Wales were worth more than this scoreline but were undone by the quality up front & the experience of Norway…
Wales 0-2 Norway (Hegerberg 67’, 78’)
5pm, 7th June, Newport Stadium
Att: 703
Wales (ranked 36th) can hold their heads high after a creditable display against the much higher ranked Norway (11th), perennially one of the strongest sides in the world, not just in Europe. Wales had lost 4-0 in Norway in Group 8 last October but in the warm evening sun in Newport they competed with, if not even out-played their opponents for most of the match. Well, until Ada Hegerberg’s header on 68 mins (a goal that arguably came against the run of play) that is. This fact, however pleasing the progress it indicates may be, simply piles on the disappointment felt by Welsh personnel and staff. So near, and yet yes, so far.
Jayne Ludlow’s team started with real intent, with good shape and with debutants in goal and in the centre of defence, with Claire Skinner and 16 year old Gemma Evans making their first senior international starts, respectively. Both can hold their heads high. Wales pressed and harried from the kick off, they played with controlled aggression and their energy certainly disrupted a Norway team that are attempting to change their mode of play from quick counters via long balls from defence to a more patient and possession-based form of attack. In fact, Norway were repeatedly dispossessed and it was Wales threatening with pace from the early ball forward. Tash Harding (honoured before kick off for receiving her 50th cap), Helen Ward and Kayleigh Green worked like troopers up front, while the midfield snapped about the heels of Norway’s vastly experienced old hands of Ingvild Stensland, Maren Mjelde & co.
For all of the commitment and industry, real goal-scoring openings were at a premium. Jess Fishlock fired over with a speculative volley, Helen Ward couldn’t do better with her cross when she broke to the byline, several Welsh corners came to nothing while Claire Skinner and her defence smothered a handful of Norwegian half-chances.
The second half started in similar fashion, with Wales’ energy unsettling Norway’s attempts to find a rhythm in their play. Centre forward Kayleigh Green almost managed to poke the ball past Ingrid Hjelmseth after chasing a direct through ball and out-running and out-muscling two Norwegian defenders, on 56 minutes. Five minutes later Nora Holstad Berge saw yellow for a foul on the pacey Green after she tried to race past her on the right flank. The game was entering a purple patch and opened up on 63 minutes, with Skinner saving from Kristine Minde at one end and then Angharad James laid it off to Green whose shot was pushed onto the bar at the other. It felt like Wales were building up a head of steam but equally there were worrying signs that they were also allowing pockets of space in midfield and at the back as legs, understandably, began to tire slightly.
On 67 minutes, that’s when Olympique Lyonnais’ treble winning forward Ada Hegerberg struck, nodding in at the far post to give Norway the lead. It felt cruel but somewhat inevitable. Slightly flattened by the set back, Wales still forged forward in forays but if they were a little unlucky to go 1-0 down they were completely culpable of allowing Hegerberg too much room for her to hit a snorting drive from 20 yards that gave Skinner little chance and confirmed the victory.
Norway are hot on the heels of Austria at the top of the group (top team qualifies for Euro 2017, six best second placed teams also go through and then remaining two play-off), while Wales in third, will aim to win their two remaining games and then look ahead to WWC 2019 and Euro 2021 qualifying.
For the viewer, this performance certainly showed positive progress, for Ludlow and her players who grafted for and believed they could get more from the game for so long, the result was positively painful.
POST MATCH REACTION
Norway Coach Roger Finjord on the game, overall: “It was very important for us to win today. We have one of the best attackers in the world, she’s only 20 years old, she scored in the Champions League Final and she scored two goals today. It has been a very, very long season for her, she is tired but she scored two fantastic goals for us.”
On Wales in three very basic pointers: “There are three things about Wales’ team. 1. You will never beat them on mentality, they will always have a strong mentality. 2. They have Jess Fishlock. She has a fantastic attitude and is one of the best players in Europe in finding space to play in. She is a very good player. 3. They have very good speed in the forward line.
