PACKED DEFENCE UNDOES ENGLAND'S HOPE OF A 5th PLA CE, by Peter Savage pitchside in Madrid.

If matches were won on possession England would have been the out-an-out winners of this game, but that's not how matches are won and England paid the price for a lack of scoring ability. Japan gave early notice in this 5th/8th crossover match in the Samsung Women's World Cup in Madrid, bruising the upright from a breakaway in the first few minutes. Despite a massive advantage in possession, England had very few scoring chances. After the match, which finished 2-0 in favour of Japan, England coach Danny Kerry was gracious about the Japanese and the effectiveness of their defence and pointed to a packed defence as the cause of England's failure. England will now go into the 7th/8th play off against a team to be decided. There will be a further blog report later today, hopefully with some photographs of the England v Japan match.