Mixed emotions as England win to stand on verge of World Cup last 16
European champions England stood on the brink of the Women's World Cup last 16 after a Lauren James cracker in the sixth minute gave them a 1-0 win over Denmark on Friday.
But an otherwise hugely satisfactory night for England in front of just over 40 000 fans in Sydney was marred by what looked like a serious knee injury to influential midfielder Keira Walsh.
On a night of mixed emotions, Sarina Wiegman's side will seal their place in the knockout rounds if Asian champions China fail to beat debutants Haiti later Friday.
Denmark might have stolen a point with three minutes left in normal time when, despite having as little as 20 per cent of the possession for much of the game, Amalie Vangsgaard shaved the outside of the England post with a header.
Wiegman made two changes from the team that squeezed past Haiti 1-0 in their opener, Rachel Daly and James coming into the starting XI.
And it was the 21-year-old Chelsea forward James who was the star of the first half, before fading in the second.
She needed just six minutes to justify her inclusion, drifting off the left into the middle, skipping past a weak challenge and bending the ball with her right foot into the bottom corner from outside the box.
James, sister of Chelsea's England men's international Reece James, was everywhere.
Twice in a minute she threatened another as England – wearing black armbands in memory of former international Trevor Francis, who died this week aged 69 – went in search of a second.
Yet for all that, Denmark nearly equalised with their first chance on 24 minutes when Rikke Marie Madsen took the ball inside the area on the turn and flashed just wide of the far post.
The Danes, ranked 13 in the world to England's four, were a threat on the
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