Wales put in a heroic display but fell to a gutting 2-0 defeat to France at the Stade du Roudourou.
Goals from Kadidiatou Diani and Selma Bacha was enough to see Les Bleus home, but Wales gave a good account of themselves. Jess Fishlock hit the post and they fought well after Kayleigh Green was sent off midway through the second half.
Wales started the game well. Fishlock ran down the wing in the first minute and her cross almost found Green in the area but was well saved by Peyraud-Magnin in the French net. After that, France controlled most of the first half.
The strategy of the French team seemed to be put as many crosses into the box as possible. Wingers Diani and Delphine Cascarino put in pinpoint deliveries that found striker Marie-Antoinette Katoto, but her efforts went wide or were well blocked by the defence, and on many occasions, well saved by Laura O’Sullivan.
Wales were having some success on the break. Angharad James found herself alone in the box but couldn’t find Green with her cross. Then Green went through but her first touch let her down and the ball ran comfortably to the French keeper.
France then took the lead in added time in the first half. As Wales tried to attack from a throw in, France went on the break. Cascarino drove down the wing with the ball, before expertly dribbling around Gemma Evans and squaring it to Diani, who could tap it into an empty net.
The second half had a very different feel to the first half. France weren’t getting as much success down the wings, and the crowd became very quiet as Wales grew into the game.
Firstly, Fishlock executed an exquisite volley that was heading into the bottom corner, but Peyraud-Magnin tipped it round the goal superbly. Then Green went through but she put her effort into the side netting.
Carrie Jones then went on a mesmeric run and her deflected shot fell to Natasha Harding, but she couldn’t wrap her foot round the ball, and it sailed wide.
In the 70th minute Wales suffered a setback. Green, for the second time this qualifying campaign, received her second yellow card for a bad challenge. But Wales did not sit back, they still went to try and find an equaliser.
Gemma Evans had the ball in the net, but the Romanian referee ruled it out for handball. Then Fishlock tested the keeper but again, Peyraud-Magnin did well to save it.
Then a manic seven seconds led to France’s winner. From a throw-in, Fishlock dribbled into the area and struck the post. From that, because Wales had committed so many women forward, France broke rapidly up the pitch and the ball ended up with Bacha who rifled it into the top corner to settle the tie.
This is Wales’ first defeat of the qualifiers, but they still sit in second place in Group I, and will be hoping to avenge this defeat in their next qualifier, which will be at home to France in April.
Gemma Grainger post-match comments
“The fact that we’ve got stronger and stronger throughout the second half and going down to ten players didn’t change that. So the mentality of the group and what we’ve got to harness from that second-half performance, in particular, is something that is the marker.”
“We’ve set the marker now and we’ve got to use that as a standard in 2022. If we do that, we’re not going to be far off achieving the things that we want to achieve.”
Natasha Harding said: “The progression that we’ve made with Gemma coming in, it’s the same players, we might have had one or two differences, but it is the same squad.
“We always knew within ourselves that we can play football we’ve had that confidence about ourselves for all these years.”
“Previously we’ve built a massive foundation of being defensively solid, but when Gemma came in it was about unlocking that confidence in going forward and winning the ball, and tonight, we’ve shown in spells we are capable of doing that. I couldn’t be prouder of the girls.”
Player of the match: Esther Morgan
There are so many players that could’ve been named player of the match, but I’ve chosen Esther Morgan. For someone who’s 19 and only made a handful of appearances for the senior team, she played like a player beyond her years tonight. Dealing with world-class players like Diani and Cascarino is no easy achievement, but she did it superbly.
France: Pauline Peyraud-Magnin (GK), Eve Perisset (Griedge Mbock Bathy, 81’), Elise de Almeida, Aissatou Tounkara, Perle Morroni, Sandie Toletti (Kenza Dali, 66’), Charlotte Bilbault (C), Grace Geyoro, Kadidiatou Diani (Selma Bacha, 66’), Marie-Antoinette Katoto, Delphine Cascarino (Melvine Malard, 88’)
Subs: Solene Durand (GK), Mylene Chavas (GK), Hawa Cissoko, Marion Torrent, Clara Mateo, Valerie Gauvin, Sandy Baltimore, Viviane Asseyi
Yellow Cards: Diani (58’)
Wales: Laura O’Sullivan (GK), Gemma Evans, Sohpie Ingle (C), Rhiannon Roberts, Angharad James, Kayleigh Green, Jess Fishlock, Natasha Harding, Hayley Ladd, Esther Morgan, Carrie Jones (Ffion Morgan, 68’)
Subs: Olivia Clark (GK), Poppy Soper (GK), Lily Woodham, Josie Green, Helen Ward, Elise Hughes, Georgia Walters, Charlotte Estcourt, Chloe Williams, Megan Wynne, Anna Filbey
Yellow Cards: Green (21’)
Red Cards: Green (70’)
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