Free Kick Gets U.S. Women Started on Way to Semifinals
Eight minutes, that’s all it took.
After that, the result was obvious. The United States, after a 4-0 victory over Japan on Tuesday, would be heading to Vasteras and a semifinal game there on Thursday. Japan would be heading for the airport and a flight home.
As quarterfinal games go, this one was in the bag early.
And it was Kristine Lilly, all 5 feet 4 and 128 pounds of her, who put it there.
Awarded a free kick in the eighth minute 40 yards from goal, the U.S. team turned to Lilly, who struck a magnificent shot--a knuckleball, she called it--that left Japan goalkeeper Junko Ozava clutching at thin air as the ball swerved past her into the net.
It was the first of two strikes by the former University of North Carolina midfield standout. Lilly added a second goal in the 42nd minute, and Tiffeny Milbrett, in the 45th, and Tisha Venturini, in the 80th, rounded out the defending champions’ easiest victory yet in the second FIFA Women’s World Championship.
But it was Lilly’s first goal that ignited the match.
“We hoped to win, but that free kick really hurt us,” said Japan’s coach, Tamotsu Suzuki, who added that the Americans’ speed and power made the difference. He said Japan is pleased, however, to have achieved its goal of qualifying for the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta.
Lilly, meanwhile, was still basking in the glow of yet another excellent performance. She, along with sweeper Carla Overbeck, defender Joy Fawcett and forward Mia Hamm, have been the consistently outstanding players for the United States.
“She’s been playing all over the field with heart and soul,” said Coach Tony DiCicco. “Our most consistent player, game in and game out, is Kristine Lilly. I’m glad she bent that first one in. That gave us a big lift.”
Lilly, playing in her record 94th game for the United States, netted her 35th and 36th goals for the national team. She ranks fifth on the all-time scoring list, behind only Michelle Akers, who sat out Tuesday’s game; Carin Gabarra, April Heinrichs and Hamm.
“I haven’t scored two goals in a while in one game,” Lilly said. “I had the opportunity on the free kick and I hit that one. Luckily, the goalie bobbled the second shot,” which rolled in.
“I’ve been practicing [free kicks] and watching Michelle do them over and over. To finally hit one feels really good.”
Lilly was a starter on the United States’ 1991 world championship team in China as a 20-year-old. Her game has matured since then.
“I’m playing more of an offensive role,” she said. “I was more worried about defense in the first world championship. Now I’m balancing it more where I can get forward and also cover back.”
With Akers having played only seven minutes in the tournament because of head and knee injuries, and Gabarra at less than full strength because of a back injury, other players have had to step up. Tuesday, it was Lilly’s turn.
Akers is expected to play against Norway on Thursday, however, in a game that will be a rematch of the 1991 final. Akers scored twice in that game as the United States won in Guangzhou, China, 2-1.
Seeking to defuse any rumors of conflict between her and DiCicco, Akers said she agreed with the decision to hold her out of Tuesday’s game, even though she would have liked to play.
“I was cleared to play [by team doctors], but we chose to see how we were doing at the half and then make a decision on whether or not I would go in,” she said. “Since we were leading, 3-0, we decided to save my knee until Thursday.”
Other teams advancing were Germany, which shut out England, 3-0; Norway, which defeated Denmark, 3-1, and China, which tied Sweden, 1-1, after overtime before advancing on penalty kicks, 5-4.
But despite the drama of host nation Sweden’s loss, Lilly’s 40-yard goal was the talk of the tournament.
World Championship Notes
The eight Olympic qualifiers emerging from the tournament are Brazil, China, Denmark, Germany, Japan, Norway, Sweden and the United States. Although England reached the quarterfinals, it was ineligible to compete in the Games because Great Britain fields a unified team in Olympic competition. The Olympic soccer schedule was released here Tuesday. The 16-team men’s tournament opens July 20 in Birmingham, Ala., Miami and Orlando, Fla., and Washington, D.C., with the gold-medal game on Aug. 3 in Athens, Ga. The eight-team women’s tournament opens July 21 in the same four venues, with the gold-medal game on Aug. 1, also in Athens, Ga.
