Scotland beat Netherlands who were a player down in order to clinch the fifth spot in the Cyprus Cup. Striker Kim Little put the Scots ahead in the eleventh minute itself. Much is to be blamed on Mirte Roelvink’s dismissal who challenged Emma Mitchell from behind and hence earned a suspension. Scotland is particularly happy with the result as they beat a team which is ranked much higher than them. Scotland is ranked 14th in the world in the FIFA rankings while Netherlands rank a good nine places above them. But this difference was immaterial as Scotland went past Netherlands to secure the fifth spot in the much coveted Cyprus cup.
Head coach for Scotland, Anna Signeul said that the team played extremely well in the first half and made a lot of chances but tired out towards the end. She said that she was happy with the fact that the team managed to keep the one goal lead and not allow Netherlands a chance to stage a comeback. She was of the opinion that the team was completely composed and relaxed in their attack and defence and did not lose their head in the tense moments of the game. It has been a good tournament for Scotland as they beat Italy and then drew England. Of the twelve teams that participated in the tournament, Northern Ireland took the last position as they lost to South Africa in penalties. The game finished at one-one and hence went to penalties where the South Africans performed better to avoid the last spot. Julie Neson put Ireland in front after just two minutes into the game with a good header. They then managed to hold South Africa at bay successfully till Nocane Skiti hit a last minute equalizer to level the game. The game went to penalties where the South Africans scored from each and every spot kick to win the game 5-4 in the penalties.
Northern Ireland under Alfie Wylie has recorded four defeats in four matches. The manager believed that they should have won the game much earlier and should have made more of the opportunities they created. She admitted that it was disappointing to end the tournament in the last spot and regretted the fact that they missed five of their regular players. She said that her players also suffered from fatigue as the squad had not been rotated properly. But she said that keeping in mind all the circumstances, the team had a lot of positives to take back from the tournament and hopefully build up for a better future.
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