Three Barclays Women’s Super League players got their names on the scoresheet as Norway defeated Northern Ireland 4-1 in their opening match of the UEFA Women’s EURO in Southampton this evening.
Debutants Northern Ireland came out of the gates strongly in the first few minutes of the game, hounding and harrying the Norwegian players in midfield. The action was end-to-end and The Green and White Army initially looked like they were up for the fight.
It didn’t take long however for Norway to assert their dominance with Manchester City’s Julie Blakstad opening the scoring after being assisted by Chelsea’s Guro Reiten, who was to be a thorn in Northern Ireland’s side for much of the game.
The second goal came within three minutes as Norway’s returning star Ada Hegerberg provided the assist for Arsenal’s Frida Maanum who capitalised on some loose Northern Ireland defending to score.
Things settled again after that with Northern Ireland too often their own worst enemy with passes going astray. There was nice link-up play between Demi Vance and Aston Villa’s new signing Simone Magill down the left but they were unable to create any real threat on the Norwegian goal.
As the half-hour mark approached, the referee found herself consulting the pitchside monitor to confirm a hand ball in the area from Nadene Caldwell as she tried to head the ball clear. Caroline Graham Hansen will probably be disappointed with her penalty which only just evaded the gloves of Jackie Burns in goal, taking the score to 3-0.
In the second half, Northern Ireland came out fighting again and they were rewarded within the first few minutes. Liverpool’s Rachel Furness played the ball to Julie Nelson who headed home after Norway failed to deal with a corner. After that, normal service was resumed and Norway probably should have had a couple more goals but failed to apply the finish.
After 53 minutes, Reiten made it 4-1 with a free-kick from the edge of the area which she placed in the far bottom corner. Hegerberg then had a goal ruled offside with 20 minutes remaining.
Burns had a busy last half-hour in the Northern Ireland goal and made some great saves to keep the scoreline respectable. There was more bad news for Northern Ireland though with just over 10 minutes to play as Simone Magill went down, clearly in pain after a challenge. She limped off the pitch and was replaced by Caitlin McGuinness. Her injury will be a worry for fans of Northern Ireland and Aston Villa alike as she was a bright spark on an otherwise disappointing night.
For Norway, it is job done in game one though they will need to tighten up if they are to go all the way in this competition. The Norwegians take on England next while Northern Ireland will face Austria.