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Football Ferns Held By Norway In Stavanger
by Jeremy Ruane
The Football Ferns came within nine minutes of scoring a rare win against Scandinavian opposition in Europe on 25 November, as they were held to a 1-1 draw by Norway at the Randaberg Arena in Stavanger, the second match of their three-game European tour.
The travelling side were just as mobile on the pitch throughout this indoor encounter, and enjoyed the greater share of possession on the artificial turf, but it was the ninth-ranked Norwegians who had the first chance, Isabell Herlovsen firing wide on receipt of a long ball in the sixth minute.
The same player repeated the dose on the quarter hour upon being picked out by Emilie Harvi's cross, the supplier of that chance then looking to score herself, only to be denied by Erin Nayler.
Amber Hearn went close to giving the Football Ferns the advantage on the half-hour on receipt of Annalie Longo's angled through ball, firing narrowly wide, but that was to prove a range-finder.
For upon receipt of a Longo cross in the 34th minute, Hearn's close control took her past a defender, at which point she belted the ball beyond Ingrid Hjelmseth's dive to silence the 913-strong crowd in attendance.
After the interval, Herlovsen went close from a 54th minute corner - one of many such set-pieces - with a header which Ria Percival blocked on the line, while Harvi evaded challenges from both Percival and Betsy Hassett when cutting in off the left, only to fire narrowly wide from twenty yards as Even Pellerud's side chased an equaliser.
With Ali Riley containing Caroline Hansen's prospects down Norway's right flank, the home team ws forced to employ the counter-attack far more often than they would have preferred, but Maren Mjelde and Kristine Minde combined well in this regard, until the former made way for debutant Gry Tofte Ims thirteen minutes from time.
Four minutes later, a left flank raid by Herlovsen
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culminated in a stunning cross-shot from the most acute of angles, the ball crashing in off the far post to frustrate the Football Ferns' hopes of a win in the first match of two the countries are playing at this venue.
"We had the better of the game in both possession and territory, and our ability to control our possession was much better today", said Football Ferns coach Tony Readings post-match.
"We did turn that possession into quite incisive play at times and got behind their lines, which we were not able to do against France", to whom the Football Ferns lost 2-1 in the opening match of their tour.
"When you play an athletically organised team like Norway, who play with a lot of numbers between the ball and the goal, you have to create something special from a player to break down the opposition", Readings continued.
"We did that a few times today and we definitely took some steps forward in that area. But we need to learn that when we are on top in these games that we take our chances, get two or three goals up and don't let the opposition back in the game.
"That said, if we are 1-0 up late in the game, sometimes that will be enough. If we keep the ball, the opposition can't score. But we became a little impatient, and didn't keep our shape as well as we did in the first half …"
The teams meet again on Thursday, 27 November, at the same venue, with the Football Ferns looking to end their year on a winning note in what will be their sixteenth international of 2014.
Norway: Hjelmseth; Gardsjord, Ronning, Lund, Minde; Hansen (Jensen, 70), Mykjaland, Mjelde (Ims, 77), Reiten (Hegerberg, 46); Herlovsen, Harvi
F'ball Ferns: Nayler; Percival, Stott, Erceg, Riley; Hassett, Hoyle, Hearn, Longo; Collins (Wilkinson, 69), Gregorius
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