Concerns grow for England after defeat to lowly New Zealand in final Women's World Cup warm-up
England 0 New Zealand 1
There was a sad irony about the moment Carly Telford spilled her third save of the afternoon into the path of Sarah Gregorius, who curled the follow-up with ease over England’s keeper.
True, England should have dealt with the danger earlier - Alex Greenwood’s botched header from the initial crossfield delivery was of little help, and Rosie White was afforded too much time and space to execute the initial shot - but that was New Zealand’s second sight of goal all afternoon. Their first, a Betsy Hassett rocket that smashed into the chest of Steph Houghton - arrived on the 45th minute and Telford had to swoop to deny Hassett on the rebound.
England’s opener against Scotland is now just eight days away, yet still conundrums remain. Has Phil Neville played his first-choice XI at all during his tenure, never mind in this final bank of four friendlies before the World Cup? This side boasted 10 changes from the previous game, when a tepid and turgid England ground out a 2-0 victory over Denmark despite creating little by the way of genuine chances.
Last Saturday’s win marked Neville’s 18th different back five in as many games. Today’s back four - Lucy Bronze, Houghton, Abbie McManus and Greenwood - has been deployed twice before. This was the second time Telford has played behind them. Neville will insist this is a happy dilemma, a symptom of a squad so rich in attacking talent. At what point should we be worried?
For spells, there was promise. It was difficult to recall the last time England demonstrated the kind of fierce urgency that underpinned their first-half endeavours, but often they were betrayed by their own ambition. Fran Kirby was a dynamic presence at England’s offensive heart and Bronze’s marauding runs from right-back repeatedly proved impossible for Ali Riley to contain.
England found much joy against this backline but Jodie Taylor probably should have had a hat-trick by half-time. On initial viewing, a penalty would have felt generous when Taylor’s heavy touch allowed Nayler to rush to collect the ball inside the area and Taylor was late to go to ground; she then lacked her usual incision when she dawdled for too long after skipping past Meikayla Moore.
England’s vigour had New Zealand camped behind the halfway line as Staniforth, an artful presence in midfield, repeatedly found Kirby as England bludgeoned their opponents. The issue was only a third of those shots were on target. Nikita Parris clipped Greenwood’s teasing delivery over, Carney should have done better from Kirby’s chip and Staniforth’s free-kick that dipped over felt like a big miss.
Featured from our writers:
Match details
England: Telford; Bronze, Houghton, McManus, Greenwood; Walsh (Stanway 89), Staniforth (Scott 68); Parris (Mead 68), Kirby, Duggan (Carney 54); Taylor (Whitie 75). Subs not used: Bardsley (g), Roebuck (g), Bright, Williamson, Blundell.
New Zealand: Nayler; Riley, Erceg, Moore, Stott; Percival, Bowen; Bott (Satchell 84), White (Chance 73), Hassett (Longo 73); Gregorious (Wilkinson 64). Subs not used: Esson (g), Olla (g), Green, Kete, Morton, Duncan, Skilton, Cleverley.
Referee: M Mularczyk
Attendance: 20,076
Verdict
Oh dear. That did not go to plan for England. For all their dominance in the first half and possession throughout, Neville's side just didn't create enough chances and they now head into the World Cup straight off the back of defeat to a side ranked 19th in the world.
"It's a continuation of our development and the real stuff starts next week," says Neville. "A bad performance or a bad result isn't going to change things. Today is a bit of a jolt."
Spin it how you like, Phil. There's work to do and perhaps we might be getting ahead of ourselves with some of the huge expectations on this England side. Or perhaps this is the kick up the backside that will spur them on to glory.
Full time
England 0 New Zealand 1
90+4 min - England 0 New Zealand 1
Bronze looks for White inside the penalty area, but Nayler comes out commandingly - as she has done all game - and claims it.
90+3 min - England 0 New Zealand 1
Corner number 18 for England... but nothing is asked of Nayler.
90+2 min - England 0 New Zealand 1
A hint of an opening for New Zealand, but Chance slips as she goes to pull the trigger.
90 min - England 0 New Zealand 1
Stanway shoots from way out, but it's another poor effort that flies well over the bar. Four minutes of added time to be played.
