LONDON - Equality came to the self-proclaimed Home of Football on Sunday.More than seven years after the new Wembley opened, the England womens team was finally allowed to follow its male counterpart by playing in the $1.2 billion national stadium.Though it ended with a 3-0 defeat by European champion Germany, the match was a validation of the steady growth that womens football has enjoyed in England, particularly since the 2012 Olympics.History makers, proclaimed the cover of the matchday program for the 45,000 fans who defied torrential rain and transport issues — 5,000 more than the crowd that watched the England mens team play Norway in a September friendly.The Football Associations marketing machine achieved its mission, with a record womens crowd for an England game. The previous mark was just over 29,000 for a European Championship match against Finland at Manchester Citys Etihad stadium in 2005.However, the team coached by Mark Sampson fell short on Sunday as Germany mercilessly exposed Englands defensive deficiencies.England defender Alex Scott scored an own goal after six minutes, and striker Celia Sasic netted twice to show just why the second-ranked Germans could win a third World Cup next year.They are the benchmark everyone is aspiring to be, theyve had years and years of winning ... and were trying to reach them, England striker Eniola Aluko said.The purpose of friendlies is to understand what its all about to play in front of a big crowd with the pressure.Aluko is used to playing in front of just a few hundred fans. The womens Super League, where she plays for Chelsea, saw crowds grow by 30 per cent in the 2014 season but only to an average of 728. The highest attendance was 1,292 last month for Liverpools title-clinching game against Chelsea.Demand for tickets at Wembley, though, exceeded the 55,000 allowed to be sold in the 90,000-seat venue where the capacity was capped due to London Underground engineering work. The 10,000 no-shows were likely because of the poor weather and Tube turmoil.But with the game on free television — unlike Sundays Premier League games — this still felt like a successful launchpad to grow the womens game in England ahead of the World Cup in Canada.Its amazing the English association had a lot of people in the stadium, Germany defender Annike Krahn said. Even for the home of soccer it is not easy.In selecting an opponent for this landmark occasion, England sought an illustrious side rather than setting up a crowd-pleasing walkover. So the result was hardly a surprise: England had failed to win all 19 previous encounters with Germany.And if Englands women sought an equal billing with the men they got it when boos rang out around the stadium with each goal.The Germans are the best in the world and theyre going to punish you with clinical counter-attacks and clinical finishing, Sampson said. But weve taken so much from the game today and were in such a better place now than we were.One key difference between Sundays game and next years World Cup is the playing surface. The poor state of the Wembley grass — the result of three recent NFL games — perhaps vindicated FIFAs decision to play the games in Canada on artificial turf.If I could choose it I would never play on (artificial) turf but it wont be my decision, Krahn said. Football has to play on natural grass.But England seems content playing on plastic, rather than joining the legal action being pursued their American counterparts, who claim that not playing on grass is sexism.Playing on artificial turf might suit our style of play, Aluko said. There are technical differences, the ball bounces differently and runs smoother but you have to adapt to that and make sure youre ready.How ready England is to take on the worlds best next year remains unclear. But Wembley showed there is an appetite for further womens games, ensuring the national football stadium isnt just for mens teams.___Rob Harris can be followed at www.twitter.com/RobHarris Joe Cronin Red Sox Jersey . When the Dallas Mavericks needed to stop a Golden State rally in the fourth quarter, they looked for defensive help from the rookie point guard playing in just his sixth game. Andrew Cashner Red Sox Jersey . -- Craig Anderson has quite a record against his former team, the Florida Panthers. https://www.cheapredsox.com/1011z-hector...ey-red-sox.html. Patrice Bergeron and Daniel Paille scored 20 seconds apart a few minutes after Stamkos was taken off the ice on a stretcher with a broken right leg, and the Bruins beat the Lightning 3-0 on Monday afternoon. Wade Boggs Red Sox Jersey . The Canadian tennis players first full season on the WTA Tour was a strong one. She has risen to No. 32 in the world rankings and will likely be seeded at the first Grand Slam event of the 2014 season. J. D. Martinez Red Sox Jersey . "Im not doing enough to help them," Durant told The Oklahoman on Monday of his 28-9 team. "Im shooting too much. Im shooting too many threes. Im not helping them out at all.Tampa Bay Lightning forward Steven Stamkos continued towards his potential return on Friday, taking part in practice drills with light contact. While the 23-year-olds progress had some teammates saying he was looking pretty good, Stamkos offered a more tempered approach to his return. "I dont feel where I need to be in order to play a game yet, but its getting there," he told reporters after practice at the Bell Centre in Montreal. "Its nice to hear that the guys are saying that. Today I was in the corners a little more and getting bumped around (but) by no means was it full contact." Stamkos fractured the tibia in his right leg in a Nov. 11 game against the Boston Bruins and underwent surgery the following day. He returned to practice earlier than expected, leading each days progress to be closely monitored by Lightning fans as well as Canadians. Lightning general manager Steve Yzerman named Stamkos to Canadas 25-man roster for the coming Olympic Games in Sochi, Russia, but with Canadas first game just two weeks away, the clock is ticking on his hopes to be healthy in time. "You just have to listen to your body," Stamkos said. "Were talking a lot about the Olympics and my goal is to try to be ready for those Games, but your body doesnt lie. If youre doing certainn movements and you feel pain then thats an indicator that maybe its not quite ready.dddddddddddd. "It is tough mentally as well, going in there knowing that youre a little hesitant in certain areas. Ive said that before that thats what you dont want so you just try to overcome that as you progress and you take more contact in practice and hopefully that goes away." Stamkos scored 14 goals and 23 points in 17 for the Lightning this season prior to his injury. However, opportunities to get into game action before the Olympics are dwindling for the sniper. The Lightning have four games remaining before the NHL goes on break for the Games with the teams final game coming Feb. 8 against the Detroit Red Wings. While the Brampton, Ontario native wouldnt commit to a timeline, he acknowledged his progress thus far and expressed hope for it to continue over the next two weeks. "It has gotten better," he said. "Theres less and less pain every time I get on the ice but there is still a little discomfort. "Im hoping in the next week and a half, two weeks, that that feels a lot better and I can do certain movements without having that pain or at least with some pain thats manageable. Right now its still a little sharp in certain areas so thats what Im trying to improve." ' ' '