Turkey 0-4 England
FIFA Women’s World Cup 2015
Group 6 Qualifier
3pm GMT, Thursday 31 October 2013
Adana, Turkey
by Glenn Lavery in Adana
England eased to a fourth straight World Cup qualifying win with a comfortable 4-0 dismissal of Turkey.
Following victories over Belarus, Wales and the Turks, Brent Hills’s side flew to Adana in confident mood and were on the front foot from the off.
Eniola Aluko fired the Three Lions ahead early on with a sumptuous effort from long range and Fara Williams made it 2-0 from the penalty spot.
A Toni Duggan header shortly after the restart put the result beyond doubt and a rather fortuitous goal from Jordan Nobbs rounded things off on the hour.
The result leaves England clear at the top of Group 6 and looking in good shape on the road to Canada 2015.
Liverpool captain Gemma Bonner was handed her second England start, both against Turkey, and she played alongside Sophie Bradley as captain Casey Stoney was given a rest. There was a break for Karen Carney too, with Jill Scott coming into midfield and Nobbs replacing Carney in the traditional ‘No.10’ role.
When these two sides met at Fratton Park last month, two quick-fire goals from Duggan put England 2-0 up inside three minutes.
While they were unable to break the deadlock as early this time, the game’s opening goal came after just ten minutes courtesy of a sweet strike from Aluko. The Chelsea forward picked up possession in the centre of the field 25 yards out, took a touch and thumped the ball beyond Turkish goalkeeper Fatma Sahin.
Before the game, Interim Head Coach Hills had warned his side to expect the hosts to be a tougher proposition than they were in September.
But, although the scoreline was less emphatic, this never looked like a game where England would drop points, especially when the second goal came just after the quarter of an hour mark.
Centre-back Sibel Duman was adjudged to have handled Aluko’s left-wing cross inside the box and Kazakhstani referee Yuliya Medvedeva pointed to the spot. Williams stepped up to coolly side-foot the penalty into Sahin’s bottom left-hand corner to double her side’s lead.
The visitors continued to dominate possession, although they were unable to fashion many clear-cut chances for the remainder of the first half.
Ellen White saw her 25-yard shot blocked by Leyla Gungor, while a long-ranger from Williams shortly after was just too high of the target.
And Aluko thought she had netted her second of the game in added time at the end of the half, only for the assistant referee to raise her flag for offside.
As if to make up for the relative lack of chances in the opening exchanges, England started the second half like a steam train. Williams and White forced Sahin into an impressive double save but Duggan headed home from the subsequent corner to make it 3-0.
Aluko then cracked a 20-yard shot against the upright which Jordan Nobbs was unable to convert on the rebound. And captain Alex Scott forced Sahin into a decent save with an angled drive from inside the box.
It was therefore no surprise when the fourth goal eventually arrived, even if there was an element of fortune to it. Duggan headed Alex Scott’s cross against the bar and the ball bounced down on the goal-line, ricocheted off Nobbs and crept into the net.
With the game now over as a contest, England sought to improve an already impressive goal difference as Nobbs and Aluko called upon Sahin to make another good double stop.
Sahin was on-hand to deny Nobbs once more before the 90 minutes were up while Aluko and Duggan both wildly fired shots off target - but the game had long been won.
England’s next World Cup qualifier is at home to Montenegro on Saturday 5 April 2014 and they will head in to the New Year on top of the group with maximum points from four games, nine points clear of Wales in second place.
Turkey
1 Fatma Sahin, 2 Didem Tas, 3 Didem Karagenc, 4 Esra Erol, 5 Sibel Duman, 6 Leyla Gungor (18 Ebru Topcu, 53), 7 Bilgin Defterli (C), 8 Yagmur Uraz, 10 Pinar Yalcin (9 Gamze Iskeceli, 68), 11 Sevgi Cinar (17 Zubeyde Kaya, 78), 13 Cigdem Belci.
Substitutes not used 12 Ezgi Caglar, 14 Ece Songul, 15 Elfi Deniz, 16 Emine Ecem Esen.
Head Coach Nur Mustafa Gulen
England
1 Karen Bardsley, 2 Alex Scott (C), 3 Lucy Bronze, 4 Fara Williams (17 Jade Moore, 62), 5 Gemma Bonner, 6 Sophie Bradley, 7 Eniola Aluko (15 Natasha Dowie, 80), 8 Jill Scott, 9 Ellen White (14 Jess Clarke, 70), 10 Jordan Nobbs, 11 Toni Duggan.
