[Thought this deserved its own thread...]

My daughters both watched the Mens WC with me last summer but kept asking "when do the girls play?" Well, the time has come.

Team USA plays Sweden Friday, coached by their former coach, a Swede.

We defeated Australia in the first match, so a win here puts us in good position to win the group.

Awesome! The opening game was a convicning win, although IMO, the USWNT had some rusty moments and should improve as the tournament goes on. Germany looks in fine form and they laid a 10-0 beatdown on Ivory Coast.



Time for Star #3!

(06-11-2015 12:52 PM)Antarius Wrote:  Awesome! The opening game was a convicning win, although IMO, the USWNT had some rusty moments and should improve as the tournament goes on. Germany looks in fine form and they laid a 10-0 beatdown on Ivory Coast.



Time for Star #3!

I wouldn't call it a convincing win. If it weren't for some amazing keeping from Hope Solo and some good fortune on a deflection for our first goal, it could easily have been Australia leading 3-0 midway through the first half. Until the last 25 minutes we had a hard time putting any passes together.

Ultimately our conditioning (as usual) helped us put the game away in the 2nd half. We are going to have to put together a much better performance to get past Germany/France/Japan/etc.

The good news is that our women's team seems to improve over the course of a tournament and I fully expect them to do so now. It will be interesting to see if Abby Wambach continues to get starter's minutes or if she'll be deployed as a supersub. Her 90 minutes on Monday night weren't very impressive.

"Abby Wambach continues to get starter's minutes or if she'll be deployed as a supersub. Her 90 minutes on Monday night weren't very impressive."

Isn't this like her 10th world cup?

(06-12-2015 11:30 AM)owlsfan Wrote:  "Abby Wambach continues to get starter's minutes or if she'll be deployed as a supersub. Her 90 minutes on Monday night weren't very impressive."

Isn't this like her 10th world cup?

4th. Japan has a player who's on her 6th world cup.

Score update from yesterday: US drew 0-0 with Sweden

Germany beats France 5-4 in Penalties to book the first semi-final spot.

US playing China now. 0-0 so far but US playing with some impressive pressure

Lloyd scores.US up 1-0

Absolutely dominant performance by USWNT so far

U.S. wins 1-0. Plays Germany in the semis.

Perfect thread to post this gem I saw on the interwebs yesterday. I figure we have talked enough about JVG that it is definitely relevant.

http://espn.go.com/espnw/athletes-life/t...undy-house

USA 2-0 Germany

Fully deserved victory, but the US also had a bit of luck with the penalty calls.

In close soccer matches, the luck often favors the team that doesn't deserve to win. But today it favored the better team. That being said, the coach needs to have a serious talk with Johnston, because she made a colossal error in the heat of the moment and should have been sent off. Johnston was otherwise the US's best player.

(06-30-2015 08:06 PM)Wiessman Wrote:  USA 2-0 Germany

Fully deserved victory, but the US also had a bit of luck with the penalty calls.

In close soccer matches, the luck often favors the team that doesn't deserve to win. But today it favored the better team. That being said, the coach needs to have a serious talk with Johnston, because she made a colossal error in the heat of the moment and should have been sent off. Johnston was otherwise the US's best player.

Yes, Johnston probably deserved a red card and ejection for that one, but IMO there were several blatant and very dangerous penalties by Germany in the first half that went uncarded (particularly the elbow in the back of Rapino). The German team was street mauling the Americans in the first half, and largely getting away with it.

You're right about the first half. I actually think that roughing up our players, Rapinoe in particular, was a significant part of Germany's strategy. I have no idea why they did that, because they have proven time and again that they can simply outplay the US if properly motivated. (Getting run ragged by France might have spooked them a bit...)

I believe that most of the rough stuff stopped because the Germans realized that they needed to focus on actually playing, and also because the ref said something to them towards the end of the first half. Whatever the case, the Germans were right to be worried about the US, because our team was definitely better. It's a pleasant surprise, because the general consensus was that there had been a bit of a decline recently in the US's play.

The women are playing excellent soccer right now, as are the men (relative to expectations, of course). Exciting times.

(07-01-2015 02:56 AM)Wiessman Wrote:  You're right about the first half. I actually think that roughing up our players, Rapinoe in particular, was a significant part of Germany's strategy. I have no idea why they did that, because they have proven time and again that they can simply outplay the US if properly motivated. (Getting run ragged by France might have spooked them a bit...)

The USWNT from the last two games is very different than the one from the start of the tournament/lead up. I wonder if this change resulted in the Germans having to throw out their planned gameplan and come up with stuff on the fly, resulting in what happened.

Good win in the end. Now cheering for Japan to take out England. England... eww

(07-01-2015 09:41 AM)Antarius Wrote:  Now cheering for Japan to take out England. England... eww

Although there's something kinda cool about the US and England teaming up to defeat Germany and Japan...

(07-01-2015 10:52 AM)georgewebb Wrote:  

(07-01-2015 09:41 AM)Antarius Wrote:  Now cheering for Japan to take out England. England... eww

Although there's something kinda cool about the US and England teaming up to defeat Germany and Japan...

And Germany took out France..

(07-01-2015 10:54 AM)Antarius Wrote:  

(07-01-2015 10:52 AM)georgewebb Wrote:  

(07-01-2015 09:41 AM)Antarius Wrote:  Now cheering for Japan to take out England. England... eww

Although there's something kinda cool about the US and England teaming up to defeat Germany and Japan...

And Germany took out France..

Poor Poland, they never even had a chance.

(07-01-2015 12:13 PM)chrisc Wrote:  

(07-01-2015 10:54 AM)Antarius Wrote:  

(07-01-2015 10:52 AM)georgewebb Wrote:  

(07-01-2015 09:41 AM)Antarius Wrote:  Now cheering for Japan to take out England. England... eww

Although there's something kinda cool about the US and England teaming up to defeat Germany and Japan...

And Germany took out France..

Poor Poland, they never even had a chance.

Talk about no chance - I had the Sudetenland in my pool.

(07-01-2015 12:49 PM)wrysal Wrote:  Talk about no chance - I had the Sudetenland in my pool.

I had to look that one up, which forced me to learn something today.

Only on the Parliament. Thanks!

I'm hoping for a USA v. England final, being half Yank, half Brit myself.