- goal scored by C. Telford Goal type OG (OG)
- goal scored by E. Van Kerkhoven
- goal scored by J. Taylor
- goal scored by B. Mead
- goal scored by N. Parris Goal type PEN
- goal scored by C. Telford Goal type Own Goal
- goal scored by E. Van Kerkhoven
-
goal scored by
- J. Taylor goal scored by
- B. Mead goal scored by
- N. Parris Goal type Penalty Goal
How the match unfolded in Leuven
FULL TIME: England begin their Euro 2021 preparations by sharing the spoils in an eventful match in Leuven.
90+2: McManus is booked for a foul on Kassandra Missipo.
86: Leah Williamson is the next substitute to enter the fray, in place of Keira Walsh.
76: A double sub for England as Lucy Staniforth comes on for Parris and Jodie Taylor is replaced by debutant Beth England.
75: GOAL! Parris brings England level from the penalty spot after Cayman handled inside the box. The 25-year-old, who missed two penalties at the World Cup, slams her spot-kick into the top corner, giving Justien Odeurs, on for Evrard, no chance.
62: A quickfire second sub for England as Mary Earps replaces Telford between the sticks.
56: Neville summons 171-cap Fara Williams from the bench in place of Stanway.
55: Belgium come from 2-0 down to take the lead. Parris is dispossessed inside the Belgium half and the hosts set off on the counter.
Wullaert’s cross drops inside the box and although the Houghton gets back to clear, her clearance is poor and falls straight to van Kerkhoven, who takes full advantage, smashing her shot into the roof of the net.
46: Cayman curls a left-footer just beyond Telford's far post.
SECOND HALF: Belgium get the second half up and running.
HALF TIME: The two sides go in at the break all square as the visitors let their two-goal lead slip.
45+2: The hosts equalise on the stroke of half time. Janice Cayman finds a yard of space on the left and curls a delicious cross into the box. Ella van Kerkhoven gets between McManus and Houghton and glances a header beyond Telford.
38: Belgium pull a goal back. Tessa Wullaert’s corner is headed goalwards by Tine de Caigny but the ball is cleared off the line by Bronze. Heleen Jaques pounces and her although her shot hits the post it rebounds off the back of Telford’s head and beyond Bronze’s desperate lunge.
29: It was almost three as Houghton whips a trademark free-kick to Evrard's right, but the ball bounced back off the upright.
26: GOAL! Mead doubles England's lead with one of the easiest goals she will ever score. Some good play from Bronze puts Taylor through on goal and although her shot is parried by Evrard, Mead follows up to tap the loose ball into an empty net.
22: GOAL! Taylor puts England 1-0 up with a typically impudent finish. The Lionesses clear the Belgium corner and race straight down the other end. Stanway threads an inch-perfect pass into the No9's feet and Taylor does the rest, dinking an effort over the advancing Evrard to give her side the lead.
22: Belgium's first effort on goal calls Carly Telford into action. Man City forward Tessa Wullaert, Belgium;s all-time leading scorer, finds Janice Cayman, but the new Lyon striker's shot is turned behind for a corner.
17: Good build-up play from the Lionesses allows Demi Stokes to find Nikita Parris with a left-sided cross, but the Lyon striker heads straight at Belgium keeper Nicky Evrard.
10: England have had the upper hand in the opening exchanges against a team they haven’t lost to since 1980. Neither goalkeeper has been tested so far but Neville’s side seem keen on dominating possession from the off.
KICK-OFF: Taylor gets England's new campaign under way.
TEAM NEWS
Phil Neville has named his first starting 11 of the new season.
Lucy Bronze, the 2019 UEFA Women's Player of the Year, will be deployed in midfield with Rachel Daly occupying the right-back berth.
The Lionesses will be skippered by Steph Houghton who will be partnered at the back by former man City club mate Abbie McManus.
Jodie Taylor gets the nod up front and she will be supported by Nikita Parris, Georgia Stanway and Beth Mead.
