Hamm’s Goal Leads U.S. Past Iceland
A third-minute goal by Mia Hamm earned the United States women’s national team a difficult 1-0 victory over Iceland in the rain at Charleston, S.C., Sunday night in a game that was dominated by the play of Icelandic goalkeeper Thora Helgadottir.
The U.S. peppered Iceland’s net with more than two dozen shots, many of them on target, but Helgadottir, a Duke University junior, came up with 10 saves, including some exceptional efforts, to keep the defending world champions from adding to their advantage.
Hamm’s 137th goal came off a through pass by Aly Wagner that split Iceland’s four-woman back line.
Hamm raced onto the ball and fired it just inside the right post before the on-rushing Helgadottir could cut the angle.
The victory extended the U.S. unbeaten streak at home to 18 games. Next on the schedule for Coach April Heinrichs’ squad are four games at the Algarve Cup in Portugal in March.
Guatemala in Danger
Guatemala is in danger of failing to qualify for this summer’s CONCACAF Gold Cup in the U.S. after being upset, 2-0, by Panama in the UNCAF Copa de Naciones tournament in Panama City.
Goals by Mario Mendez in the 29th minute and Roberto Brown in the 36th gave the home team a deserved victory at the Estadio Rommel Fernandez and moved it into a tie for third place with Honduras in the six-nation event.
Only the top three Central American teams are guaranteed a place in the July Gold Cup.
On Saturday, El Salvador moved to the top of the standings with a surprise 1-0 victory over Honduras, courtesy of some fine goalkeeping by Juan Jose Gomez and an 81st-minute free kick by Gilberto Murgas. Costa Rica kept pace by edging Nicaragua, 1-0, on Erick Scott’s second game-winning goal of the tournament.
El Salvador has nine points, Costa Rica seven, Honduras and Panama five apiece, Guatemala one and Nicaragua zero. The tournament continues Tuesday.
Japan Backs Out
Japan’s decision Saturday to cancel its planned two-match tour in the United States because of security fears brought on by the threat of a U.S. war with Iraq prompted the Uruguayan soccer federation to ask the Japanese to reconsider their stance.
Japan was supposed to play Uruguay on March 26 in San Jose and the U.S. on March 29 in Seattle, but Uruguayan federation official Daniel Pastorini told the El Observador newspaper in Uruguay that his country will attempt to have the former game played elsewhere.
Pastorini said the match “is necessary and important since it will mark the beginning of a new cycle for [Uruguay’s] national team, which has been idle since the World Cup.” He said Uruguay would propose “playing the match in another country that is not the United States.”
In canceling the tour, Japanese federation President Saburo Kawabuchi said that “even if no war breaks out, there is no telling how things will turn out.”
Stange Quits Iraq
Iraq national team Coach Bernd Stange quit the job he had controversially taken in October, and, in doing so, the former East Germany national coach criticized politicians of all stripes.
“My job as Iraqi national coach is at an end,” he told the German newspaper Tagesspiegel. “Anyway, my players will be called up to the army in the next few days.
“I am bitterly disappointed that politics can find no other way than lobbing bombs on my footballers.”
Toppmoeller Fired
Klaus Toppmoeller, who last season coached Bayer Leverkusen to the European Champions League final, the German Cup final and to second place in the German Bundesliga, was fired Sunday after Leverkusen lost its fifth league game in a row, 2-1, at home to Hansa Rostock, on Saturday.