89 min - England 0 New Zealand 1
Still England come in waves, winning another corner which Houghton rises highest to (wahey!) but loops her header onto the top of the net.
Stanway is on for Walsh.
87 min - England 0 New Zealand 1
Can England finally, finally, finally make one of these corners count? Nope, another New Zealand header clear. I don't think England have won an offensive header today.
85 min - England 0 New Zealand 1
It's not as though England have wasted bucket-loads of chances. They just haven't really been able to create them, in spite of all their possession.
83 min - England 0 New Zealand 1
Bott is taken off for Satchell for New Zealand. A striker on for a midfielder. Bold.
81 min - England 0 New Zealand 1
I have no doubt a positive spin will be put on this (good to have a hard workout, next week is what matters etc.) but this is not at all what Neville and England will have wanted from their final World Cup warm-up game.
79 min - England 0 New Zealand 1
One piece of good news for England: an attendance of 20,076.
78 min - England 0 New Zealand 1
A strong Bronze run yields yet another corner. You don't need me to tell you that nothing comes from it. They just can't even find a way of asking Nayler a question.
76 min - England 0 New Zealand 1
England corner. And another. But they cannot do anything from them.
74 min - England 0 New Zealand 1
Chance is immediately into the action, shooting from the left as New Zealand commit players forward at a free-kick. Telford holds with ease, but this is not as smooth as it had looked for so long for England.
Neville now takes Taylor off to be replaced by White.
73 min - England 0 New Zealand 1
More NZ changes. White off for Chance and Hassett off for Longo.
72 min - England 0 New Zealand 1
The English are coming. Carney hits the byline and loops a cross all the way to Scott at the far post, but her header is wide from a narrow angle.
69 min - England 0 New Zealand 1
Beautiful play from England and Carney is at the heart of it. The substitute twists brilliantly before playing a pass to Taylor, who finds Kirby. Carney then hares into the penalty area where she receives a sumptuous chipped return ball from Kirby, controls and shoots, but it's right down Nayler's throat.
More changes. Parris and Staniforth off for Mead and Scott.
66 min - England 0 New Zealand 1
England's corner count is well into double figures now, but they so rarely end in a shot at goal. This one does, in fact, but it's a 40-yard lump from Carney that wouldn't have gone in even if the goal was twice the height.
64 min - England 0 New Zealand 1
New Zealand make their first change as goalscorer Gregorius heads off for Wilkinson. Job done for New Zealand's starting striker.
62 min - England 0 New Zealand 1
A first Kiwi corner of the game sails all the way to the unmarked Stott at the far post, whose powerful goalbound shot is well blocked by Bronze. The clock is ticking for Neville's side.
60 min - England 0 New Zealand 1
It's back into the same groove as the first half with England camped inside New Zealand territory. Carney is already exerting her influence from high on the left.
58 min - England 0 New Zealand 1
Remember, New Zealand are only ranked 19th in the world. Nayler is having a fine game in goal for the visitors though, repeatedly claiming aerial balls with such dominance.
56 min - England 0 New Zealand 1
Carney is a class act and makes an immediate difference with a delightful defence-splitting pass to earn England another corner, which Nayler gathers at the second time of asking.
54 min - England 0 New Zealand 1
This game had all the hallmarks of a laboured one or two-goal England win but that New Zealand goal has changed everything. It was as against the run of play as any goal you've seen.
53 min - England 0 New Zealand 1
Ooh, close to an immediate England equaliser as Staniforth looks for the top corner from a free-kick on the left flank but curls it inches wide. A first change sees Duggan head off for Carney.
GOAL! England 0 New Zealand 1 (Gregorius)
Oh my word!!! Who saw that coming? Greenwood's header from a speculative New Zealand long ball is poor and White's shot comes in from just inside the penalty area. Telford dives low to her right and should hold on, but cannot gather and Gregorius is on hand to clip home the rebound from about 10 yards out.
48 min - England 0 New Zealand 0
And now an eighth corner... which also yields precisely zero before Greenwood fires the ball out for a throw.
46 min - England 0 New Zealand 0
Back underway on the south coast. And straight into a seventh England corner, which again fails to produce a shot on goal.
