With the kickoff of the U.S.-Brazil semifinal of the Women's World Cup less than two days way, we thought it would be appropriate to put things into perspective and look at some of the most memorable and most forgettable moments in the USA's WWC history.
Will the 2007 version of the U.S. team make some history and add an accomplishment or two in the final two matches of this competition? Only time will tell.
Most memorable moments
- The first championship: It was an incredible sight, something U.S. soccer officials had dreamed about for years -- the U.S. had won a major FIFA championship. After a huge fireworks display and the medals ceremony, the USA took a well-deserved victory lap around the stadium in Guangzhou, China on Nov. 20, 1991. Michelle Akers (then known as Michelle Akers-Stahl) intercepted a back pass to the Norway goalkeeper and scored her second goal of the match with two minutes remaining in regulation to secure a 2-1 victory before a crowd of 65,000.
- Brandi's bra: Unless you've been leaving in a cave for the past eight years, every soccer fan knows what Brandi Chastain accomplished on July 10, 1999. She connected for the game-winning penalty kick to give the USA their second world championship before ripping off her jersey in celebration to reveal a sports bra. The U.S. prevailed in the shootout 5-4, after 120 minutes of a scoreless tie before a women's record crowd of 90,185 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif. Trivia question: Do you know who scored the U.S.'s other four tries? In order, it was Carla Overbeck, Joy Fawcett, Kristine Lilly and Mia Hamm.
- Michelle's high-five: Akers was at full throttle against Taiwan in the very first WWC in Foshan, China on Nov. 24, 1991, when she struck for a record five goals in a 7-0 quarterfinal rout. For the record, Akers connected in the eighth, 29th, 33rd, 42nd (penalty kick) and 47th minutes. "I don't play to set records," Akers said. "If goals come, then that's great. But we play as a team." U.S. coach Anson Dorrance couldn't believe what he saw. "It was her best finishing game ever, not the best game performance," he said. "She scored some absolutely remarkable goals."
- A game for the ages: It was the worst of all possible scenarios. With the game barely five minutes old, defender Brandi Chastain accidentally kicked the ball into her own net against a tough German side on July 1, 1999. As it turned out, Chastain atoned for her miscue by heading home the equalizer off a Mia Hamm corner kick in the 49th minute after a Milbrett score. And only 20 seconds after she stepped onto the field for Julie Foudy, Shannon MacMillan's corner kick found Joy Fawcett's head and eventually the back of the net in the 66th minute for a stirring 3-2 comeback victory before 54,642 spectators in Landover, Md.
- Really using your head: Talk about being at the right place at the right now. Ten minutes into the first extra time of the 1999 final on July 17, Kristine Lilly stood to the right of goalkeeper Briana Scurry on a Chinese corner kick. The ball came to defender Fan Yunjie, who placed a header from seven yards on goal as Scurry came out of the net. But there was Lilly (in her record 186th international match at the time), standing on the goalline. She leaped and headed the ball, landing in the net. The ball didn't as the U.S. defense cleared it out of harm's way. You know the rest of the story. The U.S. prevailed on penalty kicks.
- Follow the leader: On a day when the U.S. was ordinary, Hamm turned out to be spectacular. Hamm lived up to the pre-Women's World Cup hype by scoring a spectacular goal and setting up another to jump-start a side that played below its potential in a 3-0 victory against Denmark before a Giants Stadium crowd of 78,972 on June 19, 1999. Hamm scored her 110th career international goal in the 17th minute. She ran onto a long ball from defender Brandi Chastain down the right side and beat defender Katrine Pedersen with an amazing 10-yard shot to the near post past goalkeeper Dorthe Larsen.
- The triple-edged sword strikes: The Chinese liked to call Michelle Akers, April Heinrichs and Carin Jennings the triple-edge sword because all three of them were so dangerous. As it turns out, they all scored goals in only one game -- the 5-0 triumph against Brazil in Punyu, China Nov. 19, 1991. Heinrichs gave the U.S. all the scoring it needed in the 23rd and 35th minute before Jennings struck in the 38th and Akers only a minute later. A player by the name of Mia Hamm found that back of the net in the 65th minute.
- Stirring a giant: Wakeup calls come in different forms. On June 24, 1999, Nigeria inadvertently awoke a slumbering giant by scoring with the first-round game only 73 seconds old. "It was actually a blessing in disguise," Tiffeny Milbrett said. "It made us angry." The relentless U.S. made Nigeria pay in the worst way, exploding for six goals within a 23-minute span in the first round en route to an overwhelming 7-1 triumph at Soldier Field in Chicago.
