Europe’s eyes were on Scotland in July as the country hosted its first UEFA tournament in over 20 years.
France cruised to their fifth title in the Women’s European Under-19 Championship which was held at venues across the nation.
Games were hosted at the Simple Digital Arena, Firhill Stadium, McDiarmid Park and Forthbank Stadium throughout the twelve-day competition. The last tournament held in Scotland was the 1998 European Under-16 Championship.
Two groups of four teams contested the title, with the top two from each group qualifying for the semi-finals.
The Scots qualified for the tournament as hosts, but did not manage to get off the mark in the group stages. They started spritely with a narrow 2-1 defeat against a strong French side, before suffering heavy 4-0 losses against Norway and the Netherlands.
France topped group A on seven points, with the Netherlands close behind on six. From group B, Germany and Spain both progressed with seven points each. Germany claimed the top spot on goal difference.
The first semi-final was held at Firhill and Germany snatched the win late in the second half. With eighty minutes on the clock, the score stood at 1-1. An 81st-minute penalty and last-minute strike saw the Germans secure their spot in the final.
Over in Paisley, France needed extra time to see off defending champions Spain. The match remained goalless after ninety minutes, but finished 3-1 one after an exciting extra half an hour.
The finalists met in a lively clash at the Simple Digital Arena to top off what had been a great tournament. Germany’s Nicole Anyomi opened the scoring in the seventh minute with a tap in after Melissa Kossler’s shot rattled off the bar.
France were quick to even things up with Sandy Baltimore grabbing an equaliser in the 13th minute. The midfielder slotted a narrow effort past goalkeeper Wiebke Willebrandt to cancel out Germany’s advantage.
The French got their winner in the 73rd minute after Julie Defour’s corner into the box was met by captain Maelle Lakrar who got just enough on the ball to slip it into the net.
The tournament followed hot on the heels of the 2019 Women’s World Cup, and it was clear to see that the new appetite for the women’s game has yet to fade. Over 1,200 fans came out to support the young Scots in their opener against France, with the final of the tournament also attracting a crowd of more than 1,000.
Scotland’s next chance to welcome Europe’s best will be in a year’s time when Glasgow joins eleven other host cities for the UEFA EURO 2020 tournament.
Photo Creds – Ben Kearney
