That’s it for tonight’s blog. Suzanne Wrack was at Windsor Park for us, so I’ll leave you with her match report. Thanks for your company, goodnight!
In Group B, Scotland lost 2-0 at home to Spain. No surprise there, and the margin of defeat against such an awesome team was respectable. Jennifer Hermoso scored both goals - the first was a penalty, the second a belter.
Sarina Wiegman’s verdict
“I think it was a very mature performance in a great atmosphere. We played well, we kept the ball and switched play a lot. We wanted to be more clinical in the first half, when we created a lot of chances but scored only one. In the second half we kept moving, they got a little tired, and a 5-0 scoreline is really good.
“We thought we played well in the first half. They had to run so much that we thought they might tire and that would we get a bit more space. The speed of the game dropped a little towards the end. But when you’re 5-0 up, that’s okay.”
Georgia Stanway’s post-match verdict
“The atmosphere was unbelievable and we’re happy to play as we did and get the result. Credit where credit’s due – they’re a very, very tough side. The fans made it a hostile environment but we thrived on it.
“The biggest message [at half-time] was to be patient and clinical. It’s about building from here. We’ve got a big year ahead and we’re just gonna take it one step at a time.
“It’s brilliant playing in this team. Everyone’s in top form and it’s a competitive environment, which keeps us going. I can’t even hear myself speak because the fans are so loud! If we can create an environment that’s so, so competitive and where we can drive each other, then nothing can stop us.”
The Northern Ireland players are walking round the ground applauding the home fans. This, as we said, is about so much more than a 5-0 defeat. At some stage in the year 2039, the new superstar of Northern Ireland football will mention during an interview that she got the bug when she was taken to Windsor Park in April 2022.
Full time: Northern Ireland 0-5 England
Peep peep! England move to the cusp of World Cup qualification with a comfortable victory at Windsor Park. The outstanding Lauren Hemp scored twice, as did Georgia Stanway, with Ella Toone getting the other goal. Northern Ireland fought admirably, especially in the first half, but they were outclassed. Tonight was about a lot more than the result, however, with a record crowd of 15,348 at Windsor Park.
90+2 min An England corner breaks to Millie Bright, who thunders a shot off the top of the bar.
90 min England slice Northern Ireland open on the break. England plays in Toone, who tries to chip Burns from 30 yards but doesn’t get enough elevation on the ball. Burns, backpedalling, makes a comfortable save.
89 min Bright is a bit lucky to avoid a yellow card after flattening Simone Magill.
87 min Hemp bursts infield and has a long-range shot saved comfortably by Burns. I don’t love comparisons between women’s and men’s football but Hemp’s impatient dynamism and running style are so reminiscent of Damien Duff in his peak years with Blackburn, Ireland and Chelsea. She is exhilarating to watch.
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86 min Another change for England. Jordan Nobbs replaces the excellent Georgia Stanway, who was lively throughout and scored twice in the second half.
85 min Even at 5-0 down, a Northern Ireland goal would mean so much, and they attacking more than at any time in the game. The attendance has just been announced: 15,348, which is almost 12,000 higher than the previous Northern Ireland record.
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83 min Northern Ireland win their first corner of the game. Demi Vance curls it in, Bright heads clear - and then does so a second time when the ball is lobbed back into the area.
82 min Northern Ireland make another substitution - a weary Abbie Magee is replaced by Caragh Hamilton.
GOAL! Northern Ireland 0-5 England (Stanway 79)
Georgia Stanway gets her second and England’s fifth. A cross from the left was headed back across goal by Hemp, and Stanway got in front of McFadden to force the bouncing ball past the sprawling Burns from 12 yards.
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77 min Hemp surges infield and plays a reverse through pass to England, who just can’t reach it on the stretch. Northern Ireland can’t cope with Hemp’s direct running.
Composure, @lauren__hemp. 👌
— Lionesses (@Lionesses) April 12, 2022
Watch the @Lionesses live on @BBCTwo! pic.twitter.com/jZLpSIcNGA
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75 min Two more changes for Northern Ireland: Rebecca McKenna and Nadene Caldwell replace Joely Andrews and Kelsie Burrows.
