WWC Knockouts Bring Shock and Drama

Hello all! Know I'm a bit late on the uptake here, but the past few days have been emotionally draining, and overall tiring. But I'm here to record the events of the first round of knockouts in this Women's World Cup: The Quarterfinals!

The first Quarterfinal of the day brought some heavy action and some heavy drama. It was the match-up between England and France. This one was a well-played match, however France was clearly the better team. They were more organized and were playing the better passing game. England capitalized first however, in the second half. It looked like France may lose, when they equalized in the 88th. This sent the game into Extra Time. No one capitalized in ET, however, it looked like France should have won. England was tired and desperate. They hung back and defended, and the players hobbled and looked sluggish. France continued their attack relentlessly but never scored. The game would be sent to penalty kicks. France outlasted England in PK's. Abily missed the first shot for France, but both Faye white and Rafferty missed for England, sending France through to the Semifinals.


The second Quarterfinal proved to result in the biggest upset of the WWC 2011. It was the hosts Germany vs. Japan. While both teams played a good game, Japan were tactically superior, and their ground game was much better than the Germans. The game was a deadlock, and entered Extra Time. When it looked like yet another game was headed for penalties, Maruyama scored in the 108th minute to give the Japanese the win. And so the biggest shock in the tournament thus far was complete. The hosts Germany, who were favorites to win it all and do the "Threepeat", were eliminated.


The third Quarterfinal was a more decisive one. Sweden played the better game and took advantage of the Aussies poor defending. While the Aussies tried hard, they did not have what it took to beat a powerful Swedish side. The game ended 3-1, with the Swedes advancing to the Semifinals to play Japan.


The fourth Quarterfinal...deserves it own blog post.

Denise