Internationals - Tinja-Riikka joins 100 club

Goalkeeper Tinja-Riikka Korpela reached a century of caps as Finland cruised to a 3-0 victory over Georgia in their 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup qualifier on Thursday evening.

First capped in 2007, Tinni, now 35, wore the captain’s armband for her country and made some vital stops to shut out Georgia and record a second consecutive win in Group A.

Finland tightened their grip on the play-off spot and moved six points clear of Republic of Ireland in third place following their 1-0 win over Slovakia in September. Up next for Tinni is a clash with Ireland in Helsinki on Tuesday.

In Kansas City, midfielder So-hyun Cho and South Korea earned a hard-fought 0-0 draw against reigning world champions, the USA. Cho played the full 90 minutes in a disciplined and organised performance in front of 18,467 fans at Children’s Mercy Park. The South Koreans travel to Minnesota to face the USA in their second friendly on Wednesday.

Moving south of the border, goalkeeper Becky Spencer was named on the bench for Jamaica as they kept a clean sheet in the first of their two friendlies against Costa Rica. Hubert Busby’s squad notched a 1-0 win over the central Americans thanks to a second-half penalty.

Back in Europe and forward Rosella Ayane started for Morocco as they lost 3-0 to Spain in Zaragoza. On-loan goalkeeper Eleanor Heeps, meanwhile, was on the bench for England Under-19s as the Young Lionesses got their qualifying campaign for the 2022 UEFA European Women’s Under-19 Championships off to the perfect start with a 1-0 victory against Republic of Ireland on Wednesday evening.