On Wales’ development: “We expected this kind of match, in October they played 5-4-1 and it didn’t seem like they wanted to attack but we have seen the last matches and we have seen that there is a new style, more offensive and they have some very, very good players. We believed that it was in the second half that there would be space big enough for us to play the kind of football that we wanted. It was very disappointing in the first half, we didn’t play well. We lost almost 70% of the easy passes and that’s not good enough at international level but in the second half we were better but I think Wales is a good team.”
On his depleted forward line: “We are missing Caroline Graham-Hansen very much, of course. She is a player that can create space for herself. She gives us a new dimension in our play. We also miss Isabel Herlovsen, top scorer in our group. She has an exam in school today. So we were missing two of our best attackers but it is important because we will need to have more than 11 good players in the Euros next year, so some other players have the chance to show us what they can do.
On changing the style of the team since Even Pellerud’s departure after the World Cup last summer: “We are in a preparation period now. In Norway, the defence play, that’s the number one way that we have been successful, to go quick counter attack when we win the ball. We also now want to develop and create our own play against teams that play a defensive 4-4-2 or 4-5-1 and it’s very important for us to do that and we will do that until March next year, we will keep trying. Then, the last five matches before the Euros, we have to decide how much can use that style of play or whether we play a little but longer. That way, we hope it is not so easy for our opponents to know how Norway will play. We want to switch styles. We tried more to play like that today than if we had HAD to win today. It was important that we let the players try, try, try. Even if they missed the passes, we didn’t say at half time, don’t do it anymore because then they don’t believe in themselves or the new way. So at half time we said keep doing the same thing…but do it better.”
Wales coach Jayne Ludlow, on the overall game & the improvement since the 4-0 loss in October: “It’s a very different group. Not necessarily in personnel but the environment is different. The thought process going into the game was very different, we’ve been working on things through the week which was very challenging for the girls because it’s different to how we’ve played in the past. The positive, more than anything today, was seeing them execute that for nearly seventy minutes of the game. Lots of positives to take away from it but the stat that counts at the end of the day is the scoreline, which is frustrating but it’s a reality check as well. We were playing one of the best teams in Europe, one of the best teams in women’s football and they have been for a considerable amount of time. So, pleased but still areas to work on.”
On dominating the first half & giving youth a chance: “It was a fantastic first 45 mins. We had a goalkeeper [Claire Skinner] starting her first international game. She hasn’t had many minutes in her club environment for the last couple of years through injuries but she’s a talent and one we’re very much looking forward to working with over the next few years. There were lots of positives in the way the other youngsters in the group played too. That’s taking nothing away from my older players who are immense in bringing the youngsters through. There’s a belief in the group right now that we can change things going forward, with regards to results. The performances are showing us that but at the end of the day, if you switch off against opposition like we played today, you’re going to lose games from it.
“Gemma Evans is the second player who played her first international game at senior level today. She was fantastic for us. Some people think I’m a bit mad, gambling with players but we see the players in training and we see how good they are and not so much how good they are now but the potential they have for the future. I’m very much a coach who will back my younger players and give them an opportunity to develop and that’s where we’re at. We’ve got youngsters stepping onto the pitch with the seniors and they need time to develop and in five years’ time they will be very different players because of that.”
On the chance that hit the cross bar: “It would have been interesting if that one had gone in. The rest of the game would have been interesting! Like I said, we worked on certain things and they worked in the vast majority of cases but we didn’t take our chances and against the top level teams you have to take your chances and you can’t switch off because it costs you.
“I’m very proud of the performance the girls put in as a group and as individuals. They’re proud of their performances but they’re frustrated because it would have been great to get a result from the performance and the amount of effort they put in for 70 mins. The last 20 minutes we opened up some spaces for them to utilise and they took advantage of that.”
More reaction from Wales to follow …
SHE KICKS – the online community for women’s football
