England 2-1 South Africa: women’s international friendly – as it happened
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Suzanne Wrack attended an event in Coventry this evening. Here are her thoughts on it. Thank you for following along with this MBM. Sleep well!
Sarina Wiegman shared her thoughts with ITV: “The first half went pretty smoothly for us; we performed well. In the second half, we faced some difficulties and became a bit careless. We had some unsteady moments in the first half too, but we still managed to create opportunities from both corners and open play. We scored a fantastic goal. However, in the second half, we let our guard down a bit. The opposing team was effective with their counter-attacks and very quick, which made things challenging for us. We kept pushing forward and trying to play our game, but during transitions, they took advantage of our mistakes and made smarter choices. We just need to discuss this and move ahead. Leah Williamson’s goal was a wonderful moment for her, especially being her 50th cap; that adds something special. It’s a different experience when you start, and I wanted to see what she could do. Jess Naz really spreads the play and makes runs behind the defense, while Grace Clinton played well despite a few tricky moments; together, they were able to find space effectively.”
The incredible Grace Clinton, the standout player for England tonight, shares her thoughts with ITV. “It was a challenging match... we anticipated a strong performance from them... they have players with great skills... securing the win and scoring a goal felt fantastic... it's a wonderful evening for me... it boosts my confidence... it just feels great to be on the pitch... Maya Le Tissier’s assist for my goal was simply brilliant... it was hard not to capitalise on that... facing tough opponents, the game was incredibly fast-paced... we’ll definitely go back and analyze our performance... overall, it's a positive experience... my main goal is to build my confidence and keep finding the back of the net.”
A mixed bag for Sarina Wiegman to assess. In the first half, England displayed strong attacking play, with Grace Clinton showcasing her talent on the international stage. However, their defense was shaky, regularly exploited by South Africa's captain, Thembi Kgatlana. Her impressive ability to apply pressure, combined with her speed and skill, gave the English side significant trouble. On a different night, Kgatlana could have easily scored or assisted three, four, or even six goals, given the number of chances she had. Despite being ranked 50th in the world, South Africa will take pride in their performance, even if the result wasn’t what they wanted. As for England, they can celebrate the win, which is important even when the team doesn't play at its best. Nevertheless, Wiegman has a lot of work ahead to shore up her vulnerable defense, especially since higher-ranked teams are likely to capitalize on these weaknesses.
Final Score: England 2, South Africa 1
England managed to secure the win, but it wasn't entirely convincing.
In the 90+5th minute, South Africa manages to clear the ball without much trouble and pushes forward, aiming for a counterattack. However, their momentum quickly fades due to a few careless touches, and it seems that England has secured their position.
In the 90th minute plus 4, Stanway skillfully maneuvers along the left side until Kgatlana pushes her into Ramalepe from behind. This results in a free kick for England on the left side of the field. Players gather at the edge of the South Africa penalty area, with Greenwood set to take the kick.
In the 90th minute plus 2, Kgatlana, who previously opted not to take a shot when she was one-on-one with Earps in the first half, attempts a long-range strike from nearly 40 yards out.
In the 91st minute, Hemp makes a run at the opposing defense but struggles to get a solid shot off. England seems to have chosen to focus on attacking as their main strategy. Considering their defensive performance tonight, it's hard to fault them for that approach.
90 minutes: An extra five minutes will be added.
89 minutes in: Le Tissier manages to win a fairly typical header over Ramalepe, but ends up giving away a free kick in the process, just as the left side was starting to become more promising. Frustrated, Le Tissier throws her arms in the air in disbelief at the puzzling call. The referee has been inconsistent, allowing a lot of rough play to go unpenalized while suddenly cracking down on minor infractions at other moments. It's quite confusing.
88 minutes in: Ramalepe sends a long cross from the right side. Earps decisively steps out from her position to confidently catch the ball. The match is quite dynamic right now, and it seems likely that a last-minute goal could happen. It's hard to say at which end it might be scored!
86 minutes into the game: Greenwood sends a high ball in from the left side. Hemp attempts to direct a header towards the goal, but it's veering off to the right. England has raised their game. Better late than never!
85 minutes in: Mbane just put in a pretty significant challenge, scraping down the achilles, and VAR is looking into whether it deserves a red card. However, no action is taken. The resulting free kick causes a bit of chaos in the South Africa penalty area, but nothing comes of it.