74 min Stanway’s corner is unwittingly headed onto the roof of her own net by Vance. Northern Ireland are looking tired now.
72 min Parris is pulled back by Demi Vance, who is booked.
71 min A change for England: Nikita Parris replaces Beth Mead, who had an unusually quiet game.
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GOAL! Northern Ireland 0-4 England (Stanway 70)
Another one for England, and for Manchester City. Toone breaks into space down the left, moves into the area, zig-zags past a couple of defenders and then slides the ball across to Stanway. She does the rest with a confident finish from 10 yards.
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69 min This win moves England to the brink of World Cup qualification. A draw away to Austria in September would do the job. Failing that, a win over Luxembourg three days later will be enough. Before that, there’s the not inconsiderable matter of Euro 2022 in England.
67 min Bronze’s flat, driven cross is headed wide by England, under pressure at the far post.
66 min England also make a couple of changes. Beth England and Rachel Daly on, Ellen White and Jess Carter off.
63 min This isn’t news, but Lauren Hemp is going to be a superstar. For a 21-year-old, she is outrageously good.
62 min A double change for Northern Ireland: Kirsty McGuinness and Chloe McCarron replace Rachel Furness and Lauren Wade.
If Hemp’s first was a fluke, this was beautifully taken. Williamson surged forward and slid a through ball towards Hemp, who made a dynamic run infield from the right. The stretching Burrows couldn’t cut it out and Hemp swaggered round Burns before tapping the ball into the empty net.
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GOAL! Northern Ireland 0-3 England (Hemp 60)
Lauren Hemp gets her second!
57 min It’s an odd thing to say in a competitive sport, but I suspect Northern Ireland will be happier than England if this ends 2-0. They are having to work so hard defensively.
53 min: Earps saves from Wade! Northern Ireland almost reply straight away. Wade receives the ball in the D and sweeps a shot on the turn that is pushed away by Earps, diving low to her left. I think that’s Northern Ireland’s first shot at goal.
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Bronze forced her way past Vance and Burrows on the right and slid the ball across the area. White and Mead missed it but Toone arrived at the far post to sidefoot emphatically past Burns.
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GOAL! Northern Ireland 0-2 England (Toone 52)
Ella Toone makes it two!
49 min Hemp is taken out by Furness, who is fortunate not to be booked. The referee settled for a final warning. England have swapped their wide players, with Mead now on the left and Hemp on the right.
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46 min Burns saves from White in the first minute of the second half. She was found in the area by Stanway, but Nelson came across to ensure White didn’t have a clear shot.
46 min Peep peep! Northern Ireland begin the second half. No changes on either side.
Looped in by @lauren__hemp! 💫
— Lionesses (@Lionesses) April 12, 2022
Watch the @Lionesses live on @BBCTwo. pic.twitter.com/yZEIPS8yjM
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Half time: Northern Ireland 0-1 England
Peep peep! England fully deserve their lead, even if Lauren Hemp’s goal was fortuitous. Northern Ireland have defended with admirable determination, but in possession it has been a struggle.
45+2 min Another chance for Ellen White, who flicks a header wide from Bronze’s teasing cross. McFadden did just enough to put her off.
45+1 min Carter’s flat cross is headed well wide by White. She did well just to get her noggin on the ball as the cross was behind her.
45 min Three minutes of added time.
44 min Burns is okay to continue, at least until half-time.
43 min The Northern Ireland keeper Jackie Burns is down with a back injury. This doesn’t look good.
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41 min: Chance for Hemp! Bronze charges away from Vance on the right and stands up a deep cross that is headed over from a few yards by Hemp. She was under pressure from Magee but it was still a good chance.
40 min Northern Ireland would take half-time now. It’s been a tiring 40 minutes, spent largely without the ball, and a second goal before the break would shatter them.
37 min Hemp’s corner is headed away by Furness.
