National Soccer Hall of Famer Kristine Lilly is the sport’s all-time leader, men or women, with 354 international appearances — including five World Cups while representing the United States, winning in 1991 and 1999. Lilly made her USWNT debut when she was still in high school and went on to compete until 2010, collecting two Olympic gold medals along the way. She co-founded TeaFirst Soccer Academy with Mia Hamm and Tisa Venturini. They travel around the country teaching kids to be better players and teammates. She lives in the Boston area with her husband and two daughters. As told to The Post.
The ’99 World Cup was the most nervous I’ve ever been before a game.
The year had so many elements, with the biggest crowd to watch it live at 90,000 people, and we didn’t have time to warm up on the field before that game. So a lot of the nerves you couldn’t get out.
Any World Cup game is nerve-wracking because every outcome makes a difference. The World Cup just escalates everything at every stage. And I think the final creates that intensity and anxiousness that you train for and live for as well.
I think these past two games the U.S. played have been great for them. The first few games weren’t as much of a challenge as these later games, which I believe prepared them for the final. They need to continue their attacking personality — sending the ball to their front runners and getting a lot of touches from Alex Morgan, Megan Rapinoe and Tobin Heath.
The back line has done a good job, and I think Crystal Dunn and Kelley O’Hara have done a great job in the back and in their attacking roles for the team. They have to stay focused defensively and mark tightly in the box. Becky Sauerbrunn has been a great leader for the team and overall has had a good World Cup as well. The midfield needs to control the game as best as they can against Holland, then I think they’ll be in good shape.
In goal, Alyssa Naeher’s save on England’s penalty kick was a lifter for her and for the team. I reached out to Alyssa after her save just to let her know she is doing a great job and I was proud of her. She’s a fellow Connecticut girl, and her save was a big moment.
She’s done well, and I think a lot of the media and people are saying, “Well, we haven’t seen this [from Naeher].” We haven’t seen much because we haven’t had to. When the team needed her, she was there for them.
Even if Rapinoe isn’t at full strength, the U.S. has shown they’re pretty deep. You look at their second game against Chile, and it was seven different players in that lineup. The coaching staff has put players on the field and given them minutes, so when called upon they’re ready and not like, “Oh my god, this is my first minute.”
This whole World Cup I thought Holland played real well. I played with the head coach, Sarina Wiegman-Glotzbach, during my freshman year at North Carolina. She was a great little midfielder, very competitive. I’m sure she’s going to get this team prepared.
I think Holland’s semifinal game against Sweden was probably their weakest game, based on how I saw them play throughout the tournament. They’re going to have to be organized, they’re going to have to deal with a lot of personality in the U.S.’s attack. Their forward, Vivianne Miedema, is crafty and smart. If she has opportunities on net, she can make a difference in a game. But I think our defense can handle her.
If Holland can disrupt the U.S. game with a little more physicality, that would be a plus on their side, but I’m not sure they have that
in their tank.
This is Holland’s first time in the World Cup finals and second World Cup ever. This is new to them, so hopefully the U.S. can use the confidence they have in being in this position before.
Holland is a very good team. They’re disciplined and a talented group. I just think the U.S. has a lot of personality and a lot of depth that can maybe wear them down. I believe the U.S. will win, 2-0, but it really doesn’t matter what I think. It matters what these players do and what Holland brings to the table.
I’ve been watching the games with my former teammates, Carla Overbeck, Cindy Parlow and Julie Foudy, who’s been doing some work for ESPN out here but she’s watched with us, including my and Carla’s kids. My oldest child, Sidney, has a Heath jersey and my youngest, Jordan, has Rapinoe, so they have new people they look up to. And then Mia Hamm is out here too with her family and some friends. It’s been a lot of fun for us.
It’s hard to draw similarities or differences between our team and the current one, because I knew the ’99 team as a result of being in the locker room. I do see some social media and they look like they’re a tight-knit group — that’s what we were. They have the mentality, the fight and the grit to be the best in the world.
I’m hoping the last similarity we get is that they’re world champions, again.
