By: Eleanor Liang
The Women’s FiFA World Cup’s matches are racing on! France, Sweden, and the Netherlands games highlight many significant moments during the Women’s FIFA World Cup. For example, Jamaica didn’t spare a single minute in having an unexpected draw with France. However, there was no need for the French team to panic at this unexpected outcome. Prior to the start of the tournament, France was the fifth-ranked team in the world and one of the tournament favorites, while Jamaica was ranked 43rd and lost all of its games in 2019.
Despite the common view that Jamaica is the underdog, “We always tell our players just don’t worry about the rankings,” Team Jamaica’s coach Lorne Donaldson explained before the game.
According to skysports.com, Kadidiatou Diani (a French World Cup player) missed a string of shots, preventing France from scoring goals. Despite the setback, France still had some chances to score a goal to make up for its disjointed play, but Jamaica would not let them make their comeback. The Jamaican goalie, Rebecca Spencer, saved the ball five times, keeping France at bay. Team Jamaica didn’t waste a single minute in order to draw with France.
However, the captain and forward of Jamaica’s team, Khadija Shaw, was dismissed in the game because she got a red card. This meant she wouldn’t be playing in the next game for Jamaica.
Shaw’s dismissal was a great loss for her teammates. She had an aggressive playing style. The New York Times highlighted this when calling her a ”Wrecking ball on both sides of the field who tore into the French defense with slashing runs and who charged at her opponents repeatedly to take back the ball.” Despite this, Jamaica is still very excited about its draw with France.
Another significant moment during the game was when Sweden survived a startle from South Africa. Striker Hildah Magaia (A South African player) scored a surprise goal, startling Sweden, the world’s third-ranked team. The South African players hugged each other to celebrate. The players danced and gave their staff huge bear hugs. But soon, Sweden stormed back when Fridolina Rolfo tied the score with a goal in the 65th minute and defender Amanda Ilestedt claimed the win with a corner kick during the 90th minute. The score in the end was 1-2.
A final moment that lives in glory was when Netherlands beat Portugal. The Netherlands beat Portugal 1-0. The team’s new player, Stefanie van der Gragt, scored her team’s one and only goal. This goal led to Netherland’s victory. She remarked,“It’s always difficult to wait. But it doesn’t matter: We win, and that’s what is important.”
“Van der Gragt’s brief emotional roller-coaster has been echoed in other games in this tournament,” explains The New York Times. “Sophia Smith of the United States experienced the same wait a day earlier, when her second goal against Vietnam was initially disallowed and then returned to her after the officials took a second look.”
Overall, the games were really competitive.
“Much was made before the World Cup of the potential gap between the eight first-time entrants and the traditional powers. The first week has shown the talent gap might not be as yawning as some think,” concludes The New York Times.
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