Finland were knocked out of the UEFA Women's European Championship in dramatic fashion on Thursday evening in the Swiss city of Geneva.
A goal in added time by Swiss midfielder Riola Xhemaili cancelled out Finland's 1-0 lead, and sent the tournament hosts through to the next phase — the quarter finals — by the narrowest of margins.
A 79th minute penalty by Natalia Kuikka looked like it would be enough for the Helmarit, or Boreal Owls, to advance but Xhemaili's late equaliser meant both teams finished on four points in Group A — with the Swiss squeezing through by virtue of their +1 goal difference.
"It's really disappointing," Kuikka told Yle after the game. "We should have advanced from this group. We weren't good enough to win. It's a shame we couldn't do better."
Despite the disappointment, coach Marko Saloranta's charges can be proud of their performances. They entered the tournament as the lowest ranked team in their group, yet their results included a 1-0 win over Iceland, followed by a narrow 2-1 defeat to Norway before Thursday's 1-1 draw with the hosts.
"There were difficult moments in this game. More difficult than in the previous two combined. That's why this is going to hurt us all for a long time," Saloranta said.