36 min England win the ball back straight away. Williamson slides a cross to the near post, where White’s shot is deflected behind by McFadden. Excellent defending. I thought White got the last touch, in fact, but a corner was given.
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36 min The corner is a waste of everyone’s time.
36 min Northern Ireland just can’t keep the ball. Hemp, who has been her usual menacing self, wins another corner for England.
33 min In Group B, Scotland trail Spain 1-0 at half-time thanks to Jennifer Hermso’s penalty.
30 min Nice play from Vance, who nutmegs Bronze and curls a pass down the line to release Wade. But Wade went too early and is flagged offside.
29 min There’s a break in play while Lauren Wade receives treatment. She’s limping a bit but I think she’s going to continue.
GOAL! Northern Ireland 0-1 England (Hemp 26)
Lauren Hemp gives England the lead with a mishit! She started the move herself, slaloming dangerously infield before stabbing the ball back outside to Toone. She pulled it back to Hemp, whose mistimed shot from six yards looped over Burns and into the far corner.
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24 min England are completely dominant. We expected that, but I think Kenny Shiels will be slightly disappointed with how easily Northern Ireland have given the ball back to England.
21 min: White has a goal disallowed! Mead’s snapshot is pushed away by Nelson, and White is well offside when she puts the rebound away.
19 min: Just wide from Bronze! Another chance for England. Carter fires a pass into White, who plays it across to the onrushing Bronze. She moves into the area but is under pressure as she shoots and curls wide with her left foot.
18 min McFadden makes a good block from White, who tried to shoot first-time from eight yards after some excellent build-up play on the right.
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17 min Julie Nelson sticks doggedly with Lauren Hemp, never the easiest task, and wins a free-kick. Northern Ireland have calmed things down a little after that difficult period in which White and Mead had good chances.
15 min A loose ball breaks to Ella Toone on the edge of the D and she rifles a fine shot that swerves just wide. Toone, playing as the left-sided central midfielder, has made a really bright start.
14 min A promising Northern Ireland break ends when Bright steps out to calmly dispossess Wade.
10 min: Off the line by McFadden! Toone plays a devastating through ball to find Hemp on the left side of the area; she cuts the ball back to Mead, whose first-time shot is blocked brilliantly on the line by McFadden. That was heroic defending, but Northern Ireland are struggling to keep the score at 0-0.
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7 min: Chance for White! Saying which, England should be ahead. Stanway beats Callaghan with ease on the right and hammers a cross to the near post, where White flicks a header just wide from six yards.
6 min To no great surprise, England are dominating possession. But Northern Ireland are defending doggedly and look alert to any counter-attacking opportunities.
3 min An early scare for Northern Ireland. Burrows’ short backpass is almost intercepted by White, with the keeper Jackie Burns eventually claiming the ball at the second attempt. I think White got a slight touch on the ball, which meant Burns was okay to pick it up.
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2 min An early corner for England on the right. Hemp takes it short, gets it back from Mead and fires it into Stanway near the penalty spot. The alert Burrows comes across to intercept.
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2 min Northern Ireland’s record crowd was 3,500 against Latvia last year. We don’t have an official attendance yet but it’s expected to be around 18,000.
1 min Peep peep! England’s Lauren Hemp gets the match under way. They’re kicking from right to left as we watch.
It’s a cold, chilly night in Belfast, and the players are ready for action.
Preparation is complete. We're ready. 👏#Lionesses | @weetabix pic.twitter.com/QtuKfBF6lW
— Lionesses (@Lionesses) April 12, 2022
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⏳#GAWA // #ANewDream pic.twitter.com/28WZXXnVMq
— Northern Ireland (@NorthernIreland) April 12, 2022
A reminder of the teams
Northern Ireland (5-3-2) Burns; Magee, Nelson, McFadden, Vance, Burrows; Andrews, Furness, Callaghan; Andrews, Magill, Wade.
Substitutes: Flaherty, McKenna, Holloway, McCarron, McGuinness, Hamilton, Caldwell, Finnegan, Bell, Wilson, Beattie.
