World Cup: England’s win over Cameroon ignites controversy
“If that was one of my players they would never play for England again.”
Though the scoreline didn’t surprise, Sunday’s England/Cameroon match proved livelier than anyone expected. By halftime, it had become a bit of a cage match with English players finding themselves on the receiving end of yelling, stomping, delays and a couple of hard challenges. There was even a spitting incident.
English manager Phil Neville said of their opponent’s, “If that was one of my players, they would never play for England again with that kind of behavior.”
Things went south in the fifteenth minute when Cameroon keeper Annette Ndom plucked up a back pass from a defender. The Cameroon side considered the pass a deflection. The referee disagreed and awarded a free kick only meters from goal. English defender Steph Houghton converted and England went ahead by one.
Cameroon’s frustration mounted after England’s Ellen White had a goal called offside, then restored without video review. England 2: Cameroon 0.
The English let up in the second half, but Cameroon couldn’t take advantage. After VAR ruled the single, emphatic (but clearly offside) Cameroonian goal offside, the team and its manager vented their fury. The players grew so upset with what they considered one-sided officiating, that they delayed playing for several minutes.
After their nullified goal, Cameroon was unable to score. Meanwhile, England’s Ellen Greenwood charged a low corner delivery. She drove it home for England’s third and final goal.
Video-Assisted Referee VAR (basically, instant replay) is new to soccer and players, managers and fans remain wary of it. This is the first Women’s World Cup to use VAR and controversies have plagued the tournament. VAR intervention in the England/Cameroon match inflamed both sides like no other game played so far.
One of the benefits (curses) of VAR is, you can watch and re-watch things that happen in a match. The calls made in the England/Cameroon meeting all appear sound. As a result, Cameroon’s behavior quickly became a major topic in the media. In his interview on Fox after the win, England manager Phil Neville expressed anger and disappointment over Cameroon’s dramatics.
ESPN reported that Cameroon manager Alain Djeumfa had a different take on things. ”It’s a game, it’s a sport. The referee made a lot of mistakes tonight.”
Of his team, Djeumfa told ESPN, “The players never really refused to play the game. They showed professionalism, and I take my hat off to them for that.”
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England faces Norway in the quarterfinals on Thursday, June 27.