OT - Women's World Cup Day 3 - USA v Australia

Submitted by bacon1431 on

The USWNT takes on top 10 ranked Australia in their World Cup opener at 7:30 pm ET. Match will be on FS1, with coverage starting at 6:30. 

The Sweden-Nigeria match just finished. And for those that don't know, Sweden's manager was the USWNT manager in the previous World Cup cycle. Sweden and Nigeria are also in the US' group and it was a very entertaining match. 3-3 final, Sweden looked to be running away with it after a 2-0 lead heading into halftime. But the Nigerian women battled back and tied it up, only to fall behind once again. They equalized in the 87'. Very impressive for the team that is supposed to be the weakest in the group, espeically considering they rarely get to travel outside Africa due to lack of support. They are easily the most entertaining team I've seen in the WWC so far and they'll be tough to top in that department. 

US women will have their work cut out for them in this group and they can't take any match for granted. Things were looking shaky for the women before they won the Algrave Cup and optimism was raised once again. Then they had a poor performance against South Korea in their final WC warmup. 

Hope everyone is enjoying the tournament. It's wide open this year and several teams have a legitimate chance to win it, including the US. 

Also gotta say that FS1 is knocking it out of the park when it comes to in studio coverage. Had an all female panel on Saturday, but the men have started to contribute now. Every match is on TV and most are on FS1 or regular Fox. Credit to the network for putting this together and now I'm much more optimistic about when they cover the men's WC from 2018-2026. 

bacon1431

June 8th, 2015 at 10:07 PM ^

Hope Solo was suspended from both the USWNT and her professional team after the arrest. Whether it wa sufficient enough is a different point. Has she ever been a prominent public figure against domestic violence? That's where your crack analogy falls apart. She isn't some leading feminist figure, unless every single popular woman is considered one just because they are famous. And even if she was, it is no reason to say women don't deserve equal treatment. It's a weird form of victim blaming if you say that the issue loses its importance or activists lose their effectiveness because of Hope Solo. 

I also don't get why you don't think female sports aren't about entertainment and competition....if not then what are they about? 

kgh10

June 8th, 2015 at 10:28 PM ^

I believe women's sports' rise to prominence was politically motivated. I'm okay with that because I enjoy them, and our national teams' success continued that push. However, I think political movements pushed those sports to the limelight, not because there was some large demand for them as a source of entertainment. Frankly there still isn't except maybe for women's Tennis. How many times do you hear about how women's athletics are not entertaining and are being televised despite seemingly much demand? I mean they had to introduce Title IX before any female sports really took off. (Yes I'm aware Title IX is not mainly about sports). And my analogy has more to do with league officials, who are doling out punishments, rather than Hope herself.

Rabbit21

June 8th, 2015 at 8:06 PM ^

I don't know.  The story about it in ESPN the magazine made it seem pretty ambiguous.  I wonder if it's more the opposite in that her celebrity and rep as a bad apple got her in trouble as the agressor in a confrontation with a guy who's much larger than her. 

Rabbit21

June 8th, 2015 at 9:13 PM ^

That's the one I was talking about.  Apparently her nephew is a big kid and was pretty aggressive with her as well.  I don't know what to think about the whole thing, but I don't know that it really lines up as being something more than a family having major communication issues.

JamieH

June 9th, 2015 at 1:51 AM ^

People love to play moral judge through media stories these days.  They read a story about someone doing bad things and think that their life shoiuld be destroyed.

 

Hope Solo may be a total POS.  But destroying someone's life and saying they shouldn't be allowed to play soccer based on accusations is a pretty big step to take.  She was suspended, she took her punishment and she is back.   You don't have to like her. 

bacon1431

June 8th, 2015 at 8:33 PM ^

Nothing else is working because they're not trying anything else. Too much standing around and not opening yourself up when you're off the ball. First half they had two options: get it to Rapinoe or get it to Abby. Play from the back, move off the ball, create some interplay between your skilled players. 

BornSinner

June 8th, 2015 at 7:58 PM ^

Ugh underdogs playing well today... Nigeria first, now the Auzzies... 

Iffy start by the US tho. 

Soulfire21

June 8th, 2015 at 8:00 PM ^

Not much flow either way really, seems disjointed to me.  Could feel the Australia goal coming though.  Hope had a couple good saves but we've had some questionable defense.

BornSinner

June 8th, 2015 at 8:01 PM ^

Nike dropped the ball with the 2015 USA jerseys. Homes are bland and the aways are just ugly. 

 

BornSinner

June 8th, 2015 at 8:29 PM ^

I personally prefer Puma for soccer jerseys. 

Their Arsenal and Dortmund designs have been great so far. 

Adidas isn't too bad either. Outside of Barcelona, Nike is ehh....actually their new 2015 Barca jerseys suck too. 

And yes they are all overpriced, gotta find the clearance rack at the end of the season or order straight from the sweat shops in China/Thailand for $15 bucks and just as good quality lol. 

 

alum96

June 8th, 2015 at 8:11 PM ^

If Australia is #10 right now US is #15.  No offense outside of Rapinoe.  No  build up.  Back end is reminding me of U.S. men.  It's basically the Solo and Rapinoe show.  Australia is better right now.  Maybe Morgan will make a big difference but this is not promising long term.

bacon1431

June 8th, 2015 at 8:35 PM ^

France and Germany put us to shame in technical ability. And France's female participation in the sport went up like 5 fold in the last cycle and will continue to go up. Same with Germany. We will be big underdogs most WC soon if we don't change coaches and styles.