England (4-3-3) Earps; Bronze, Bright, Williamson, Carter; Stanway, Walsh, Toone; Mead, White, Hemp.
Substitutes: Hampton, Roebuck, Daly, Zelem, George, Stokes, Parris, Nobbs, Russo, England, Charles.
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Updated
The Republic of Ireland have already had an outstanding result today, drawing 1-1 away to Sweden in Group A. It could have been even better. Katie McCabe gave Ireland the lead in the first half; Kosovare Asllani equalised with 11 minutes to go. Her goal means Sweden have qualified for next year’s competition, but Ireland still have an excellent chance of reaching the playoffs.
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This is a nice read about an iconic film that is - blimey - 20 years old this week
Heard the one about the penalty that was retaken five days later?
The England captain Leah Williamson returns to Belfast tonight, the scene of an entirely bizarre incident in an under-19 game against Norway in 2015. With character-building experiences like this, who needs character-building experiences no wonder she’s England captain at such a young age.
Arsenal’s Beth Mead scored a hat-trick against Northern Ireland in October, the start of a spectacular run of 11 goals in five internationals.
Permutations
England have won all seven of their qualifiers, scoring 63 (S-I-X-T-Y-T-H-R-etc) goals and conceding none. So it’s probably fair to assume they will get the five points they need from the remaining three games to qualify automatically.
Northern Ireland need snookers, lots of snookers, if they are to finish second in the group and earn a playoff place. Even if they win their last three games, they would need Austria to fail to win at home to either North Macedonia and Latvia.
Before tonight, those two have lost all nine group games against England, Austria and Northern Ireland by a combined score of 86-1, so it’s fair to say there will be no OMGs here. Indeed, as I type, Austria lead Latvia 3-0 at half-time.
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Turn it up! Bring the noise!
Tonight we want you to bring the noise! Look out for our #GAWA clappers on your seat! 🙌🏻 #ANewDream pic.twitter.com/pMgvpFa4NI
— Northern Ireland (@NorthernIreland) April 12, 2022
Team news
Both teams make two changes from their games at the weekend. Northern Ireland bring in Kelsie Burrows and the teenager Joely Andrews for Chloe McCarron and Rebecca Holloway.
For England, Mary Earps replaces Hannah Hampton in goal, and Leah Williamson - who missed the 10-0 win over North Macedonia because of concussion protocols - comes into the defence in place of Demi Stokes. That should mean a switch to left-back for Jess Carter.
💚 Your Northern Ireland team to face @Lionesses in Belfast 👊 #GAWA // #ANewDream pic.twitter.com/SvAvZ6p5Jk
— Northern Ireland (@NorthernIreland) April 12, 2022
The teams are in! 📋
— Lionesses (@Lionesses) April 12, 2022
Here's how your #Lionesses line up for tonight's @FIFAWWC qualifier... pic.twitter.com/rL2JZqJsc8
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Preamble
In sport, complacency is a bad thing, right? Not if you’re a neutral. The greater the assumption of a particular result, the bigger the thrill – and the louder the OMG – if it doesn’t come to pass.
All things being equal, England will beat Northern Ireland at Windsor Park tonight and move to within two points of World Cup qualification. To put it in context, Northern Ireland are 55/1 to win, the same odds you can get on this analogy not being half-arsed. But there have been bigger shocks in sport before, which is why we keep watching. And if Northern Ireland win, draw or even score tonight, it will be a moment to remember.
England won the return fixture 4-0 in October, though it took them over an hour to break down a diligent Northern Ireland defence. Tonight, they will also be up against a record home crowd: the match is sold out, with around 18,000 expected at Windsor Park. This is almost as much about the occasion as the game.
Northern Ireland can still qualify for the World Cup, but only if you talk to a mathematician. In reality, their hopes ended when they lost 3-1 to Austria on Friday. Their coach Kenny Shiels is treating this as a one-off game, a free shot at glory – and a useful factfinder before they meet England again in this summer’s European Championships.
Kick off 7.55pm.
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