This week we look at the recent Copa de la Liga MX Femenil, the first competition for the newly developed, primarily U-23 league in Mexico, that is leveraging the organization of existing men's sides. In addition, we look at Scotland as they prepare for their first major championship appearance since the 1980's this summer at the European Championships, with two June friendlies as well as a new coach named to take over at the end of the tournament. We also present the roster for the U.S. Women's National Team trip in early June to Sweden and Norway for friendlies.
Pachuca wins first Copa de la Liga MX Femenil
Pachuca won the first Copa de la Liga MX Femenil (Women's Cup), held in Toluca—about an hour west of Mexico City—from May 3-6. Twelve teams were divided into 3 groups:
Group 1
Guadalajara
Morelia
Toluca
Pachuca
Group 2
Monterrey
Pumas
Tigres
Group 3
Club Tijuana
Cruz Azul
Necaxa
Santos Laguna
Four teams did not have a team ready to compete in the Cup competition but will participate in the 16 team league that begins this fall: Atlas, Leon, Queretaro and Veracruz.
Pachuca (Group 1 W 3 D 0 L 0, GF 18, GA 4) and Club Tijuana (Group 3 W 3 D 0 L0 GF 6 GA 0) advanced to the Final with the best overall records of the three rounds. Club America (W 2 D1 L0 GF 11 GA 1) won Group 2 but a scoreless draw in their last match against Tigres cost them a chance of a berth in the championship match.
Berenice Munoz scored a hat trick for Pachuca to lead the team to a 9-1 Final Cup Victory over Tijuana at the Estadio FMF in Toluca. It was the club's second title in less than a month, with the men's side topping Tigres for the 2016/17 Scotiabank CONCACAF Champions League crown 2-1 on aggregate in April. In addition to Munoz's hat trick, Yamile Franco and Monica Ocampo both had first half braces. Diana Garcia and Lizbeth Angeles added a goal each for the winners. Club Tijuana's only goal was scored by Inglis Hernandez in the 35th minute. Ocampo played for years with FC Indiana in WPSL and the W-League and then with Atlanta Beat in WPS and Sky Blue FC in NWSL. Hernandez played with the Xolos side when it played in the WPSL in 2015, operating across the border in San Ysidro (a border community on the American side, just south of San Diego) so that their opponents didn't have to cross the border for games. Tijuana's head coach, Andrea Rodebaugh, was born in Mexico City but played collegiately at the University of California-Berkeley and then professionally in France and Japan. She has coached the national U-20 side for Mexico. The side were Mexican league champs in 2015 (the Liga Mayor Femenil).
Veteran Mexican international forward Monica Ocampo of Cup winners Pachuca led all scorers with 6 in 4 games, scoring a goal on average every 31 minutes. Berenice Munoz (Pachuca), Yamile Azenek Franco (Pachuca), veteran youth international Dayana Cazares (Club America), Karime Abud (UNAM) and international Diana Evangelista (Monterrey) all had 4 goals during the Cup matches.
Pachuca is one of the oldest clubs in the Americas, founded in 1901 by Cornish miners in the mining region located 90 minutes' drive-time north of Mexico City. Pachuca has always been a soccer mad city and its men's side has won Mexican league, CONCACAF regional championships and a Copa South America in 2006.
The Liga MX Femenil plans to launch in September with 16 teams affiliated to the men's first division league (Chiapas and Puebla are not fielding teams for monetary reasons). The team will not field foreign players at first (except Mexican-Americans are permitted) with primarily U-23 players, with four U-17 and two overage players.
The teams set for league play this fall include:
Mexico City:
Guadalajara:
Monterrey:
UANL
Copa de la Liga MX Femenil 2017 Final
May 7 Estadio FMF-Toluca Mexico
Pachuca-Club Tijuana 9-1 (4-1)
Berenice Munoz 3, 21, 51 Yamile Franco 7, 44, Diana Garcia 18, Monica Ocampo (37, 41) Lizbeth Angeles 65/Inglis Hernandez 35
Pachuca: Miriam Aguirre, Natalia Melgoza, Diana Monroy (Karla Zempoalteca 52), Nataly Cardenas (Lizbeth Perez 60), Karla Nieto, Jaquelin Garcia (Fatima Arellano 46), Michelle Gonzalez (Karen Gomez 46), Monica Ocampo, Berenic Munoz (Joselyn de la Rosa 52), Diana Garcia (Lizabeth Angeles 41), Yamile Franco. Head Coach Eva Espejo
Club Tijuana
Isela Parra, Veronica Perez, Ana Lara, Nubia Ayala, Yazmin Guzman (Kenya Castaneda 84), Esmeralda Verdugo, Karla Perez (Patricia Gutierrez 35), Christian Jaramillo, Ericka Soto (Paulina Chaidez 35), Inglis Hernandez, Claudi Ibarra. Head Coach Andrea Rodebaugh.
Scotland names squad for Euro Championship practices games next month against Romania and Sweden—and a new coach who will start after the summer tournament.
Scotland's women's national team head coach Anna Signeul named a 20 player roster for two friendlies this month in preparation for their appearance at the European Championships, which start in July. Scotland plays Romania in Falkirk on June 9th followed by a match against Sweden away in Vaxjo on June 13th. Scotland's last friendly before the Euros will be July 7th against the Republic of Ireland, with the venue still to be determined. This is Scotland's first appearance in a major final since participating in the European Championship for women in 1984, 1987 and 1989, where they never advanced past the group stage.
