Coaches praise victorious France

France coach Bruno Bini and Norway's Jarl Torske were united in their belief that Les Bleuettes were worthy winners of the UEFA European Women's Under-19 Championship following a 2-0 victory in Leipzig.

'It is incredible'
Bini had presided over two previous final defeats and said afterwards that he "couldn't quite come to terms with" ending that streak thanks to goals in each half from Amélie Coquet and Lilas Traïkia. "I'm not used to it," he said. "I am used to losing finals so I cannot quite accept that I have finally won one. It is incredible what I am going through at the moment, particularly as six of our best players are back at Clairefontaine."

'All credit'
Norway were unbeaten in their run to the final, yet looked the more tired side after beating Sweden on penalties in the semi-finals following a 2-2 draw. Torske said: "All credit to the French, they definitely deserved to win it. At stages they were a lot better than us and they played with a lot of skill - we got tired chasing them."

'Burst of oxygen'
He continued: "Of course it is disappointing to lose the final but we still have some young, promising and skilful Norwegian players and we are proud of what we have achieved." Torske confirmed that Stine Frantzen, perhaps their most dangerous player, could not start the game due to sickness. "We were sure she couldn't start despite recovering a bit before the game." Bini said that his players "received a burst of oxygen" when they saw the winger was missing from the team-sheet.

'Like a dream'
"We came here with no great aspirations but the way it has gone is like a dream," added Bini. "Tonight I will be up all night thanking players for what they have achieved." The France coach praised the performances of the match officials, while Torske said: "The level of football has been so high in this competition, it is getting harder to win. I have never seen as many promising young players as I have here. The future looks bright and it is good for European football to keep the United States on their toes."

'The greatest ever'
The Norwegian players accepted defeat graciously, their coach telling them they had given their best. Torske added: "I told them they played good football and that team spirit was still high. I also said the French deserved to win and that they should go and congratulate their players." The last word, though, went to Bini, who said his pre-match talk lasted only seconds but was "the greatest ever". "I said to the girls 'do you trust me?' and they said 'yes'. I replied: 'go out and give it all you've got'." They certainly did that.