England Women vs Scotland Women. UEFA Women's Nations League Group A1.
Stadium of LightAttendance41,947.
Report as Lucy Bronze and Lauren Hemp nod home for England in the first half at Stadium of Light to secure their first Nations League points; Kirsty Hanson replied on the stroke of half-time for Scotland; visitors were the better side after the break, with Hanson hitting the crossbar
Saturday 23 September 2023 08:09, UK
Lucy Bronze and Lauren Hemp scored in the first half as England edged to a 2-1 win against an impressive Scotland in their inaugural Nations League tie.
Thirty-three days on from their heartbreak in the World Cup final, the Lionesses were back in action at the Stadium of Light, taking on a Scotland side that were unbeaten in their last six outings.
Rachel Daly thought she had put England ahead, but the goal was ruled out after Chloe Kelly was adjudged to have been offside. With no VAR, the decision could not be reviewed.
Two quickfire headers from Bronze (39) - with a hint of offside for her goal - and Hemp (45) saw England into a seemingly commanding lead.
There was a final twist to come in the half, however, as Aston Villa's Kirsty Hanson (45+1) poked home Scotland's reply.
The visitors were the far better side in the second half. Hanson hit the crossbar as Scotland probed for an equaliser, while Tottenham's Deadline Day signing Martha Thomas also impressed. In fact, most of the squad gave England a tough test as head coach Pedro Martinez Losa continues to hone the talent at his disposal.
Ultimately, the Lionesses were lucky to come away with three points in Group A1. They head to the Netherlands on Tuesday for their next Nations League game - the Dutch were beaten 2-1 by Belgium in their opener.
England began brightly in Sunderland. After a string of near misses, they thought they had gone ahead in the 25th minute as Daly nodded home from a Katie Zelem corner. However, the referee soon signalled that it was to be ruled out for offside, although it was initially thought to have been because of Kelly's obstruction of the goalkeeper.
Scotland reacted well to the incident, and made England work at the back on more than one occasion. But, soon, a quick pair of headers saw England into a 2-0 lead.
The first goal came after a visionary pass from Zelem picked out the run of Bronze on the right of the area. It was then a leaping header from the Barcelona full-back that rifled into the back of the net.
Hemp scored England's second in similar fashion. Daly took advantage of a lax pass from Rachel McLauchlan in midfield before sending a cross through the 18-yard box. The Man City winger then pinged the ball home with a powerful header.
But Scotland hit back immediately. Claire Emslie sent her cross through the legs of Alex Greenwood, with Hanson incoming to poke the ball past Mary Earps through a melee of bodies in the six-yard box.
The opening 20 minutes of the second half were a quieter affair. Lauren James curled an effort just wide for England, while Hanson and Thomas tested England at the back.
The former Manchester Untied duo continued to terrorise the Lionesses with Scotland the better side in the second half. Hanson almost equalised for the visitors too, but a rebound off her shin pinged off the top of the crossbar. It came after Earps was forced to punch away a dangerous cross from McLauchlan.
Lisa Evans tried her luck too late on, but her lashed effort was straight at Earps. There was an unfortunate end to the game for Hanson too as she went off with an injury, as England held on for the victory.
England manager Sarina Wiegman to ITV Sport:
"Very happy with the three points. In terms of the performance, happy in moments, but in others not happy because we were struggling a bit.
"The first half we dominated. The second half we had problems keeping the ball, and we made some decisions that made it not easy for ourselves. They wanted to make it equal.
"We kept trying to solve problems all the time.
"We absolutely worked on [Lucy Bronze's goal] at the World Cup. It was the perfect pass and the perfect timing, that's really nice when you score goals like that. But just before half-time we let them make it 2-1.
"We want competitive games. That's what we have now."
Sky Sports' Laura Hunter:
"For a first match back on home soil, with somewhat of a major tournament hangover, mixed with fatigue and pre-season sloppiness, that went OK. Nothing more, nothing less.
"These games are about the result and England got over the finish line with all three points intact. It was not particularly ceremonious, and definitely a comedown from last month's World Cup final, but England scored two excellent goals and that counts for something.
"I enjoyed the bravery of the performance in patches - as Sarina Wiegman acknowledged post-match, there were "happy moments" mixed with some solemn ones.
"Scotland's goal just before the break swung momentum hugely, and England failed to recover. But credit for sticking to the task and grinding out victory, because that's what good teams do, they rise above adversity and make the outcome the priority.
"As for some of the questionable decision-making, well, VAR would have turned this game on its head if it were in play. Lucky Lionesses.
"Heading into the Netherlands game on Tuesday - they suffered a shock defeat to Belgium in their opener - England need to do the basics better. Passes need to be crisper and more accurate, shape more disciplined, and defending more ruthless. Far too many times England were caught dawdling on the ball and should have been punished.
"Job done, but significant room for improvement."
England defender Lucy Bronze speaking to ITV Sport:
"Scotland scoring just before half-time changed the momentum of the game. Right until the end they were creating chances, but I think first half we did enough.
"We were by far the better team in the first half - the second was more even. We made mistakes, and they gained confidence from scoring.
"A couple of sloppy passes on our behalf let them back into the game."
England defender Jess Carter to Sky Sports News:
"It was a tough game. For me personally, I was disappointed with my own performance on the ball. It should have been a lot better, we could have been a lot tidier.
"I think we pride ourselves on being good on the ball and we definitely weren't up to our standards tonight. Scotland were a tough challenge and we got the three points, which is ultimately the most important thing to do.
"There's a lot of different factors to it. Players are in different places coming back after the World Cup. I think it's a bit of an excuse to be honest. I think we are better than that in training and we can perform better than that, but I personally don't think that's why we weren't as good on the ball.
"I think we have to perform better than that going forward if we want to win games."
Scotland manager Pedro Martinez Losa to ITV Sport:
"We competed at the same level as England overall. A draw could have been perfectly possible. We came here to win and we showed we could do it. We competed at a very high level. I am very proud of my team.
"Part of the plan tactically, we knew England would attack. Once we were comfortable on the ball and growing in the game we started believing and grew in the game second half.
"We wanted to come and compete in the Nations League and develop as a team."
Wales lost their inaugural Women's Nations League fixture as they slipped to defeat away to Iceland.
Gemma Grainger's side are in League A3 and could make the finals next year - but they will need to recover from a 1-0 loss in Reykjavik.
Bayern Munich defender Glodis Perla Viggosdottir headed in the game's only goal with 18 minutes on the clock.
Wales enjoyed plenty of the ball and had 12 shots on goal but could not find an equaliser and must now prepare for the visit of Denmark on Tuesday night.
England are next in action on Tuesday as they travel to face the Netherlands; kick off 7pm. Scotland are also in action on the same day, facing Belgium; kick-off 7.45pm; Wales are also in action on Tuesday, hosting Denmark; kick-off 7.15pm
