Kuala Lumpur: After reaching the quarter-finals as hosts at the inaugural FIFA Women’s World Cup in 1991 and then finishing fourth four years later in Sweden, China would advance to their first final in the USA in 1999.
It’s now 18 years to the day – July 10, 1999 – that the Steel Roses took to the pitch in front of more than 90,000 spectators at the Pasadena Rose Bowl to face hosts USA in the FIFA World Cup final as the dominant Asian force began to show its might on the global stage.
One of the stars of China’s huge success during the 1990s was Sun Wen, the forward who was named the joint FIFA Women’s Player of the Century and came within a penalty shootout of winning football’s biggest prize after the USA prevailed from the spot following a scoreless draw.
March to the final
China showed they meant business from the kick-off in 1999 by beating Sweden 2-1 in their opening game before posting a 7-0 victory over Ghana in which Sun grabbed a hat-trick.
Two more in a 3-1 scoreline against Australia saw the Steel Roses progress to the quarter-finals, where they would beat Russia 2-0.
The East Asians were then faced with an enormous obstacle in the semi-finals with defending champions Norway, who had also finished as runners-up in the first FIFA Women’s World Cup, standing in their way of a place in the final.
But Sun opened the scoring early on and closed it on 72 minutes as China ran out impressive 5-0 winners.
A glorious setting
Hype around the final was massive and the mood inside the Pasadena Rose Bowl boisterous but 120 minutes of action failed to separate the sides as the game went to penalties.
Sun scored what proved to be the penultimate spot-kick but Liu Ying’s earlier miss proved costly as Brandi Chastain stepped up to fire home as the USA were crowned world champions.
“I always remember the 1999 final,” said Sun, who was named the tournament’s MVP and finished as joint top-scorer. “It wasn’t about the result, it was the feeling of playing in front of 90,000 spectators.
“We’ll never forget it because as a women’s soccer player, you are very happy to see that your ability can be appreciated by the fans. The attendances in China’s league were in the hundreds, so sometimes you had doubts. This was like a dream.”
Early resistance
Reaching the game’s greatest showpiece was perhaps vindication for Sun, who had found it hard from an early age to convince her mother that football was the right career path for her.
The Shanghai native took up the sport at the age of eight and would watch games with her father, although her mother wanted her to focus on her education.
“She tried to convince me that it was too competitive and that I should study instead, but I didn’t listen,” admitted Sun, who began attending football camps and participating in competitions in Shanghai as she entered her teens.
Breakthrough
And her decision to defy her mother’s advice already seemed justified by the time she was 18, when she was part of a China side that hosted the inaugural FIFA Women’s World Cup in 1991.
“I was the youngest player in the team and was so nervous, and I hadn’t told my parents I would be playing, so they were shocked,” explained Sun, who a few months earlier had helped China claim their third successive AFC Women’s Asian Cup.
And the teenage forward got on the scoresheet in the group stage game against Denmark as the Steel Roses advanced to the last eight before elimination at the hands of the Swedes.
“My mother changed a little after that and began to support me, but I still promised her I’d go to university after my career,” revealed Sun, who graduated with a major in advertising after her retirement.
Asian dominance, emerging world power
China wrapped up their fourth consecutive AFC Women’s Asian Cup after defeating DPR Korea 3-0 in the final in 1993, before heading to Sweden to take part in the second edition of the FIFA Women’s World Cup.
Sun netted two in the group stage, including the equaliser in a 3-3 draw with the USA and then scored from the spot in the quarter-finals as China ousted the hosts on penalties following a 1-1 stalemate.
A cruel exit followed in the semi-final as Germany scored two minutes from time to win 1-0 and eliminate the East Asians, who eventually finished fourth following defeat to the USA, but Sun and her teammates had shown they were now a big player on the world stage.
Several months later Sun would score in the semi-final and final – against Korea Republic and Japan respectively – as China claimed the continental title once more.
She then netted another crucial goal to level with the USA in the final of the women’s tournament at the 1996 Olympic Games in Athens, but China had to settle for the silver medal following a 2-1 defeat as their familiar foes once more came out on top.
Back on home soil, China remained unrivalled in Asian competition by winning the 1997 AFC Women’s Asian Cup, before a seventh successive continental triumph in 1999 came soon after the World Cup final defeat by the USA.
Not quite the end
Sun spent two seasons with Atlanta Beat in the USA from 2001, by which time the balance of power was starting to change in Asia as DPR Korea finally brought China’s winning run to an end by claiming back-to-back continental titles in 2001 and 2003.
The forward’s fourth and final FIFA Women’s World Cup came in 2003 when Sun, by now 30, scored the winner against Ghana in the group stage before quarter-final elimination at the hands of Canada.
After retiring on the back of the defeat to Canada, Sun returned to the national team at the end of 2005 and would represent the Steel Roses at the 2006 AFC Women’s Asian Cup in Australia.
A fitting finale
China had failed to win the previous two editions of the tournament but, after gaining revenge against DPR Korea in the semi-final in 2006, saw off the Matildas on penalties in the final following a 2-2 draw.
Although Sun did not get on the scoresheet, her sixth – and China’s eighth – continental title was a fitting way to bow out after a glorious international career in which she scored 106 goals in 152 appearances.
“[The AFC Women’s Asian Cup] was my first international tournament so it was special, but after a while it felt quite easy – no one paid attention to it as everyone knew we would win,” said Sun, who now works towards the development of women's football and has been on the AFC's technical support team at women's tournaments in recent years.
“Then after 2000 things began to change and, nowadays, the East Asian teams are all at a high level and have different strengths.
“The gap between the teams is closer so the games are more watchable, which is very important for women’s football because just having one team at the top is not enough.”
Photos: Lagardère Sports
Source: the-afc.com