hit the visitors with everything in their arsenal. The final scoreline did the victors justice - they were different gravy in the second spell, and gave the Football Ferns food for thought aplenty heading into an Olympics year which starts, for Readings' team, with a two-legged tussle against Papua New Guinea in January, Rio 2016 the victors' reward.

Brazil: Barbara, Poliana, Rafaelle, Erika, Tamires; Andressa (Debinha, 46), Formiga (booked, 43) (Beatriz Zaneratto, 75), Thaisa; Andressa Alves, Cristiane (Gabi Zanotti, 83), Marta (Thais Duarte, 89)

F'ball Ferns: Nayler; Percival (booked, 61), Stott, Erceg, Riley; Hassett (Yallop, 55), Duncan (booked, 11) (Loye, 89), Longo; Pereira (White, 27 (booked, 43)), Hearn, Gregorius (Bott, 68)

Referee: Zulma Quinonez (Paraguay)

Rio 2016