England suffered a 1-0 defeat in their final friendly before the World Cup commences, losing to host nation Canada on Saturday morning.
A 23rd minute wonder goal from Sophie Schmidt was enough to seal the victory for the home side, her tantalising strike from the edge of the box leaving England’s number one Karen Bardsley hopeless.
Despite the Lionesses beating the North American outfit during their last outing, in the Cyprus Cup final in March, Mark Sampson’s side could produce little threat throughout the game while regularly appearing second best.
Improvements may be needed quickly should England wish to progress in the World Cup, facing the demanding task of the French in their opening game. However, the visitors were unfortunate to miss out on a draw, as Fara Williams struck the crossbar from a considerable distance in the closing minutes.
Captain Steph Houghton also had a chance early on to take the lead for England but her free kick curled narrowly wide.
However, once Schmidt connected with Josee Belanger’s pass, with a spectacular first time effort on the half-volley, John Herdman’s side never looked back, controlling the remainder of the game.
Schmidt almost added a second to her evening’s tally, while a resilient defensive display was produced up the other end of the field. England will certainly have Bardsley to thank, preventing the scoreline from reaching three or four throughout the tie.
Sampson opted to make a number of changes, and saw just two players remain in the team for their last friendly, when they hosted China in Manchester. However, a triple change on the hour mark did little to claw back a goal, although substitute Williams did go closest with her cheeky effort.
England next line-up on June 9 to face France in their opening game of the World Cup, while hosts Canada kick start the tournament on June 6.
