China steal late win, hosts Canada held in Women’s soccer World Cup

Edmonton, Alberta, CAN; Canada forward Christine Sinclair (12) moves the ball against New Zealand defender Rebekah Stott (6) during the first half in a Group A soccer match in the 2015 FIFA women's World Cup at Commonwealth Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Erich Schlegel-USA TODAY Sports

REUTERS: An injury-time goal earned China a dramatic victory, while hosts Canada and Germany and Norway all had to settle for draws on a competitive Thursday at the Women’s World Cup.

Wang Lisi scored in the first minute of injury time lifting China past the Netherlands in a 1-0 victory that kept both teams a point behind group leaders Canada, who have four.

Wang received a ball from team mate Tan Ruyin in the penalty box and tapped in at the far post to give her a team an exciting win that put them in the group mix.

It was much more of a slog for Canada who battled to a scoreless draw with New Zealand on a stormy, wet night.

The contest got off to a soggy start when play was suspended after five minutes due to severe weather forcing players off the pitch.

Following a 30-minute delay, action resumed under sunny skies but the dreary play continued. Canada’s scoring struggles continued after edging China on an injury time goal from Christine Sinclair in the opener. In Group B, top-ranked Germany had a win snatched from their grasp after Maren Mjelde scored on a free kick in the 61st minute to earn Norway a 1-1 draw.

The result left both teams tied on four points, though Germany lead on goal difference. Germany’s Anja Mittag netted the opener in the sixth minute.

Elsewhere, Thailand earned a historic 3-2 win against Ivory Coast in a victory that saw both teams score their first ever goals of the Women’s World Cup. Orathai Srimanee led the way with a pair of first-half goals for Thailand who close group play against Germany on Monday. Norway will face Ivory Coast.

Thailand battle back to win first women’s soccer World Cup game

Striker Orathai Srimanee scored two first half goals to lead World Cup debutants Thailand to a pulsating 3-2 comeback win over fellow minnows Ivory Coast in their women’s World Cup Group B match on Thursday.

The result was tough luck on the Africans, the lowest-ranked side of the 24 in the tournament, who hit the woodwork three times. Many of their players collapsed distraught on the pitch at the end of the game.

 “We did everything we could to relaunch our campaign after the German game but it didn’t work out for us... hitting the woodwork three times is a real shame,” said Ivory Coast coach Clementine Toure.

“We came to learn. We have a very young team and we will leave with lots of lessons from this World Cup.” Both sides were looking for better performances after suffering heavy defeats in the opening round. Ivory Coast were thrashed 10-0 by Germany while Thailand lost 4-0 to Norway.