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At Wellington Regional Stadium: Philippines 1 (Sarina Bolden 24’) Football Ferns 0. HT: 1-0
Group A points (games played): Switzerland 3 (1), New Zealand 3 (2) Philippines 3 (2), Norway 0 (1)
The Football Ferns had an equaliser ruled out by the video assistant referee with just over 20 minutes to play as they were beaten 1-0 by the Philippines at the FIFA Women’s World Cup.
Grace Jale almost became the Kiwi hero in stoppage time, volleying a shot which forced Filipinas goalkeeper Olivia McDaniel to make a fine save to keep her side in the lead and secure their first win at their first World Cup.
Hannah Wilkinson’s right shoulder was judged to have put her offside under the semi-automated offside system, before she did well to keep the ball in at the byline and cross for Jacqui Hand to head home in the 69th minute.
Hand had hit the left post just moments before, in a match where the Ferns were dominant, but ultimately suffered defeat, after failing to deal with a free kick midway through the first half at Wellington Regional Stadium.
The initial ball in by Angie Beard was met by Katie Bowen, but wasn’t cleared far enough, and when it came back from the right, Sarina Bolden rose between CJ Bott and Rebekah Stott to score the Philippines’ first World Cup goal after 24 minutes.
Tuesday night’s result in front of a crowd of 32,357 fans in the capital was a comedown after last Thursday’s upset of Norway in Auckland, but the Ferns remain a chance to advance from group A, with their rivals Switzerland and Norway meeting in Hamilton later in the evening.
Their result will determine the specific scenarios for matchday three on Sunday, when the Ferns play the Swiss in Dunedin while Norway and the Philippines meet at Eden Park in Auckland.
The Ferns began on the front foot in Wellington, with a cross from Betsy Hassett on the left in the second minute just passing in front of her onrushing fellow midfielder Ria Percival.
It was all New Zealand in the opening 10 minutes, but their best chance was spurned when a cutback from Bott bounced awkwardly for Wilkinson, whose shot was well off target.
There was a sign of what was to come when Indiah-Paige Riley gave away a free kick just inside her own half that caused a bit of chaos when it was launched into the area.
The Ferns weren’t getting their timing right in midfield, though the Philippines were not good enough to capitalise as much as they perhaps might have.
Where they could benefit was when that mistiming led to fouls, such as the pair given away by Percival in quick succession midway through the first half – the second of which led to their goal.
Bowen dealt with the initial delivery from Beard, but the ball only went out to the right of the area, where Sara Eggesvik picked it up, shrugged off a challenge from Hassett and sent in a cross, which Bolden met between Bott and Stott, the centre back ending up on the ground.
Ferns goalkeeper Vic Esson got plenty of hand on the headed effort, but couldn’t keep it out, and so for the first time in this World Cup, New Zealand were chasing a game.
They were straight back into their work, remaining in charge of possession, but not for the first time, they were struggling to fashion much in the way of end product, with a cross from Ali Riley which just eluded Wilkinson their best chance before halftime.
Midfielders Olivia Chance and Annalie Longo replaced Hassett and Indiah-Paige Riley as the second half began with the Ferns back down the Philippines’ end, searching for an equaliser.
They won a succession of corners, but when one was played short to Bott to swing in a left-footed cross, the header from Wilkinson that met it went just over the bar.
Fullback then tried to play striker in down the right soon after, but Philippines goalkeeper McDaniel was alert to come off her line and quash the danger.
There was evident frustration from the Ferns at their failure to turn their individual superiority into goals, with a late challenge from Chance on McDaniel the worst of the niggle.
The Ferns had their best chance of the night in the 64th minute, when Malia Steinmetz released Chance down the left. She then curled a beautiful ball to meet Hand’s run on the right, but her shot was just to the left of where it needed to be, hitting the post and bouncing back to McDaniel.
Hand made no mistake the next time the ball came her way, after Wilkinson did well to keep the ball in on the byline then cross to the middle of the six-yard box, but the celebrations were short-lived as the video assistant referee found Wilkinson to have been offside in the buildup, her shoulder breaking the plane generated by the semi-automated system.
The Ferns continued to push, leaving themselves increasingly exposed at the back, but after substitute Jale’s effort was pushed away, they now have no choice but to pick themselves up and dust themselves off before a big match three.
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