It finally happened. After two years of glimpses, patches, and chunks, of 30 minutes here, an hour there, a brilliant 45 minutes and a poor 45 minutes, it happened.
The coveted, elusive 90 minute performance from the Matildas in the Tony Gustavsson era. And what an occasion to do it. England. In England. The European champions. One of the favourites for the upcoming Women’s World Cup. Holders of a 30-game undefeated streak, until they lost 2-0 on a cold, rainy night in Brentford.
– Women’s World Cup bracket and fixtures schedule
Sam Kerr pounced on an uncharacteristic mistake from Leah Williamson to make it 1-0 before Charli Grant’s header deflected off the England skipper to make it two. The Lionesses had more of the ball, more chances, more shots on goal. Yet they rarely troubled the Matildas. Mackenzie Arnold made two saves of note and was strong without needing to be called on frequently.
Australia’s defence held strong. Ellie Carpenter played a full game in only her second national team game back from an ACL. Grant showed she isn’t a World Cup bolter, but a fully-fledged defensive utility. Clare Hunt continued to play beyond her five caps, proving to be a more than worthy partner to the ever-reliable Clare Polkinghorne. Katrina Gorry and Kyra Cooney-Cross were both the brains and the brawn of the midfield, while Kerr reminded everyone that she truly is one of a kind, not that anyone needed reminding.
Less than 100 days until Australia co-host the World Cup, this result could prove pivotal for both sides. Even though it is a cliche, this being the loss England needed to have feels like an appropriate conclusion. By the same token, this game felt like a win the Matildas needed to produce. Australia needed to show the growth that has at times been painful to watch and hard to see behind the lack of results. The Matildas needed to prove that they were no longer the team they were two years ago, when Gustavsson first took charge. And they did.
Concerningly, this game once again had its fair share of concerns and caveats, from injuries pre- and mid-game to the heaping dose of good fortune in both Matildas goals. Gustavsson said postmatch: “We had 10 injuries coming into this game and there were a lot of excuses not to perform — but that’s not what this team’s about.”
It was an injury list which included hundreds of caps worth experience and only grew with the forced substitutions of Tameka Yallop and Cortnee Vine. But pleasingly, after all of it, Australia won anyway. For Gustavsson, the Matildas combined the most Australian trait of all, being the gritty underdog, with a tactical plan built on defensive solidity and pressing from the front, utilising the depth that has been created over the last two years.
