Women’s World Cup only beginning to blossom

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This article was published 17/06/2015 (4097 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

In the grand scheme of things the Women’s World Cup is a young competition.

It’s a fact that can sometimes be overlooked, like when a traditional powerhouse dismantles a debutante — when Germany thumps Ivory Coast 10-0 in Ottawa; when Switzerland trounces Ecuador 10-1 in Vancouver.

The subsequent grumbling over the tournament’s expansion from 16 to 24 teams, as predictable and knee-jerk as it is short-sighted and exclusionary, does nothing to either strengthen or grow the sport. If anything, it does a disservice to those soccer pioneers who cleared the way to where we are.

It has been less than a quarter-century, after all, since China’s Ma Li scored the inaugural goal of the Women’s World Cup era, fewer than 20 years since women’s soccer was introduced to the Olympic Games.

Since then an enterprising first generation of superstar players, including Michelle Akers, Linda Medalen and Birgit Prinz, has come and gone; a second, consisting of the likes of Christine Sinclair, Abby Wambach and Homare Sawa, is just now concluding its time in the spotlight.

It’s only been in Canada that the third generation of women internationals has introduced itself: Ramona Bachmann in Vancouver, Lady Andrade in Moncton, Asisat Oshoala here in Winnipeg.

Women’s soccer is still in its adolescence. To provide some context, at the 24-year mark of the men’s World Cup era, Brazil thrashed Mexico in Geneva, Austria shellacked Czechoslovakia in Zurich and Hungary and West Germany beat up on everyone else before facing each other in the 1954 final.

But the gradual and intentional growth of the men’s game eventually produced a 32-team tournament with remarkable parity, and given a similar approach it won’t be long before the Women’s World Cup catches up.

In the meantime, soccer fans are being treated to a spectacle at a fascinating point in its evolution — a juncture at which generational shifts really matter, and where brave, battling moments in lopsided matches provide a hint of what’s to come.

Thailand came up with a few of those in Monday’s 4-0 loss to Germany in Winnipeg — defenders Natthakarn Chinwong and Duangnapa Sritala winning their duels and keeping things close until the restart.

Ecuador, too, had their moments at Investors Group Field.

Despite being largely outplayed in a territorial sense by Japan Tuesday, the South American outfit retained a good defensive shape after going down to an early Yuki Ogimi goal — Ligia Moreira, in particular, leading by example.

Just moments after floating in a free kick from distance in the 11th minute, the Tricolor captain tracked back to battle Shinobu Ohno out wide before making an important block. By the half-hour mark she was completely entrenched in the wars and did well to outmuscle Saori Ariyoshi.

Then, in the 71st, Moreira made perhaps her most vital intervention when she threw herself into a goal-bound shot that might well have padded Japan’s lead.

Denise Pesantes, too, committed herself on the defensive side of the ball, making a block from in close to force a corner kick shortly before the break. In the 58th minute her sliced clearance again swept the danger away from the Ecuador goalmouth, and not long after Katherine Ortiz became the latest of her teammates to stifle Ogimi.

Ranked 48th in the world ahead of this World Cup, and having been on the wrong end of drubbings against Cameroon and Switzerland, Ecuador nevertheless acquitted themselves well against the holders, losing by a respectable 1-0 scoreline.

It was one of the more heartening displays of the group stage.

Like all the teams in Canada, Ecuador deserves its place in the World Cup, and the 2015 instalment won’t be its last.

These are exciting times for women’s soccer, and its most prestigious event at international level is becoming bigger and more celebrated than anyone could have imagined.

Ecuador’s narrow defeat to Japan was part of that process. And it was satisfying watching it happen, watching women’s soccer grow up.

jerradpeters@gmail.com Twitter @JerradPeters