Women’s World Cup: Cameroon an unexpected survivor

EDMONTON (Alberta) — Cameroon knows it has next to no chance of winning the Women’s World Cup. That the team made it to the knockout stage is already astounding.

So when Cameroon coach Enow Ngachu says he’s just happy to be here, he means it.

Cameroon is ranked No 53 in the world and is the lowest ranked of the 16 teams that advanced to the elimination round. The Lionesses will face No 16 China at Edmonton’s Commonwealth Stadium today (June 20).

“We are still learning, we came here to learn,” Ngachu said this week. “We are quite excited. We are playing without any pressure.”

Cameroon, runner-up at the 2014 African championship, is making its first-ever appearance in the World Cup. The Lionesses are just the second African team to advance to the knockout stage after Nigeria in 1999.

In the group stage, Cameroon defeated Ecuador 6-0 before falling to Japan 2-1. But they pulled off a hard-fought 2-1 victory over No. 19 Switzerland in the group finale in Edmonton, sending their sizeable following of fans into a frenzy.

Afterward, forward Ajara Nchout called the crowd Cameroon’s 12th man.

China has played in the World Cup six times, but missed out four years ago in Germany.

The team fell to host Canada in its group-stage opener on Christine Sinclair’s penalty kick in second-half stoppage time. China beat the Netherlands before a 2-all draw with New Zealand.

China has never won a World Cup, but the team, known as the Steel Roses, famously made the final in 1999, only to be defeated by the United States on penalty kicks at the Rose Bowl.

CONTROVERSY: China’s 2-2 draw with New Zealand to wrap up the group stage was marred by controversy.

Coach Hao Wei was sent off the field after the ref ruled he had interfered with Ria Percival on the sideline. The replay was inconclusive whether Hao had stumbled.

Afterward, New Zealand coach Tony Readings refused to shake Hao’s hand. Readings’ team had needed the victory to move on.

MIGHTY GAELLE: The Lioness to watch is Gaelle Enganamouit, who wins the hair game at the Women’s World Cup with her striking blonde hairdo. The 23-year-old is a dynamic playmaker who scored a hat trick in the victory over Ecuador in the group stage.

Enganamouit plays professionally in Sweden.

CHINA’S PLAYER TO WATCH: Wang Lisi leads the Chinese with a pair of goals in the tournament, including a stoppage-time stunner that pulled the team to victory over the Dutch.

CAMEROON ISSUES: There have long been allegations of corruption within Cameroon’s governing body for soccer, apart from the scandal that now envelops FIFA.

The women’s team reportedly threatened to not play in its opener over a disagreement about what the players would be paid. The men’s team had a similar disagreement before the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.

Last year, a German magazine outlined suspicions surrounding a group-stage loss to Croatia at the men’s World Cup.

In 2013, FIFA suspended Cameroon after the re-election of its soccer federation president, who had been arrested for alleged financial crimes. AP