Scotland Women's National Team Roster by Position:
Goalkeepers
Gemma Fay (Stjarnan) 197 caps
Lee Alexander (Glasgow City) 0 caps
Shannon Lynn (Vittsjo GIK) 24 caps
Defenders
Jennifer Beattie (Manchester City) 107 caps
Frankie Brown (Bristol City) 85 caps
Rachel Corsie (Seattle Reign) 87 caps
Ifeoma Dieke (Vittsjo GIK) 118 caps
Kirsty Smith (Hibernian) 22 caps
Rachel McLauchlan (Hibernian) 3 caps
Midfielders
Leanne Crichton (Glasgow City) 49 caps
Erin Cuthbert (Chelsea) 7 caps
Lisa Evans (FC Bayern Munich) 58 caps
Hayley Lauder (Glasgow City) 82 caps
Joanne Love (Glasgow City) 175 caps
Leanne Ross (Glasgow City) 130 caps
Caroline Weir (Liverpool) 35 caps
Forwards
Fiona Brown (Eskilstuna United) 16 caps
Lana Clelland (UPC Tavagnacco) 13 caps
Christie Murray (Doncaster Rovers Belles) 46 caps
Jane Ross (Manchester City) 103 caps
Seven of the Scottish players are home based while six play with clubs in England, Three of the squad play in Sweden with one each from the NWSL (Seattle Reign defender Rachel Corsie), Germany, Norway and Italy. Six of the squad have over 100 caps, with goalkeeper Gemma Fay closing in on 200 national team appearances.
Erin Cuthbert is expected to do dual duty this summer, having also captained Scotland Under-19s to the European Championships which will take place in August. Cuthbert signed for Chelsea for the 2017 season from Glasgow City, having originally started with Rangers and on May 21 scored two goals in Chelsea's 7-0 win over Sunderland.
Shelley Kerr to take over coaching reigns after the Euros.
Shelly Kerr has been named as the new head coach of Scotland's women's national team, the Scottish FA has announced. Kerr will replace Swedish national Anna Signeul, who is stepping down after the Euros this summer following 12 years in charge, having guided Scotland out of the wilderness to become one of the most exciting sides in Europe.
Kerr, former Kilmarnock, Hibernian and Spartans coach, won every major honour in Scotland during a 20-year club career before going on to lift two consecutive FA Cup trophies as Arsenal Ladies manager in 2013 and 2014.
Kerr, who has also led the Scotland Women's Under-19 side and became the first female manager in British men's senior football with Stirling University in 2014, said: "I am extremely proud and honoured to be named as coach of the Scotland Women's National Team. As a young girl, and being extremely passionate about Scotland, it was my ambition to represent my country and now to get the opportunity to lead the women's national team is a dream come true….We have a great group of players and my goal is to continue the good work and sustain the level of success that the team has achieved in recent years." Kerr seems like a perfect choice to carry on the strong base that Signeul has created. This side could make their first Women's World Cup in 2019 in France and should not be counted out as a possible knock-out stage participant. Jill Ellis Names 21 Player Squad for Sweden and Norway Friendlies
Jill Ellis has named her squad for two matches in Scandinavia in June, on June 8 in Gothenburg against Sweden and then versus Norway on June 11 in Sandefjord. The game against Sweden will be a rematch of the team's last meeting at the Rio Olympics, where Sweden knocked the U.S. out of the tournament in the quarterfinals on penalty kicks. The Americans have the advantage all-time in the series with a 20-11-6 (W-D-L) record against the Swedes, but are only 4-5-3 since 2010. The game against Norway will be the 50th all-time between the two nations, who faced off in the 2000 Olympic Games final, with Norway defeating the U.S. 3-2 in extra time. In all the matches between the two countries, the Americans are 28-2-19 against Norway and the Americans have won the last 5 meetings in a row.
U.S. Women's National Team Roster by Position - Scandinavia Tour 2017
GOALKEEPERS (2): Alyssa Naeher (Chicago Red Stars), Abby Smith (Boston Breakers)
DEFENDERS (7): Abby Dahlkemper (NC Courage), Julie Ertz (Chicago Red Stars), Jaelene Hinkle (NC Courage), Meghan Klingenberg (Portland Thorns FC), Kelley O'Hara (Sky Blue FC), Becky Sauerbrunn (FC Kansas City), Casey Short (Chicago Red Stars)
MIDFIELDERS (7): Morgan Brian (Houston Dash), Lindsey Horan (Portland Thorns FC), Rose Lavelle (Boston Breakers), Carli Lloyd (Houston Dash/Manchester City), Allie Long (Portland Thorns FC), Samantha Mewis (NC Courage), Megan Rapinoe (Seattle Reign FC)
FORWARDS (5): Crystal Dunn (Chelsea FC), Sydney Leroux (FC Kansas City), Alex Morgan (Orlando Pride/Olympique Lyonnais), Christen Press (Chicago Red Stars), Mallory Pugh (Washington Spirit)
The players will stay for their NWSL games on the weekend of June 3rd before traveling to Sweden for the start of camp. Sydney Leroux will join the team for the first time since October 2015. The Women's World Cup champion forward in 2015 gave birth to a son last September and thus missed the entire 2016 NWSL and U.S. Women's National Team seasons. Leroux scored two goals in a 3-1 win over Washington Spirit at home on May 27 and was named league Player of the Week for the effort. Leroux will travel with Mallory Pugh with the national side, who was playing in her second game as a professional with the Spirit—her first start and she played the full 90 minutes for the first time—after leaving UCLA. Goalkeeper Ashlyn Harris of Orlando Pride (hip flexor) and midfielder Tobin Heath of Portland Thorns (back) were unavailable for selection.
Tim Grainey is a contributor to Tribal Football. His latest book Beyond Bend it Like Beckham on the global game of women's football. Get your copy today.
Follow Tim on Twitter: @TimGrainey