A fair few poorly wrists involved here
Now that's a squad ����#lionessespic.twitter.com/4xcndlp4ic
— Lionesses (@Lionesses) June 1, 2019
First half
How do we assess that? Well, England have been utterly dominant and put some nice moves together. And as good as England have been, New Zealand have been seriously poor. But it remains goalless, which isn't a great reflection on the home side. It's one of those games where a goal permanently feels like it's just around the corner. Not yet though.
Half-time
England 0 New Zealand 0
45+1 min - England 0 New Zealand 0
A collision of heads sees New Zealand's White develop an alarming lump on her forehead, but she is carrying on after a dab with some ice. Not sure that's wise, to be honest.
45 min - England 0 New Zealand 0
A free-kick inside the centre circle allows New Zealand to lump a long ball into the England penalty area. It's not dealt with very well and Telford eventually has to palm the ball over the bar after a stinging shot from Hassett from the edge of the box. That was the first thing to be asked of Telford all game and she responded well.
42 min - England 0 New Zealand 0
Lovely interplay between Parris and Kirby sees England venture back into the opposition penalty area, but Staniforth cannot find another team-mate.
39 min - England 0 New Zealand 0
Desperate times for New Zealand, with defenders flinging themselves at the ball to block shots from Parris and others before Nayler - who has commanded her box well - claims a cross to end the wave of attack.
38 min - England 0 New Zealand 0
It's just attack v defence. Which is actually quite good preparation for some of the matches England might face in the early stages of the World Cup. Can they find a way to break the opposition down?
35 min - England 0 New Zealand 0
The corner count is growing for England. Corner number one sees Stott make a fine sliding tackle just as McManus is about to unleash a shot from the left to bring about corner number two, which comes to nothing. Parris then fires a long-range shot way over the bar.
32 min - England 0 New Zealand 0
New Zealand have the ball inside England's half! Then they kick it away. Still nowhere near Telford's area.
30 min - England 0 New Zealand 0
More fine work from Bronze sees England drive high up the field on the right to win a corner. Greenwood delivers, but it is headed clear.
28 min - England 0 New Zealand 0
The New Zealand defence are just stuck on repeat. Get ball, give ball away, Get ball, give ball away. Another error goes without punishment though.
23 min - England 0 New Zealand 0
A cracking delivery from Greenwood on the right, who has stayed high up the pitch after taking an England corner. The ball falls to Parris, who hits a snap-shot from about 12 yards out but her effort sails wide of the far post.
21 min - England 0 New Zealand 0
Neville will be pleased by what he's seen so far, even if his side haven't yet found the New Zealand net. They are dominating all over the pitch. Actually, that's not true. This match is only being played in two-thirds of the pitch. Telford is a spectator in goal.
16 min - England 0 New Zealand 0
Bronze is enjoying so much space down the right for the home side. New Zealand are really struggling to put any semblance of a move together.
15 min - England 0 New Zealand 0
I tell you what, this New Zealand side are shocking at playing the ball out from the back. Yet again, Taylor is gifted the ball on the penalty spot by a Kiwi defender but Nayler does incredibly well to make herself big and smother the shot. Taylor would have expected to score that, but it was fine keeping.
13 min - England 0 New Zealand 0
England are totally dominating the tempo of this game, as you might expect. I've just seen a couple of replays of that penalty shout and I can't understand a) why Taylor didn't make more of it and b) why the referee didn't point to the sport. England's striker was totally impeded by Nayler clattering her legs.
10 min - England 0 New Zealand 0
What the...? Some more shocking passing out from the back by New Zealand allows Taylor to nip in and drive towards goal. Her first touch is poor, but it encourages Nayler to hare out at her and knock her over... but for some reason no penalty is given. Taylor didn't actually make much of it. Strange.
8 min - England 0 New Zealand 0
The free-kick is passed short to Kirby, who finds Taylor at the near post inside the penalty area, but her header is weak and into Nayler's hands. Oh, Taylor was offside anyway. No bother.
6 min - England 0 New Zealand 0
This is what we're expecting from England today, knocking the ball around from one flank to the next with total ease before Duggan brings it forward and Greenwood earns a free-kick near the corner flag.
