France take pole position

France 2-0 Denmark

Home soil 
On home soil in Lens, France ended a run of seven straight defeats by Denmark with a fine performance in front of 7,000 supporters at the Félix-Bollaert stadium.

Physical presence 
After a cautious start, France came to terms with Denmark's physical approach and took a deserved lead on 32 minutes through Marinette Pichon.

Loose ball 
Five minutes later, the Danish defence failed to deal with a long pass into their penalty area and Sonia Bompastor pounced upon the loose ball to make it 2-0 to France.

Missed opportunities
The home side missed several chances to add to their tally in the second half as they kept up the pressure on the Danes. "We hope we won't regret missing them in the second leg," said coach Elisabeth Loisel.

Final showdown
The second leg will be played in Odense on 15 September, with the aggregate winners taking on the winners of the other play-off game between England and Iceland for the final place in the Women's World Cup finals in 2003.