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Utter heartbreak: 92nd-minute own goal eliminates England, puts Japan back into World Cup final

Kevin C. Cox / Getty Images Sport / Getty

Thomas Hobbes remains the speaker of the world's foremost truth: life really, truly is nasty and brutish. That extends to the football pitch. For England, more than most.

Laura Bassett deserved better. The Three Lionesses deserved better. They deserved joy. What they got - in the most gut-wrenching, stunning way possible - was heartbreak that someone wouldn't wish on their worst enemy.

England, easily the better team in their Women's World Cup semifinal match against Japan on Wednesday, was eliminated from the tournament by virtue of an own goal in the 92nd minute, with Bassett - diving desperately to cut out a cross - deflecting the ball off the crossbar and just over the goal-line to resign her team to a 2-1 loss.

Life isn't fair.

Japan, of course, won't be too perturbed. The defending Women's World Cup champions - the only team with an unblemished record at this tournament - will look to retain its crown on Sunday in a rematch of the showpiece match from four years ago when they meet the United States.

There are narratives aplenty om deck for the next few days, as Japan's unlikely 2011 win will be revisited in abundance. On the basis of play from Wednesday's contest in Edmonton - which saw each side convert a dubious penalty in the opening half - we really shouldn't have been preparing for a rematch:

Here's what you need to know about one of the most stunning conclusions to a football match you will ever see ...

The Goals

33rd minute (PENALTY) - Aya Miyama, Japan: As has been the case so often in this tournament, the Japanese captain stepped up when needed in a pressure-filled moment, taking her time - and then some - with a protracted run up before sending Karen Bardsley in the wrong direction. Should it have been a penalty at all? Much like the United States' spot-kick in Tuesday's semifinal with Germany, replays quite clearly showed that the transgression took place just outside the 18-yard box ...

(Courtesy: BBC Sport)

40th minute (PENALTY) - Fara Williams, England: One questionable penalty deserves another. The Three Lionesses were the beneficiaries of some help from the official when captain Steph Houghton threw herself to the turf after minimal contact with a Japanese defender, leading referee Ann-Marie Keighley to point to the spot. Goalkeeper Ayumi Kaihori went the right way, diving to her right, but the effort was stuck with enough venom that the Japanese shot-stopper's outstretched arms could not make contact with the ball to keep her side ahead.

92nd minute (OWN GOAL) - Laura Bassett, Japan: The 31-year-old defender - one of her team's best performers at the tournament - will be heartbroken. The football world - including, surely, many people in Japan - certainly is for her after seeing her attempted clearance of a Nahomi Kawasumi cross inexplicably go off the underside of the crossbar and in.

(Courtesy: NBC)

Related: Twitter reacts to Laura Bassett's stunning 92nd-minute own goal vs. Japan

Woman of the Match - Mana Iwabuchi

She may have only played 20 minutes, but the Japanese attacker completely changed the contest upon her substitution, turning the tide in favor of the Nadeshiko after England had utterly dominated the second half prior to her inclusion.

Her speed, trickery on the ball and willingness to run at defenders made many observers ask the obvious question: Why didn't she start?

For a team that struggled to craft legitimate scoring opportunities - and even get into the English penalty area with any regularity - for 70 minutes, it's difficult to envision a scenario in which the 22-year-old forward is left on the bench for the final against an imperious American defense that has not conceded a goal in 513 minutes of play at this World Cup.

The 1,000 Words

"I can levitate. I win."

Stray Thoughts

  • One more time, pour one out for Laura Bassett. And then a few more.
  • England manager Mark Sampson was pure class immediately after the gut-wrenching result, saying the following of Bassett: "She epitomized this England team this tournament. She's been courageous, strong and kept the squad together. She'll be looked upon as a hero and one that kept this team together."
  • We'd be remiss if we didn't touch on the officiating, which may get lost in the unthinkable scenes at the end of the match. The two penalty calls were shrouded in controversy, much like the incidents which have received much of the attention in the aftermath of the United States' win over Germany in Tuesday's semifinal contest. Every official, in every sport, makes mistakes. That's the nature of the beast given the speed of the games they are dealing with. Of course, there is not reason, really, for that to be the case. It's 2015, and video technology exists.
  • Japan - and the United States, for that matter - is drifting into dynasty territory here. The 2011 World Cup champions, who defeated the Americans in that finale before falling to them in the showpiece match of the 2012 Olympics, will look to become only the second team (after Germany) to win consecutive Women's World Cup titles. They'll go into the contest as underdogs. Sounds a lot like the situation four years ago, doesn't it?
  • Props to Aya Miyama for making Neymar's penalty-kick run up look, by comparison to her own, like something traveling at the speed of light.

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