Bouncing back: England defeats Germany in extra time, claims historic 3rd-place finish

In a sport so full of cruelties, redemption offers a sweet, if often fleeting, counterbalance. England is thankful that compensation exists.

The Three Lionesses - whose gut-wrenching, last-second loss to Japan in the Women's World Cup semifinal earlier this week caused many a tear to be shed by the entire football world - rebounded on Saturday, defeating top-ranked Germany 1-0 in extra-time to claim a historic victory and record a third-place finish at the tournament for the first time ever.

In a match neither team wanted to be a part of, the fact that each had to play an additional 30 minutes felt like an unnecessary imposition. Surely now, Mark Sampson and company won't be minding the additional half-hour of physical exertion.

Unable to find the breakthrough in regular time, the two defeated semifinalists were inseparable for 108 minutes. Fara Williams, with some help from Lianne Sanderson, took care of that. The 31-year-old scored her third goal of the tournament (all from the penalty spot), sending iconic German goalkeeper Nadine Angerer the wrong way and rolling the ball into the bottom corner after Sanderson - who embellished the play somewhat - was pulled down inside the area by left-back Tabea Kemme.

(Courtesy: FIFA Women's World Cup)

The goal was monumental for the nation as a whole, but it also set a personal milestone for Williams - the midfielder cemented herself as the leading Women's World Cup scorer in English history:

The jubilant scenes after the final whistle, which saw the English players burst off the bench with excitement, won't make up for the heartbreak of the aforementioned loss to Japan, but it was a sign of just how monumental the moment was for a team that had never before beaten the powerhouse Germans - a run of futility that extended 21 matches.

More importantly, it should help to change the discussion around a team that didn't receive nearly the respect it deserved in its home country, which largely viewed the Lionesses as little more than a vehicle with which to insult the underachieving men's national team.

Of all the achievements reached on Saturday afternoon in Edmonton, that was surely the most exciting.

Meanwhile, the Germans - winners of two Women's World Cups and widely viewed as the best program on the planet - will feel aggrieved at the way their tournament came to a crashing end after being so impressive heading into the final four.

Though they were outplayed by the United States in their 2-0 semifinal loss, Saturday's defeat will likely be viewed as harsh on Silvia Neid's team, who - despite being admittedly sluggish in front of goal - were the more dangerous of the two sides over the 120 minutes.

Neid, whose growing frustration - both with her own team and with what she perceived to be substandard officiating - captured the essence of the Germans' match, and tournament, perfectly ...

(Courtesy: @VegardLi)

Vexed as Neid and the Germans will be, their disappointment will be exceeded by the joy emanating from England on what will go down as a historic, defining moment for the Three Lionesses.