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Danish Delight Means More Despair For Football Ferns

by Jeremy Ruane

Two set-piece goals was all that stood between New Zealand and their first-ever point at the FIFA Women's World Cup Finals on September 15, as Denmark overcame another sterling defensive effort from the underdogs to prevail 2-0 at the Wuhan Sports Centre Stadium in China.

The Football Ferns set out their stall to get to the half-time break on level terms, and achieved it, albeit more by good luck than good management on occasions.

The Danes didn't penetrate at all in the first ten minutes of play, and it was only in the thirteenth minute, when Rebecca Smith stumbled, that they managed to engineer an opening, although the best efforts of Abby Erceg, Priscilla Duncan, Maia Jackman and the recovering figure of Smith did enough to force their opponents away from goal.

Eventually Anne Dot Eggers Nielsen found a way through, slipping a pass into Merete Pedersen. But when she checked and turned, she ran into trouble in the form of Hayley Moorwood, who wasted no time in hooking the ball to safety.

This sparked a counter-attack, with Wendi Henderson spreading play wide to Ali Riley. Her cross arced just over the head of Ria Percival, who raced across to gather the ball before it went out of play. She crossed for Emily McColl, but Danish defender Gitte Andersen headed clear.

After Bettina Falk had fired a thirty-yarder goal wards with which Jenny Bindon dealt comfortably, the Kiwi `keeper found herself beaten from the same range by Cathrine Paaske Sorensen, only for the crossbar to come to her aid in the eighteenth minute.

Two minutes later, a wayward clearance by Bindon, upon receipt of a Duncan back-pass, offered Denmark an opening, but New Zealand's clam-like defence mopped up the threat comfortably.

Thus followed two Football Ferns raids, with McColl and Henderson combining to present Moorwood with the chance to slip Percival in on the right on the first occasion.

She shot early from twenty-five yards, but well wide of the target, while Erceg, after playing a one-two with Henderson on the right, saw her cross-shot greedily gobbled up by Danish goalkeeper, Heidi Johansen, in the 23rd minute.

The Danes responded through their captain, Katrine Pedersen. She played the ball wide to Johanna Rasmussen and fired in a cross which Sorensen headed over. Soon afterwards, Mia Olsen and Eggers played a one-two with Neilsen before lashing a twenty-yarder towards the top far corner. Bindon saved confidently.

After Riley had scrambled the ball to safety in the aftermath of a Julie Rydahl Bukh corner, Neilsen played a ball through for Merete Pedersen, only for the striker to find Jackman blocking her path, and Bindon hurtling out of goal.

The `keeper showed great presence of mind to release the ball soon after catching it, as her momentum was such that she wouldn't have stopped before the eighteen-yard line was reached.

Bindon was off her line again in the 38th minute to foil the same Dane as she looked to get on the end of a pass from her namesake, Katrine Pedersen, while sixty seconds later, Rasmussen got in round the back on New Zealand's right and crossed for Sorensen, who was denied by a timely challenge from Smith.

That effectively ensured the Football Ferns realised their objective of maintaining parity till the break, and in the remaining minutes of the half, they were little troubled by the Danes, who made amends within seconds of the resumption.

Neilsen and Sorensen stormed downfield to slip half-time substitute Maiken Pape in on goal. She hesitated before bringing Merete Pedersen into play, and her teasing cross arced beyond the far post for Bukh, who was racing in on the blindside of the defence. Her first-time drive was deflected to safety by Smith.

New Zealand's defending was steadfast and resolute, so much so that the next opportunity fell their way, in the 54th minute. Marlies Oostdam, who, like all her team-mates, looked to rouse the support of the 38,000-strong crowd - the biggest ever to watch a New Zealand women's international - at every opportunity, whipped in a corner which Henderson headed agonisingly past the far post.

The Danes responded by squandering a glorious chance to open the scoring. Sorensen loomed large on the left, and clipped in a cross which took a deflection. It fell perfectly for Pape, who had the goal at her mercy inside the six-yard box. Inexplicably, she headed over the bar - a real let-off for the Football Ferns.