Newcomers Aoife Mannion, Beth England and Anna Patten are on the bench.
England: 1 Carly Telford (Chelsea); 2 Rachel Daly (Houston Dash), 5 Steph Houghton (capt; Manchester City), 14 Abbie McManus (Manchester United), 3 Demi Stokes (Manchester City); 4 Keira Walsh (Manchester City), 8 Lucy Bronze (Lyon); 7 Nikita Parris (Lyon), 19 Georgia Stanway (Manchester City), 17 Beth Mead (Arsenal); 9 Jodie Taylor (Seattle Reign).
Substitutes: 10 Fara Williams (Reading) for Stanway 56, 13 Mary Earps (Manchester United) for Telford 62, 18 Beth England (Chelsea) for Taylor 76, 23 Lucy Staniforth (Birmingham City) for Parris 76, 15 Leah Williamson (Arsenal) for Walsh 86
Substitutes not used: 21 Ellie Roebuck (Manchester City), 6 Millie Bright (Chelsea), 11 Toni Duggan (Atletico Madrid), 12 Hannah Blundell (Chelsea), 16 Jade Moore (Reading), 20 Aoife Mannion (Manchester City), 22 Anna Patten (University of South Carolina).
World Cup qualifying
England Women’s opening match of the season ended in a lively 3-3 draw in Belgium.
Phil Neville’s side, who finished fourth at the World Cup, raced into a deserved and seemingly comfortable two-goal lead through goals by Jodie Taylor and Beth Mead.
The Red Flames, ranked 19th in the world, responded courtesy of a Carly Telford own goal and an Ella van Kerkhoven header in added time at the end of the first half.
Van Kerkhoven nudged the hosts ahead when she punished an uncharacteristic mistake by Steph Houghton.
But Nikita Parris rescued a draw for England by converting a penalty with just 15 minutes remaining.
The Lionesses have the chance to make amends when they travel to Norway for a repeat of one of this summer’s World Cup quarter finals.
The match will take place in Bergen on Tuesday 3 September.
With Neville prepared to experiment at the beginning of his Euro 2021 preparations, Lucy Bronze, the UEFA Women’s Player of the Year for 2019, was deployed in midfield with Rachel Daly occupied at right-back.
Abbie McManus partnered Houghton in defence and Taylor was given the nod up front. And it took England’s No9 just 22 minutes to make her mark.
After the Lionesses cleared a Belgium corner, they raced down the other end with Georgia Stanway to the fore.
The Manchester City schemer threaded a perfect through ball into Taylor’s path, allowing the Seattle Reign striker to lift a shot over the advancing Nicky Evrard and into the Belgium net.
Bronze battled to win possession just outside the Belgium box and the ball fell nicely for Taylor, whose shot was parried by Evrard. But Mead was following up and had the simple task of passing the ball into an empty net.
Houghton then hit the post with an 18-yard free-kick as Neville’s charges threatened to run away with things.
But Belgium rallied and produced an unlikely comeback, kickstarted by Telford’s unfortunate own goal.
Tine de Caigny’s header, from Tessa Wullaert’s corner, was cleared off the line by Bronze but Heleen Jaques pounced on the loose ball. Her shot came back off the foot of the post only to hit Telford on the back of the head, beyond Bronze’s desperate lunge.
The scores were level on the stroke of half time as van Kerkhoven got in between Houghton and McManus to head home Janice Cayman’s in-swinging cross from the left.
Parris lost possession in the Belgium half and Ives Serneels’ side countered. The ball was worked out wide to Wullaert, whose cross was only half cleared by her Man City club mate Houghton.
The ball went straight to van Kerkhoven, who planted her shot into the roof of the net.
And with the Red Flames looking like they were about to complete a stunning turnaround, Cayman lost concentration for a split second and inexplicably handled the ball inside the box.
Parris, who missed two penalties in the World Cup, smashed the subsequent spot kick into the roof of the net to salvage a draw for England.
