Women's World Cup: England start with a win
England 1 - 0 Haiti
In their opening Women's World Cup game against Haiti, England did what they needed to do - win.
The European champions were lacklustre and wasteful in their 1-0 victory, struggling to put away the chances they created while looking occasionally sloppy in defence.
Haiti proved why they are in Australia among the 32 best teams in the world with a fearless performance that tested Sarina Wiegman's side.
Georgia Stanway's penalty gave England a crucial three points - and it was just the third time in six World Cup appearances they had won their first match.
Women's World Cup: Spain and Switzerland start with a win (eurosuperfootball.blogspot.com)
Women's World Cup: Preview (eurosuperfootball.blogspot.com)
Their most recent matches were against Portugal and Australia, and they did little to generate momentum against Haiti.
There were 44,000 people in attendance, including many ex-pats living in Brisbane, supporting the English team, but Haiti did not disappoint their own fans.
VAR again
During the first half, VAR was called into action several times - first to deny England a penalty for a foul by Russo, then to award them one for a handball by Batcheba Louis.
Stanway's penalty gave the European champions the goal they craved when Louis' inexplicable decision to raise both hands prevented Lucy Bronze from getting on the end of a cross.
Chloe Kelly's shin was dragged down by Dayana Pierre-Louis' studs in the first half, but she didn't receive a red card. That challenge resulted in a booking for the Haiti defender but VAR ruled out a penalty because of Russo's foul in the build-up.
It finished 1-0 to England and despite a performance that was far from perfect, started the competition with what could turn out to be a huge win.
Highlights
You can watch the highlights of the match in the video below. Footage from ITV Sport HIGHLIGHTS - England v Haiti - 2023 Women's World Cup - YouTube.
Some of the best reaction
@LeornianCyng commented on the video: "Under Serina the Lionesses record is P33 W27 D5 L1 GS 139 GC 11. Haiti gave the Lionesses a tough game, but ultimately we came out on top. Come on Lionesses!"
@russellbrookes7238 added: "Three points on the board in what turned out to be an awkward opponent. Haiti did very well indeed and caused many problems throughout the game, they showed great energy and pace at times which was good to watch and if Haiti had been more clinical, they could have gotten a point or even won it on the day."
To find more news from the Women's World Cup, click here:
Mel watched the game on TV with her daughter: "A decent performance from us really. The first match of a tournament is always dull. At least we picked up the valuable three points."
