Lions get physical
Thursday, 27 March, 2008
England are on the verge of reaching the European Championships after they beat Belgium.
UEFA European Women’s U17 Championship,
2nd Qualifying Round, Group 1
Thursday 27 March
Lois Fidler's young Lions secured a second victory in two days to place them in pole position to reach the UEFA U17 European Championship Finals.
Starting the game against a Belgium side who had drawn their first Second Round qualifier on Tuesday, there was all to play for, and it took a while for England to get into their stride.
Lois spoke to TheFA.com just after the final whistle clearly tired by the game she had just seen.
"That was tough" she said. "Belgium were a very physical side and it took a while for us to work things out, relax and then start playing our football."
After a tense opening period, centre back Gilly Flaherty put England ahead from a set-piece, and immediately the young Lions became more effective.
With half-time looming, England got a crucial second goal, right back Rachel Daly going on a surging run from the back and finishing with aplomb.
"The start of the second half became more open," continued Lois. "Belgium had to chase the game.
"They pulled one back and then it was a real test of character for our young girls. Although it wasn't nice being on the bench after their goal, myself and the coaching staff were waiting to see how our girls would react, and they showed fantastic resilience.
"We had to weather a bit of pressure, but then Sarah Wiltshire came on, got down the wing and Danielle Carter scored her third goal in two games, which also are her first two games at this level."
With Holland defeating the Czech Republic 2-0 in the group's other game, England have maximum points, with the Dutch on four points, meaning a draw or victory will see England through.
"We'll recover tonight, I'll be looking at the video of today's game and then we'll be preparing for the final game" said Lois.
"No-one is getting carried away. We have a group of players who are very honest and want to learn, and the experiences they have had so far are a long way from Centre of Excellence football.
"We've done well so far and have to make sure that we continue to be professional as a group to give us the best chance of reaching the Championship semi finals in May."
England: Davey, Daly (Bronze, 80mins), Flaherty, Bonner, Marsh, Holbrook (Nobbs, 53mins), Christiansen, Duggan (c), Jane (Wiltshire, 76mins), Carter, Staniforth.