Ukrainian coach Alla Hres admitted that she was a "little bit stressed" after the first half of yesterday's match against Ireland, having witnessed her players, for the most part, being outplayed by an "excellent team." By full-time, though, after they had inflicted a demoralising 3-2 defeat on the Irish, on the opening day of the European Nations' Cup finals in Cologne, it was Riet Kuper who was in a state of shock.
"A very, very disappointing day," said the downcast Irish coach after the game, in which her team had recovered from conceding an early goal to lead 2-1 at half-time, only to concede two more - and all three points - in a woeful second-half display. Quite how it had all gone so wrong, after the promise of the opening 35 minutes, even Kuper was at a loss to explain but Hres put the turn-around in fortunes down to a switch in Ukrainian tactics that saw them deny Ireland much of the space and time on the ball they had afforded them in the first period.
They took the lead after nine minutes when Tetyana Kobzenko capitalised on Arlene Thompson's failure to clear the ball from the back but the goal merely served to bring the best out of the Irish, who drew level 10 minutes later through a wonderful Mary Logue solo effort. The Irish captain collected the ball just inside the Ukrainian half and carried it through to the right of the circle before cracking a superb shot low into the bottom left corner of the goal. Within seven minutes, Ireland took a deserved lead when Sarah Kelleher, who had a impressive first half, converted her team's eighth short corner. Thompson and Jenny Burke went close to stretching the advantage but they were denied by some fine goalkeeping from Hanna Huchenko.
The half-time corner count - nine to the Ukraine's two - was an accurate reflection of Ireland's domination, with Claire McMahon, who gave the Ukrainian defence a torrid time, winning the bulk of that total. At the back, 20-year-old Lindab Caulfield was having a marvellous game, showing admirable composure in only her eighth senior international, while in midfield Kelleher, Logue and Rachel Kohler were in complete control. But the Ukrainians were a different outfit in the second half, harrying and hassling the Irish at every opportunity and forcing them into losing possession on countless occasions. They equalised through Kobzenko just five minutes after the break, when she scored from a penalty corner needlessly conceded by Kelleher, and were the better side from there on in.
Ireland still created chances, the best falling to Kelleher and Lynsey McVicker, but they were squandered and Kobzenko's clinical finishing denied them even a draw when she completed her hat-trick seven minutes from time, slotting the ball to Sharon Hutchinson's left from a poorly defended corner.
McVicker had an opportunity to salvage a point just a minute from time but struck a tame effort straight at the goalkeeper after Kelleher had played her through. It left her side with the worst imaginable start to the tournament and means they must, realistically, take something from today's game against England if they are to reach their target of a top-four finish in the pool.
"We had enough corners to win the match (Ireland won 13 to the Ukraine's six) but they took their chances, we didn't," said a dejected Mary Logue. The only consolation was that England and Spain, who drew 1-1, looked less than formidable themselves while the Ukraine should prove awkward opponents in their remaining pool games.
IRELAND: S Hutchinson, L Caulfield, A Thompson, D Sixsmith, P Magill, M Logue (capt), S Kelleher, R Kohler, C McMahon, J Burke, L McVicker. Subs: C Carey, K Mills, J Orbinson, K Humphreys.
Pool A: Scotland 1, Russia 1; Pool B: England 1, Spain 1; Ireland 2 (M Logue, S Kelleher), Ukraine 3 (T Kobzenko 3); Germany 7, Czech Republic 0.