- A saving grace or two: On a team that boasted the likes of Hamm, Akers, Milbrett and company, it's easy for a goalkeeper to get lost in the shuffle or worse, not be ready for the moment. Then there was Scurry, who was ready for the moment and then some in the USA's 2-0 semifinal victory against Brazil before a near-capacity crowd of 73,123 at Stanford Stadium in Palo Alto, Calif. On July 4, 1999. Scurry denied Nene by slapping the ball over the crossbar in the 46th minute. Scurry was called on again to work her magic when Nene's 15-yard blast forced her to stretch to her right to knock the ball away with her right hand. She was at it again in the 83rd minute, using both hands to bat away a 12-yard shot by Pretinha.
- A benchmark win: After clinching a spot in the quarterfinals, U.S. coach Tony DiCicco decided to rest four regulars (Kate Sobrero, Foudy, Akers and Milbrett) in the team's third and final first-round encounter against North Korea in Foxborough, Mass. on June 27, 1999. It worked to perfect en route to a 3-0 victory at the old Foxboro Stadium. Reserves-turned-starters Shannon MacMillan and Tish Venturini made the difference. MacMillan scored the first goal and created both of Venturini's goals.
Most forgettable moments
- The first loss: It couldn't happen at a worse time as the USA went down to Norway, 1-0, in devastating fashion on in Vasteras, Sweden before a crowd of 2,893 (that's no typo) on June 13, 1995. Ann Kristin Aarones, who went on to play for the New York Power (WUSA), scored the lone goal in the 10th minute. The U.S. threw just about everything at the European side, but to no avail. The Norwegians eventually went on capture the world championship, besting Germany in the final, 2-0. Norway captain and defender Linda Medalen took delight in the Americans' misery. "We were so happy when we saw the disappointment in the American eyes," she said. "It was like, God, they couldn't believe it was true. That gave us the spirit to win the final when we saw how disappointed they were. It lifted us up." The U.S. gained a measure of revenge the following year, eliminating the Norwegians in the semifinals of the very first women's Olympic soccer tournament en route to the gold medal.
- The second loss: This couldn't happen at a worse time as well -- the semifinals of USA '03. The Germans deserved to win. They were at the top of their game with Maren Meinert running the show with her diagonal passes that ripped apart defenses and Birgit Prinz who had (and still has) a devastating finishing touch on Oct. 5, 2003. It is easy to forget that Germany enjoyed a 1-0 lead in regulation, thanks to a Kerstin Garefrekes goal in the 15th minute. As the USA desperately tried to push up for the equalizer, Meinert (a minute into stoppage time) and Prinz (three minutes into added time) found the back of the net. The U.S. has only two WWC losses.
- Sitting a superstar: Former U.S. coach April Heinrichs blundered by benching Hamm in the 3-0 win against North Korea in Columbus, Ohio on Sept. 28 in an attempt to rest her superstar for the rest of the 2003 tournament. Only a day prior, Heinrichs had said, "If you take Mia Hamm out, you run the risk of turning the faucet off." Well, the faucet ran dry in the next two games -- a 1-0 quarterfinal win over Norway and that loss to Germany in the semifinals. "You balance between wanting to stay sharp with touches but also understanding that another day's rest is going to help," Hamm said. "As a competitor you love to get in there, but I have respect for my coaches and we made the decision together."
- Double (injury) jeopardy: Only seven minutes into the opening 3-3 tie with China on June 6, 1995, Akers was lost for virtually the rest of the tournament with an knee injury. Akers jumped to clear a corner kick. She banged heads with Fan Yunjie as she collapsed in the penalty area, twisting a knee as she fell. Akers, who also was diagnosed with a second-degree concussion, did not play again until the semifinal. And even then Akers wasn't up to full strength. The injury to American striker Abby Wambach, who needed 11 stitches to close a head cut in the 2-2 draw with North Korea on Sept. 11, was eerily similar.
- Seeing red: With two minutes remaining in the second game in 1995, a 2-0 win against Denmark on June 8, goalkeeper Briana Scurry was called for a controversial red card by a Guinean referee for carrying the ball out of the penalty area to punt, forcing DiCicco to use Hamm in goal for a few minutes. Scurry was forced to sit out the next game with a suspension as the U.S. prevailed against Australia 3-1, with Saskia Webber in the net.
Michael Lewis covers soccer for the New York Daily News and is editor of BigAppleSoccer.com. He can be reached at SoccerWriter516@aol.com. Views and opinions expressed in this column are the author's, and not necessarily those of Major League Soccer or MLSnet.com.
