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Saturday, May 9, 2026

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Early penalty condemns England to defeat

Germany U17 1 England U17 0  

England suffered a narrow 1-0 defeat to Germany in the UEFA Women’s Under-17 European Championship in Northern Ireland on Thursday.

After securing a positive result against the tournament hosts in their opening fixture, a second successive victory would have guaranteed the Young Lionesses’ progression to the semi finals. However, a slow start in Larne made that target difficult from the outset.

Germany took the lead early when captain Johanna Hebben converted from the penalty spot after thirteen minutes. Zoe Ciccardini was penalised for a foul on Clara Choisy, allowing Sabine Loderer’s side to seize the advantage.

The Germans should have doubled their lead shortly afterwards when a dangerous cross from the right found Muriel Dürr, who got underneath the ball and struck the bar from close range.

England struggled to adapt to the conditions against the competition’s most successful nation and did not register a meaningful effort on goal until the 36th minute. Ciccardini nodded the ball down for Lucy Robinson inside the six yard box, but her low shot drifted wide of the post as Kerri Welsh’s team pushed for an equaliser.

As the half wore on, England took greater risks in search of a leveller. Mia Dixon came close from a similar angle, only for the woodwork to deny them once again.

The pressure intensified after the interval, though Fiona Itgenshorst reminded England of Germany’s threat with an effort that cleared the bar. The Young Lionesses responded with chances of their own, but a combination of strong German defending and the goalkeeper’s positioning kept them at bay.

Phoebe De Bohan went closest for England when her curling effort was tipped over by the German keeper. At the other end, the same goalkeeper was called upon again to save Marie Kleeman’s fierce drive from the left as Germany looked to seal the result.

England’s hopes of a late equaliser were extinguished in the 87th minute when De Bohan had the ball in the net only for the assistant’s offside flag to rule out the goal.

The result means the Young Lionesses must now wait until Sunday to secure their place in the semi finals, when they face Norway in their final group fixture (kick off 3pm BST).

England Under-17: Evie Mitchell, Zoe Ciccardini, Katie Scott, Romia Gagliano (sub Gabriella Storey 87mins), Lucy Robinson, Amarachukwu Nwankwo, Bryony Brodie, Kyri Teer-Hutchins (sub Sophia Barton 62mins), Mia Dixon, Phoebe De Bohan, Chelsea N’Drin (sub Freya Hirons 78mins). Subs not used: Cairo Antoine, Maisie Brickell, Vicky Rudz, Isabella Cowley, Lottie Day, Abbie Jones.