EDMONTON, June 12 — Hosts Canada had to settle for a goalless draw against New Zealand in their second Group A tie at the Women’s World Cup yesterday.
Coached by former New Zealand coach John Herdman, Canada remain top of the group with four points from two games following their 1-0 win over China in Saturday’s opener.
China picked up three points after beating the Netherlands 1-0 earlier on Thursday, and are second along with the Dutch who won their opener against New Zealand 1-0.
Christine Sinclair, who scored the last-gasp penalty winner over China, missed a chance to seal all three points this time when her shot at goal five minutes from time went wide.
New Zealand’s top scorer Amber Hearn could have put the Oceania champions ahead when she rattled the crossbar from the spot after 33 minutes after Hannah Wilkinson was fouled inside the box by Canadian defender Allysha Chapman.
Former Ottawa Fury player Hearn, who marked her 100th cap against the Netherlands, missed a string of chances to get New Zealand their first World Cup win in their third edition of the tournament.
In the final Group A games on Monday, Canada will play the Netherlands with China up against New Zealand.
The top two teams in each group advance to the knock-out round along with the four best third-place finishers. — AFP
