England captain Leah Williamson scored but also made an error that led to a South Africa goal in a friendly victory in Coventry.
It was an important win for England, who were beaten 4-3 by Germany on Friday, but defensive errors remained.
Williamson, who only returned from an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury in January, has struggled for form this season and was under scrutiny.
She was one of three players who kept her place in Sarina Wiegman’s side, and gave the perfect response when she opened the scoring in the first half.
But it was a mixed evening for the Lionesses’ captain as it was her loose pass to midfielder Georgia Stanway which set up Thembi Kgatlana’s goal in the second half for South Africa.
It was a moment that made England’s night a little less comfortable, having gone 2-0 up when Grace Clinton headed in Maya le Tissier’s cross.
However, Wiegman’s much-changed side showed plenty of creativity and confidence going forward, despite ongoing difficulties at the back.
Tottenham’s Jess Naz – making her first England start – got an assist, while Manchester City’s Jess Park was busy and assured.
Chloe Kelly, struggling for game time at City this season, showed her desire to regain her place in the starting XI and hit the crossbar in the second half.
On the whole it was a disjointed performance given all the changes, but will give Wiegman food for thought, and highlighted further that England must improve defensively before next summer’s Euro 2025 tournament in Switzerland.
Defence still concerning but England youngsters shine
Wiegman has faced questions over her team selection in recent weeks with Williamson at the centre, given the impressive form of Manchester City’s Alex Greenwood – an obvious replacement.
Greenwood was brought into the side to play alongside Williamson but it did little to improve England’s defensive performance as individual errors were consistent and almost costly.
Stanway’s slow response to Williamson’s pass did not help, and the Bayern Munich midfielder had earlier been involved in a mix-up with Esme Morgan that gifted Hildah Magaia an opportunity she could not take in the first half.
Wiegman made numerous changes throughout the second half, bringing on experienced defenders Lucy Bronze and Millie Bright but South Africa continued to cause concern.
Bronze was caught out with a ball over the top but was fortunate Kgatlana was offside, just before Bronze had to intervene to block another goalbound strike by the South Africa forward.
England’s defensive performance against Germany was heavily criticised, and this display in Coventry did little to convince they had learned from their errors.
But it was also a night which showed promise for the future as plenty of England’s youngsters grabbed their opportunity to impress, and continue to put pressure on Wiegman’s regular starters.
Clinton, who linked up with Manchester United captain Le Tissier to double England’s lead in the first half, impressed yet again, while Park and Naz looked comfortable on the international stage.
While England still have plenty of work to do on the road to the defence of their European title, this showed there is an array of talent at Wiegman’s disposal – the puzzle remains putting it all together.
Bigger tests are still to come in November with a Wembley showdown against Olympic champions the United States – managed by former Chelsea boss Emma Hayes – before another friendly with Switzerland to end the year.
