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Pre-ticket sales have already come in for the English Women’s National and it’s revealed something that is great news for the sphere of women’s football – the women’s team have outsold the men for their friendly international game against Germany later this month.
The Football Association in England have confirmed that the target sales of 30,000 have been smashed aside and that a climbing number of 41,000 have currently been established by the officials.
The men’s national game against Norway in the beginning of September failed to draw that amount, bringing only 40,181 fans for the game in Wembley, the smallest crowd for a senior England game since the stadium was rebuilt.
Mark Sampson’s side have qualified for next summer’s World Cup, winning all 10 of their qualifying matches in the lead-up and now face off against the European champions, Germany, to prepare for the world competition.
This attendance will set the record for England women’s international attendance at home, going far beyond the 29,092 in attendance for England’s victory over Finland during Euro 2005, where they played at the Etihad.
Great Britain’s female Olympic team did draw higher crowds, however, with 70,584 playing against Brazil and defeating them 1-0 in 2012, and that was a game played at Wembley before the redevelopment.
Ticket sales in the three weeks before the women’s game are also expected to continue to climb, raising the possibility of a crowd exceeding 50,000.
Scotland loses its World Cup chance in the Semi-Finals
The 2015 World Cup dream is over for Scotland’s national team as they fell to a 2-0 defeat at the hands of the Netherlands in the Semi-Final playoffs, resulting in a 4-1 aggregate defeat.
Coming off a 2-1 defeat at home, boss Anna Signeul knew that Scotland had to net at least two goals to have a chance at making it through, but the Scottish ladies were silenced after a powerful 18-yard volley from Lieke Martens that made the hill into a mountain.
A defensive mistake later in the game saw Manos Melis take full advantage and net a second goal for the home team.
The Dutch ladies now come up against Italy in the playoff final that could see one team to the World Cup in Canada, a dream that every woman on the pitch holds firm to.
First-half chances fell to Jo Love and Jane Ross but both players shot straight at home goalkeeper Loes Geurts from promising positions.
The hosts struggled to remain as dominate as they had in Tynecastle last Saturday, but Martens and Melis both had attacking chances early on and didn’t let up.
Scots' hopes were raised when Little stood over a free kick on the edge of the penalty area but her low strike could not deceive Geurts and the keeper stood firm at her near post to keep out another shot from the Seattle Reign playmaker.
There was panic for the Scots when the excellent Melis cut in from the right and took aim for for the opposite top corner, with Fay making a terrific fingertip save.
But star-of-the-show Melis was not to be denied and she was gifted a goal when Dieke and Fantom-Brown got in a tangle, allowing the Gothenburg winger to run on and slot the ball under Fay to wrap up the tie.
FA Women’s Premier League Cup draw announced
The Round of 16 draw for the FA Women’s Premier League Cup has been announced, with the first fixture kicking off at the Home of Football on November 30th.
The tie will see Rover Ladies face off against bitter rivals Sheffield FC, after both teams recorded dominant wins over their previous opposition.
Rovers took two victories, one over Stoke City (4-0) and one over Forest Green Rovers (7-0), while Sheffield defeated Rotherham United 5-1 and stole a close game against Tottenham Hotspur with a single goal.
The Round of 16 draw is in full as follows:
Sheffield FC v Rovers
Plymouth Argyle v Charlton Athletic
Newcastle United v Brighton & Hove Albion
Lewes v Coventry City
Keynsham Town v Nottingham Forest
Ipswich Town v Cardiff City
C&K Basildon v Sporting Club Albion
Portsmouth v Mossley Hill
Is Sunderland’s Beth Mead the next big thing?
Beth Mead has proven that she could be the next English striker after dominating the domestic league for the past three years.
The 19-year-old Sunderland Ladies forward has netted 66 goals in 68 appearances over the last two and a half seasons, including a total of 13 goals out of 17 games in this season in the Super League 2.
Many pundits are already bidding on Mead as a selection for the top flight squad, and having already led the Black Cats to a stunning lead in the league, they sit only five points off assured promotion to the Super League 1 next year.
"I've spoken to some of the [FAWSL 1] managers but they know at the moment I'm doing well at Sunderland," Mead told BBC Newcastle.
"Maybe at the end of the season I might get a few calls, but we will see where Sunderland ends up.”
Mead recently showcased her exceptional talents at the Under-20 World Cup in Canada, which saw her shared widely on social media for her efforts.
"I didn't realize it would be as big as it was, but I'm glad about what it did for women's football and how it helped promote the game more," she explained.
"It was mental, the response I got from the goal.
"It just felt right when I went to hit it, and obviously I hit it well and it went in the top corner."
"Mark [Sampson] has shown that if you're on form he will pick you in any league - Fran Kirby (Reading striker) has just got in and she is in FAWSL 2. She's on fire at the moment," Mead said.
"If he thinks you've got the talent and he thinks you can do a job in his team, he'll pick you at any age."
At 10 years of age, Mead went on to join the California Girls side but continued to play along with the boys as well, and eventually came to the attention of the Middlesbrough Centre of Excellence.
"I started out with a boys' team and played for them until I wasn't allowed to anymore. Playing with the boys helped me develop a lot quicker.
"I was scared of the girls more than the boys when it came down to it."
Mead made her way through the age groups at Middlesbrough and she showed up on England's radar in 2010, earning England caps at both U-15 and U-17 level.
"It was a bit surreal - at that age I'd never thought I would be playing at an international standard," she said.
"I'd started playing well for the Centre of Excellence and obviously England scouts came to watch some games and I impressed them.
"I went to a one-day camp and did really well, I scored four goals in one game, so from there it just took off."