5 min - England 0 New Zealand 0
Oof, so nearly a howler for New Zealand as Kirby comes within a couple of inches of nicking a weak back pass, but Nayler rushes out of her goal just in time.
2 min - England 0 New Zealand 0
The horns are blaring inside the Amex and there's plenty of possession for both sides in these opening stages, just feeling their way into this game.
1 min - England 0 New Zealand 0
Here we go. New Zealand are all in white, with England in full red. No messing about with dual colours today.
Anthem time
The players are singing in the sun. It's almost time to begin.
A blaze of glory
It's a glorious day on the south coast. Clear skies, sun and high temperatures for this game.
Teams in full
England: Telford, Bronze, Houghton, McManus, Greenwood, Staniforth, Walsh, Parris, Kirby, Duggan, Taylor. Subs: Bardsley, Bright, Scott, Williamson, White, Stanway, Carney, Mead.
New Zealand: Nayler, Bott, Bowen, Erceg, Moore, Percival, Hassett, Riley, Stott, Gregorius, White. Subs: Esson, Green, Kete, Longo, Morton, Duncan, Skilton, Wilkinson, Satchell, Cleverly, Chance, Olla.
More reading
Another piece from Katie Whyatt, this one from England's victory over Denmark last week: Jill Scott is the glue that binds this England team together and she will be key to hopes of World Cup glory
Here is a taster:
Scott turned 32 in February. This was her 135th England cap. Neville has said the World Cup in the summer - Scott's fourth - will not be her last. She played her first aged 20 and has been a staple of an all-conquering Manchester City side for six years.
She chugs on, ceaselessly, relentlessly reliable, without ever entering the greatest-of-all-time conversation. At this point in her career it is unlikely she will earn the kind of moves that Parris, to Lyon, and Toni Duggan, to Barcelona, have had. Yet she is one of England's all-time greats.
Pre-match reading
We have plenty of pieces for your enjoyment that I will fling your way over the next half-hour or so. Let's start with Katie Whyatt's piece on Georgia Stanway: 'I've got to pinch myself that I'm going to compete for England at a World Cup'
Here's a snippet and you can read the whole thing here:
At the time of the last World Cup Manchester City’s Georgia Stanway was a 15-year-old largely preoccupied with GCSE revision.
Four years on, the 20-year-old is the reigning PFA Young Player of the Year, scored City’s second goal in their 3-0 FA Cup final win at Wembley in May. Six months on from scoring on her senior England debut against Austria last November, Stanway has amassed 20 further caps and is the second youngest of Phil Neville’s Lionesses to have made the plane to France for a Women’s World Cup that, she anticipates, will be “ten times bigger” than the previous one, in Canada.
Team news
Here's your England side:
Here we go. C'MON ENGLAND!#Lionessespic.twitter.com/QJJ2unZvy9
— Lionesses (@Lionesses) June 1, 2019
Good afternoon
Hello and welcome to coverage of England's final warm-up game before they head out to France for the World Cup next week.
Today sees Phil Neville's side face New Zealand in a match they can't hugely benefit from in any significant way on the pitch.
Win convincingly against a side ranked 19th in the world and they will have done as expected.
Win by a slender margin and they will have underwhelmed.
Draw or lose and they will have had a shocker at precisely the wrong time. Oh, and there's also the added concern of picking up injuries.
One benefit is likely to come off the pitch though, with a crowd of more than 30,000 expected at Brighton’s American Express Community Stadium.
Of the 23 women in Neville's World Cup squad, only Demi Stokes is unavailable today as she is given a precautionary rest (whatever that means).
Last weekend saw a relatively unconvincing 2-0 victory against Denmark, which followed a 1-0 defeat against Canada and a 2-1 win over Spain in April. That most recent result prompted Neville to admit it may serve as a "jolt" to a squad with aspirations of winning the World Cup. Today sees the result of that jolt.
Here's Karen Carney ahead of her ninth major tournament:
We are privileged and the next generation will be even more privileged hopefully. It’s been such a journey and we have a duty to remind people and honour those who have got us here today. We are 100 years behind men. I’m proud, but I have not achieved what I wanted as an 11-year-old kid. Until I get that gold medal I will feel unfulfilled.
