‘The Nail in the Coffin:’ Tobin Heath’s Top Moment of Her Hall of Fame Career
Heath reflected on her 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup goal ahead of her induction into the National Soccer Hall of Fame
More than 130 players have scored at least one goal for the U.S. Women’s National Team since 1985, but only eight of them have scored in a FIFA Women’s World Cup Final. On July 5, 2015, three names were added to that list: Carli Lloyd, Lauren Holiday and Tobin Heath.
The USWNT faced Japan at BC Place in Vancouver, Canada in the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup Final, a reprise of the World Cup Final four years earlier in Germany, a game won by Japan in penalty kicks. In an unprecedented performance, Lloyd put the Americans ahead three minutes into the match before doubling the lead two minutes later. In the 16th minute, she then netted her third on a now historic strike from midfield, completing the fastest hat trick in Women’s World Cup history. Holiday volleyed in a stunning goal right before Lloyd’s third, and the USA had full control with a 4-0 lead. Never before had a team had that kind of lead so early in a World Cup Final, women’s or men’s.
“We came out really fast, almost like rabid animals,” Heath said, who scored 36 goals in her USWNT career. “We took that game over from the get-go and having that fast start really helped us.”
The four-goal cushion mitigated the worry when Japan got one back in the 28th minute but when Japan caused an own goal by USA defender Julie Johnston seven minutes into the second half, more than a few U.S. fans shifted nervously in their seats. Just when it seemed like Japan might make things interesting, the USA shut the door as Heath almost immediately restored the three-goal margin in what would be a 5-2 victory.
“There was a moment in the game where it felt like the momentum started shifting towards Japan's favor, and that's when I scored,” Heath said. “I had that gamer feeling where I was like, ‘That's the goal that was the nail in the coffin.’”
Heath’s goal came off a recycled USA corner kick that Japanese goalkeeper Ayumi Kaihori had punched away. Midfielder Morgan Brian pounced on the loose ball near the right endline and played a quick half-volley cross inside a crowded six-yard box to Heath, whose first touch with the inside of her right foot sent the ball into the back of the net. Even with about 35 minutes left in the match, at that moment the U.S. team, and everyone else watching in the stadium and around the world, knew it was over.
Lloyd’s first goal was also from a corner kick and her second was off a free kick taken in between the right corner flag and the penalty area. Heath said their goals were not random or scored by chance.
“We had a strategy around set pieces for that World Cup in particular, where we emphasized them a lot,” she said. “The amount of orchestration, execution, practice and focus that went into our set pieces contributed to us winning that whole entire World Cup.
“Everyone on the team is playing a role in these set pieces, however big or small they look,” Heath added. “[My goal] was a reflection of real dedication and hard work and initial strategy of how we were going to win.”
Heath is set to be inducted into the National Soccer Hall of Fame on May 1, and that goal was one of the standout moments of her 13 years with the USWNT. She said nothing in her career tops scoring in a World Cup Final and told FIFA it was a childhood dream come true.
“It's the thing you say when you are playing in the streets or with your friends or even dreaming at night before you go to sleep as a kid,” she said. “What would be the ultimate dream? Obviously, winning a World Cup but also scoring in a World Cup Final. It's one of those very childlike moments where you feel the power of dreaming to be able to do something that was such a childhood, almost surreal, motivation. It's the biggest full-circle moment, and being in the history books is also special, as not many players get to play in a World Cup final, let alone score in one.”
