sport news The inside story of England 3-0 Cameroon - a match which shamed women's football

England sensed even before they had left their base in northern France - the Royal Hinault Hotel and Spa, a recently converted hospital – that they could be in for a difficult afternoon.

The teams were, unusually, sharing the same hotel and though Phil Neville’s players tried to soak up the Cameroonian noise and colour – their loud sound system playing as they headed out to training on Saturday and dancing in the corridors - there was a bizarre scene just before they set off for the round of 16 match. 

Cameroon fans had somehow got into the lobby and were fighting between themselves over tickets – for a game that was not even sold out.

England sensed early that their match with Cameroon could be different to usual clashes

England sensed early that their match with Cameroon could be different to usual clashes

Cameroon were repeatedly left outraged at a number of VAR-defined refereeing decisions

Cameroon were repeatedly left outraged at a number of VAR-defined refereeing decisions 

Cameroon manager Alain Djeumfa goes by the name of ‘Mean Dog’ and he had been less than complimentary about England the night before the game. Neville’s team had ‘many’ weaknesses, he said. 

Neville made light of this when he arrived to talk an hour later, joking that ‘he said nice things about me.’ The Cameroonian had actually seemed to imply that everything Neville achieved as a Manchester United and Everton player counted for nothing, now he was in the dug-out.

There is a history of Cameroonians feeling they are victim of refereeing conspiracies at World Cups. It’s exactly what the men’s team said at the 1990 World Cup, where they met England in the quarter finals. 

Their sense of victimhood this time stemmed from the indirect free-kick awarded on the edge of the six-yard box, from which England opened the scoring, after defender Yvonne Leuko had passed back to the goalkeeper. Djemba later claimed this was ‘wrong decision’ though it was impossible to see how.

There were some challenges which bordered on assault in the early stages – including a malicious elbow in the face for which Leuko should have been dismissed. Then Ellen White’s goal on the stoke of time, initially flagged offside, was correctly judged legitimate by VAR and all hell let loose.

Cameroon's Yvonne Leuko was lucky not to be sent off for an elbow on Nikita Parris

Cameroon's Yvonne Leuko was lucky not to be sent off for an elbow on Nikita Parris 

Cameroon refused to begin the match again after England got a second goal via VAR

Cameroon refused to begin the match again after England got a second goal via VAR

Cameroon's men's team cited a refereeing conspiracy against England at the 1990 World Cup

Cameroon's men's team cited a refereeing conspiracy against England at the 1990 World Cup

NEVILLE REACTION 

England manager Phil Neville slated the behaviour of the Cameroon team.

Speaking after the match, he said: 'We've had seven million people watching us playing an international game against Cameroon with that behaviour. 

'I think it's pretty sad. That's how I felt on the touchline. Their team mirrored their manager. 

'If my team played like that they would never play for England again.

'We're here to promote women's football, we want the image to be good for the little girl playing in the parks. To have two African teams in the knockouts is fantastic. They will learn, I hope.'

The Cameroon players massed in the centre circle, pointing at the screens replaying White’s goal and remonstrating with referee Qin Liang. It is understood that they sensed a conspiracy because the VAR deliberation footage was not being replayed, once the goal had been allowed to stand.

The team refused to re-start the game, eventually did so, and when half time was called took several minutes to leave the field. It was in the tunnel at this stage that players began making claims about some kind of a racist conspiracy. 

The correct VAR decision which sent Nigeria home seems to have been on their minds. Several of the England contingent heard shouts from the Cameroonians that this was ‘a white World Cup.’

Djeumfa would later take the credit for persuading his players to stay on the field and return for the second period. ‘We might have had the moment to walk off, but thanks to God I was able to remain calm. I was ultimately able to keep my cool,’ he said.

But he seems to made minimal attempt to take the sting out of the situation. In the dressing room at half time, he seems to have fuelled the players’ sense of victimhood, telling them that ‘the referee wants England to win today.' 

Midfielder Raissa Feudjio said he told them: ‘Don't worry about this. Your job is to represent your country. So you have to go back out and play.’

For reasons that remain unclear today, the players were back out for the second half early and clustered in the centre circle again. Within minutes they had scored, with England’s concentration clearly affected by the histrionics, and that goal – fractionally offside - was chalked off.

Feudjio claimed –

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