84 minutes: Russo speeds down the left side, but Mbane pulls her back in a cynical manner, earning a yellow card for the foul. There’s a free kick just outside the South Africa penalty area on the left.
83 minutes: Toone tries to set up Kirby with a precise pass through the center, but Kirby's effort to control the ball, turn, and move forward from just outside the box fails. England hasn’t contributed much in this second half, but they have shown some improvement in the last few minutes.
81 minutes in: Bronze controls the ball skillfully down the inside-right path, allowing Toone to make a break for it. Toone unleashes a strong shot towards the top right corner, really giving it her all. Dlamini manages to deflect it out for a corner kick, matching the impressive save Earps made just moments earlier. However, the subsequent corner doesn’t lead to any opportunities.
In the 79th minute, Kgatlana bolts down the left side, effortlessly getting past Bright. She positions herself for a shot, aiming to curl it around Earps and into the bottom right corner of the goal. The goalkeeper, however, remains firm and makes a fantastic save. England's defense looks shaky, as Kgatlana's excellent positioning and incredible speed are creating all sorts of problems for them.
78 minutes: Holweni replaces Motau on the field.
77 minutes into the game: Biyana receives a yellow card for a direct block on Kelly. It didn't appear to be particularly severe, certainly not deserving of the first booking of the night. However, the decision stands. Biyana seems taken aback by it.
76 minutes in: The corner doesn't result in anything significant, but England is just barely managing to maintain their slim lead.
75 minutes in: Ramalepe sends a clever pass through the right side for the unstoppable Kgatlana, who fires a low diagonal shot aimed at the bottom-left corner. Once again, Bronze steps up, extending her leg to deflect the ball away to the side for a corner kick.
74 minutes in: England's defense has been a complete mess.
73 minutes in: England makes two more substitutions, bringing on Hemp and Bright in place of Mead and the struggling Williamson. Just moments after play resumes, Kgatlana receives a perfectly timed pass from Magaia and takes a powerful shot that soars into the top-right corner—an incredible finish. However, she was in an offside position, and the assistant referee raises the flag.
71 minutes in: Stanway's mishap in the midfield seems to have given Kgatlana the opportunity to launch another threatening attack down the right flank. However, Motau makes a reckless late tackle after the ball is gone, providing a fortunate break for Stanway and England.
In the 69th minute, Williamson makes another error as she misreads a high ball at the halfway line, giving Kgatlana the chance to surge down the right flank. Kgatlana has every reason to take a shot on goal but decides to send a low cross to Magaia, who is unmarked in the center, about 25 yards out. However, the pass isn’t great, and Magaia has to slow down her run. She manages to get a shot off, but Bronze recovers in time to make a brave block.
68 minutes into the game: Williamson rushes forward from the defense to chase after a loose ball in the middle of the field and ends up handling it. Surprisingly, the referee doesn't call a free kick, much to Motlhalo's frustration. It's definitely been an up-and-down night for Williamson.
66 minutes: Bronze finds a bit of room on the right side. However, she doesn’t have much time, and her low cross that doubles as a shot is deflected and goes straight to Dlamini.
65 min: It seems that Ramalepe is about to be subbed off… but she returns to the field instead. However, she doesn’t appear to be in great shape.
64 minutes: Le Tissier crashes into Ramalepe with a solid challenge. The South African player requires some medical attention and may not be able to keep playing.
63 min: Stanway loses the ball easily, and she's lucky that Kgatlana hesitates as she approaches the England penalty area, leaving the home side short on defenders.
At the 62-minute mark, England executed a four-player substitution. Naz, Park, Morgan, and the outstanding Clinton were taken off the field in favor of Bronze, Russo, Kirby, and Toone.
After an hour of play, England seems a bit disorganized. Kelly decides to take action; she dribbles in from the right and launches a long-range shot aimed at the top-right corner. The ball hits the crossbar and bounces away. It was nearly a third goal for England, as Dlamini wouldn't have reached it if it had been on target.
59 minutes in: South Africa has scored their first-ever goal against England! They're hungry for another, with Kgatlana making a determined run down the left side. However, her low cross doesn't connect with any teammates in the center, and once again, her hesitation proves costly; without it, she might have already scored a hat-trick.
