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England opened their World Cup campaign with a narrow victory over rivals Scotland in a game where they showed glimpses of their potential.
After an open start, Nikita Parris scored from the spot on her World Cup debut after the penalty was awarded following a video assistant referee review.
Ellen White doubled the advantage before the break as Phil Neville’s team dominated the first half.
But Scotland, who were making their World Cup debut and are ranked 17 places below England at 20th in the world, took advantage as their opponents eased off in the second half and Claire Emslie slotted in from close range after Steph Houghton’s poor pass.
Although they could not muster an equaliser, Shelley Kerr’s side vastly improved on their performance in the 6-0 defeat against England at Euro 2017,[3] before the Scotland head coach was appointed.
And their tenacity should hold them in good stead in their remaining Group D games when they face Japan, ranked seventh in the world, and then Argentina, who are 37th, as they seek to reach the knockout stages.
For England, it was a mixed performance, which summed up their warm-up results coming into the tournament.
They looked confident all over the pitch in the first half after head coach Neville named what looked like his strongest starting team.
But after the break they fell short of producing the quality which Neville believes can take them to their first World Cup title, having finished third at the 2015 edition.
The result will be a relief for the former Manchester United and England defender, who is taking part in his first World Cup as a player or manager, and he will have been impressed by the performances from White, Parris and Lucy Bronze.
However, he will also know that similar hesitancy against more fancied nations could prove costly later in the tournament.
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More to follow.
Line-ups
England Women
- 1Bardsley
- 2Bronze
- 5Houghton
- 6BrightSubstituted forMcManusat 55′minutes
- 3Greenwood
- 4Walsh
- 7Parris
- 8Scott
- 10KirbySubstituted forStanwayat 82′minutes
- 22MeadSubstituted forCarneyat 71′minutes
- 18White
Substitutes
- 9Taylor
- 13Telford
- 14Williamson
- 15McManus
- 16Moore
- 17Daly
- 19Stanway
- 20Carney
- 21Earps
- 23Staniforth
Scotland Women
- 1Alexander
- 15HowardSubstituted forArthurat 75′minutes
- 4Corsie
- 5BeattieBooked at 43mins
- 3DochertyBooked at 47minsSubstituted forSmithat 55′minutes
- 16MurraySubstituted forArnotat 87′minutes
- 9Weir
- 18Emslie
- 8Little
- 11Evans
- 22Cuthbert
Substitutes
- 2Smith
- 6Love
- 7Lauder
- 10Crichton
- 12Lynn
- 13Ross
- 14Arthur
- 17Murray
- 19Clelland
- 20Brown
- 21Fife
- 23Arnot
- Referee:
- Jana Adamkova
- Attendance:
- 13,188
Match Stats
- Possession
- Home59%
- Away41%
- Shots
- Home14
- Away6
- Shots on Target
- Home6
- Away3
- Corners
- Home9
- Away2
- Fouls
- Home8
- Away8
Live Text
Match ends, England 2, Scotland 1.
Full Time
Second Half ends, England 2, Scotland 1.
Attempt missed. Georgia Stanway (England) right footed shot from outside the box misses to the left. Assisted by Nikita Parris.
Lucy Bronze (England) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Erin Cuthbert (Scotland).
Substitution
Substitution, Scotland. Lizzie Arnot replaces Christie Murray.
Attempt blocked. Karen Carney (England) right footed shot from the right side of the box is blocked. Assisted by Keira Walsh.
Foul by Lucy Bronze (England).
Christie Murray (Scotland) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Corner, England. Conceded by Kim Little.
Corner, England. Conceded by Rachel Corsie.
Attempt blocked. Alex Greenwood (England) left footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Assisted by Georgia Stanway.
Substitution
Substitution, England. Georgia Stanway replaces Francesca Kirby.
Goal!
Goal! England 2, Scotland 1. Claire Emslie (Scotland) right footed shot from the centre of the box to the top right corner. Assisted by Lisa Evans with a through ball.
Offside, England. Karen Carney tries a through ball, but Ellen White is caught offside.
Substitution
Substitution, Scotland. Chloe Arthur replaces Sophie Howard.
Foul by Nikita Parris (England).
Lisa Evans (Scotland) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Substitution
Substitution, England. Karen Carney replaces Beth Mead.
Attempt saved. Ellen White (England) right footed shot from the centre of the box is saved in the bottom right corner.
Corner, England. Conceded by Claire Emslie.
Attempt blocked. Rachel Corsie (Scotland) right footed shot from the right side of the box is blocked.
Corner, Scotland. Conceded by Karen Bardsley.
Corner, Scotland. Conceded by Beth Mead.
Foul by Beth Mead (England).
Kim Little (Scotland) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Attempt saved. Claire Emslie (Scotland) right footed shot from the right side of the box is saved in the centre of the goal. Assisted by Kim Little.
Attempt missed. Ellen White (England) header from the right side of the six yard box is high and wide to the right. Assisted by Nikita Parris with a cross.
Substitution
Substitution, England. Abbie McManus replaces Millie Bright because of an injury.
Substitution
Substitution, Scotland. Kirsty Smith replaces Nicola Docherty.
Delay over. They are ready to continue.
Delay in match because of an injury Millie Bright (England).
Attempt missed. Nikita Parris (England) right footed shot from outside the box is too high. Assisted by Jill Scott.
Booking
Nicola Docherty (Scotland) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Nikita Parris (England) wins a free kick on the right wing.
Foul by Nicola Docherty (Scotland).
Offside, England. Nikita Parris tries a through ball, but Ellen White is caught offside.
Second Half
Second Half begins England 2, Scotland 0.
Half Time
First Half ends, England 2, Scotland 0.
Attempt missed. Keira Walsh (England) right footed shot from outside the box is too high. Assisted by Francesca Kirby following a corner.
References
- ^ Relive the action from Nice (www.bbc.co.uk)
- ^ Nikita Parris – England’s lucky charm (www.bbc.co.uk)
- ^ 6-0 defeat against England at Euro 2017, (www.bbc.co.uk)
- ^ Line-ups (www.bbc.co.uk)
- ^ Match Stats (www.bbc.co.uk)
- ^ Live Text (www.bbc.co.uk)