After Bindon had saved at the feet of Pape following an interchange involving Andersen, Bukh

and Merete Pedersen, the Kiwis hit back via the combination of Moorwood and Percival on the right. But the latter was foiled by Falk as she looked to evade the fullback, who swept the ball upfield to Bukh.

At full stretch, she forced the ball beyond the covering figure of Erceg and gave Merete Pedersen the chance to take on Jackman. The defender stood her ground, and with the help of Bindon, forced the striker to shoot wide. But referee Mayumi Oiwa saw things differently, and awarded a free-kick to the Danes twenty yards out from goal, for a yellow card offence by Jackman.

The long-serving star of New Zealand women's football was stunned by the decision, and was dealt a further blow when Katrine Pedersen curled the resulting free-kick into the top near corner of the net - a great goal, but a heart-breaking one for the Kiwis, whose defending in this match was exemplary.

While they were still reeling from that setback on the hour mark, the Danes were awarded another free-kick in the 66th minute, this time for a tired foul by Erceg. How it was punished, Pedersen this time curling her set-piece beyond the far post, where Sorensen rose high to power a header across Bindon and into the top far corner of the net.

The Football Ferns were dumbfounded - two free-kicks, two goals, and their dreams of a maiden point at just their second Women's World Cup Finals all but gone. Not once did they give up, though - the spirit in this team is indefatigable. Straight from the kick-off, the Kiwis stormed downfield, led by Riley. The beneficiary of her labours was Moorwood, but Johansen proved equal to the midfielder's header.

The Danes enjoyed a purple patch fifteen minutes from time, during which they looked to match the 3-0 scoreline they amassed against New Zealand at the 1991 FIFA Women's World Cup Finals.

On the first occasion, Bindon parried a driven cross by Merete Pedersen. Pape recovered the ball and played it back to the recovering striker, who curled a shot onto the roof of the net, seconds before Bindon grabbed a cross from Katrine Pedersen off the head of namesake Merete.

Jackman and Bindon then combined to thwart Bukh before Smith produced a vital block to thwart Pape. Prior to Denmark's next raid, which saw a Bukh cross headed over by Merete Pedersen, Riley led a couple of promising New Zealand raids, but the experienced Danish rearguard proved too solid and reliable, countering them relatively easily.

The final act of the match saw Bindon grab a long-range Katrine Pedersen free-kick, awarded for shirt-pulling by Erceg, who was booked, as was Bindon, somewhat bizarrely for time-wasting, in stoppage time.

2-0 was Denmark's lot, however, a far from convincing display by the Europeans, who will have to perform far, far better against Brazil in their final match if they hope to advance to the quarter-finals. Otherwise they'll be relying on a New Zealand victory over host nation China to secure their passage …

Player of the Match, Annie Dot Eggers Neilsen, praised the Football Ferns' efforts afterwards. “I congratulate them. They fought so hard, and made it very tough for us. We didn't think too much today, but both teams looked tired - perhaps two days rest in between matches is not enough”.

New Zealand's coach, John Herdman, was pleased with his team's efforts. “Going in 0-0 at half-time was a massive achievement for this team - they achieved their goal, and set themselves a platform to steal something in the second half.

“But their very best isn't good enough on this stage at present. Instead, they have a huge passion and spirit, and the Chinese gave them great support tonight, an occasion on which we were two set-plays away from getting a result.

“It's quite sad for our players, who genuinely thought they could get a point out of this game. But they were two world-class free-kicks, and as we've seen throughout this tournament already, if you concede a free-kick outside the penalty area, you're in trouble”.

New Zealand's final match at the 2007 FIFA Women's World Cup Finals takes place on Wednesday at the Tianjin Olympic Centre Stadium, where they take on host nation China, who need to at least draw to secure their passage to the quarter-finals. The match will be shown live on Sky Sports 3 at midnight, going into Thursday morning, NZ time.

Football Ferns: Bindon; Erceg, Jackman, Smith, Oostdam; Percival, Moorwood, Duncan, McColl, Riley; Henderson

Denmark: Johansen; Olsen, Andersen, K. Pedersen, Falk; Bukh, Dot Eggers Neilsen, Gajhede, Rasmussen; M. Pedersen, Sorensen

Referee: Mayumi Oiwa (Japan)

2007 FIFA Women's World Cup Finals