57 minutes: This is the minimum that South Africa should receive for their offensive efforts tonight. England deserves it as well; this isn't the first time they've made a careless defensive error, and they've been made to pay for their negligence. To reiterate, Sarina Wiegman has a lot to address.
England Triumphs 2-1 Over South Africa!
England makes another mistake, and this time it costs them. Williamson sends a pass over the halfway line to Stanway, but both players seem to be daydreaming. Kgatlana capitalizes on their lack of focus, slipping in between them and sprinting down the center. She reaches the penalty area, gets past Earps, and calmly places the ball into the bottom left corner of the net.
53 minutes in: Things are looking a bit disorganized at the moment. Not much action happening.
51 minutes in: Makhubela nudges Clinton off the ball. At first, it seems harmless, but a forceful push has strained her shoulder. She needs some medical attention before she can rise, clearly in pain, but she takes a deep breath and pushes through. Clinton has been England's standout performer up to now and surely wants to keep playing for as long as possible.
At the 49-minute mark, Clinton makes a run down the right side, trying to find Kelly positioned just inside the South African penalty area. Kelly tries to maneuver around a couple of defenders but isn't able to succeed in her efforts.
47 minutes in: Park, who hasn’t made much noise until now, skillfully maneuvers down the inside-left path and almost slips past a defender after a quick exchange with Kelly. Unfortunately, the return pass goes astray.
The second half begins with South Africa kicking off. They've made two substitutions: Swart is unable to continue as goalkeeper and has been replaced by the seasoned Dlamini, and Sinoxolo Cesane has come off for Biyana.
A fun interlude. Last night was a great night for the Lionesses at the Ballon d'Or, with Lauren James finishing 13th, Lucy Bronze at 20th, and Lauren Hemp ranked 28th. However, you might have missed this news due to the overwhelming noise caused by the tantrums from some of Real Madrid's frustrated fans. Here’s Rob Smyth's take on that particular outburst.
HALF TIME: England Leads 2-0 Against South Africa
England, featuring Grace Clinton, has shown promise in their offense, but their defense has been a bit shaky. South Africa has struggled with their final pass or shot, which has led to them missing out on at least one goal.
In the 45th minute plus 3, Noxolo Cesane is struggling to overtake Morgan while pursuing a long pass down the center. Earps steps forward to take control just outside her penalty area. South Africa has posed several challenges for England, even though they haven't made Earps work hard yet.
45 min +2: This is the second time tonight that Kgatlana has been in the same situation. She chose not to take the shot both times. In another universe, however, she might have taken the risk and tied up the game.
45 min: Mead takes the free kick with a soft touch instead of a powerful kick, making it an easy catch for Swart. South Africa quickly makes a counterattack, with Kgatlana getting past Williamson on the right side. She has a great opportunity to shoot one-on-one against Earps, even though the angle is tight, but she hesitates and misses the chance.
44 minutes: Sinoxolo Cesane is caught off guard by Clinton, who makes a quick turn from 25 yards away. After a tackle, they win a free kick from a central spot. Mead seems interested in taking this one.
42 minutes in: The Cesane sisters are really involved in the action at this moment. Stanway crashes into Noxolo and escapes getting a yellow card, which is quite lucky considering her previous reckless behavior.
41 minutes in: Sinoxolo Cesane, Noxolo's twin, accidentally collides with two of her teammates while pursuing a loose ball in a rather enthusiastic manner. Motau and Mbane both hit the ground due to the friendly mishap, but fortunately, they recover quickly.
39 minutes: Noxolo Cesane glides gracefully along the right sideline, easily outpacing Naz, who is left trailing behind. However, Cesane is eventually knocked down from behind as a result. Naz definitely deserves a warning for this foul, but it seems the referee is taking a relaxed approach tonight.
38 minutes in: After checking her back, Swart does some stretches and feels ready to keep going. “That’s true, South Africa isn’t Germany,” Charles Antaki comments. “They’re allowing England plenty of room on the field and aren’t making the most of their passes. It also looks like they’re having some issues with slipping on the pitch and their footwear. Still, it's wonderful to see the England players starting to regain their confidence. They’re looking good. More of this, please!”
