England made a losing start to their World Cup campaign with a 1-0 defeat to France in Moncton this evening.

The French made the brighter start to the match, and Louisa Necib saw her free kick punched away before Eugenie Le Sommer's strike was deflected wide of the post.

They made their dominance count in the 29th minute when Le Sommer fired a long-range effort into the corner and past Karen Bardsley.

Les Bleus continued to put the England defence under pressure and Necib caused another moment of panic with a darting run into the box that ended with a wayward strike.

The Three Lions struggled to get into their opponents' half, but Katie Chapman had a glimpse of goal shortly before the break, when a loose clearance landed to her just outside the box. However, she was unable to direct her effort on target.

France started the second half in the same dominant fashion and Le Sommer drilled an effort straight at Bardsley, before volleying an acrobatic attempt over the bar.

Jill Scott then had a glimpse of goal for England when she met Eni Aluko's corner with a side-footed volley, but she could only direct the ball into the gloves of the keeper.

England pressed forward in search of a late equaliser, but they were unable to find the quality needed to breach the French backline as their tournament opened in defeat.

Written by
Alex Meyers