Substitutes not used 12 Laura Bassett, 13 Rachel Brown-Finnis, 16 Steph Houghton, 18 Rachel Yankey.
Interim Head Coach Brent Hills
Referee Yuliya Medvedeva (Kaz)
England eased to a fourth straight World Cup qualifying win with a comfortable 4-0 dismissal of Turkey.Following victories over Belarus, Wales and the Turks, Brent Hills’s side flew to Adana in confident mood and were on the front foot from the off.Eniola Aluko fired the Three Lions ahead early on with a sumptuous effort from long range and Fara Williams made it 2-0 from the penalty spot.A Toni Duggan header shortly after the restart put the result beyond doubt and a rather fortuitous goal from Jordan Nobbs rounded things off on the hour.The result leaves England clear at the top of Group 6 and looking in good shape on the road to Canada 2015.Liverpool captain Gemma Bonner was handed her second England start, both against Turkey, and she played alongside Sophie Bradley as captain Casey Stoney was given a rest. There was a break for Karen Carney too, with Jill Scott coming into midfield and Nobbs replacing Carney in the traditional ‘No.10’ role.When these two sides met at Fratton Park last month, two quick-fire goals from Duggan put England 2-0 up inside three minutes.While they were unable to break the deadlock as early this time, the game’s opening goal came after just ten minutes courtesy of a sweet strike from Aluko. The Chelsea forward picked up possession in the centre of the field 25 yards out, took a touch and thumped the ball beyond Turkish goalkeeper Fatma Sahin.Before the game, Interim Head Coach Hills had warned his side to expect the hosts to be a tougher proposition than they were in September.But, although the scoreline was less emphatic, this never looked like a game where England would drop points, especially when the second goal came just after the quarter of an hour mark.Centre-back Sibel Duman was adjudged to have handled Aluko’s left-wing cross inside the box and Kazakhstani referee Yuliya Medvedeva pointed to the spot. Williams stepped up to coolly side-foot the penalty into Sahin’s bottom left-hand corner to double her side’s lead.The visitors continued to dominate possession, although they were unable to fashion many clear-cut chances for the remainder of the first half.Ellen White saw her 25-yard shot blocked by Leyla Gungor, while a long-ranger from Williams shortly after was just too high of the target.And Aluko thought she had netted her second of the game in added time at the end of the half, only for the assistant referee to raise her flag for offside.As if to make up for the relative lack of chances in the opening exchanges, England started the second half like a steam train. Williams and White forced Sahin into an impressive double save but Duggan headed home from the subsequent corner to make it 3-0.Aluko then cracked a 20-yard shot against the upright which Jordan Nobbs was unable to convert on the rebound. And captain Alex Scott forced Sahin into a decent save with an angled drive from inside the box.It was therefore no surprise when the fourth goal eventually arrived, even if there was an element of fortune to it. Duggan headed Alex Scott’s cross against the bar and the ball bounced down on the goal-line, ricocheted off Nobbs and crept into the net.With the game now over as a contest, England sought to improve an already impressive goal difference as Nobbs and Aluko called upon Sahin to make another good double stop.Sahin was on-hand to deny Nobbs once more before the 90 minutes were up while Aluko and Duggan both wildly fired shots off target - but the game had long been won.England’s next World Cup qualifier is at home to Montenegro on Saturday 5 April 2014 and they will head in to the New Year on top of the group with maximum points from four games, nine points clear of Wales in second place.1 Fatma Sahin, 2 Didem Tas, 3 Didem Karagenc, 4 Esra Erol, 5 Sibel Duman, 6 Leyla Gungor (18 Ebru Topcu, 53), 7 Bilgin Defterli (C), 8 Yagmur Uraz, 10 Pinar Yalcin (9 Gamze Iskeceli, 68), 11 Sevgi Cinar (17 Zubeyde Kaya, 78), 13 Cigdem Belci. 12 Ezgi Caglar, 14 Ece Songul, 15 Elfi Deniz, 16 Emine Ecem Esen. Nur Mustafa Gulen1 Karen Bardsley, 2 Alex Scott (C), 3 Lucy Bronze, 4 Fara Williams (17 Jade Moore, 62), 5 Gemma Bonner, 6 Sophie Bradley, 7 Eniola Aluko (15 Natasha Dowie, 80), 8 Jill Scott, 9 Ellen White (14 Jess Clarke, 70), 10 Jordan Nobbs, 11 Toni Duggan. 12 Laura Bassett, 13 Rachel Brown-Finnis, 16 Steph Houghton, 18 Rachel Yankey. Brent Hills Yuliya Medvedeva (Kaz)
