There has never been a better time to be a fan of women’s football or to become more invested in the product. The success of a home World Cup has laid the groundwork for a second opportunity to attract long-term attention on the sport in this country. It’s an opportunity which cannot be afforded to let slip.
In the space of a month, the Matildas became one of Australia’s biggest and most recognisable sporting entities. Their achievements will live long in the memory and should provide the motivation to be the first of many. The goal should be to go one better next time round, and the only way it can be done is for proper funding to be provided by the government at all levels of the game and for the people to continue supporting them in their domestic competitions.
Most of the current squad are plying their trade in Europe, the majority of whom feature heavily in the Women’s Super League in England. Although there’s only a few who will be playing locally, every future Matilda will come through our domestic league, the foundation for all of our success.
World Cup wrap
The journey from the July 20 to the August 20 provided its fair share of ups and downs, memorable moments and some outrageous goals. For the Matildas alone there wasSteph Catley’s penalty against the Republic of Ireland, a disappointing 3-2 loss to Nigeria and then a Hayley Raso masterclass against Canada in a must win clash at AAMI Park.
The knockout stage upped the stakes and the chaos levels; Caitlin Foord’s brilliantly taken opener in the 2-0 win over Denmark, the entire penalty shootout against France in Brisbane and then a Sam Kerr special against England at Stadium Australia. It didn’t end the way a lot of people had hoped, with two defeats and a feeling our best chance of winning a World Cup had fallen agonisingly away.
I am of the opinion the semi final was as good a result as we could have hoped for. England were the better side in the semi-final, Spain in turn dominated them in the final and luck did play its part. Germany and Brazil, two of the best teams on our side of the draw, were both knocked out in the group stage.
The depth of talent at our disposal is just not as high as the top teams in the world. Tony Gustavsson relied heavily on his starting eleven and a select few substitutes. In the semi and third place playoff, tired legs didn’t have the energy to provide the necessary spark going forward to provide a threat on the counterattack.
A number of players upped their stocks or announced themselves on the world stage. Clare Hunt and Kyra Cooney-Cross both fall into the latter, earning moves to PSG and Arsenal respectively off the back of strong tournaments. Hunt did superbly well for a young defender at her first major tournament, forming a strong partnership with Alannah Kennedy and then Clare Polkinghorne when Kennedy was ruled out for concussion.
Mackenzie Arnold was a key component in the defence which kept four clean sheets out of seven, making some crucial saves in important moments and of course becoming a national hero with her penalty heroics against the French.
None of the attackers stood out as clearly the best for me, with all of them having moments to shine. Caitlin Foord impressed with her quick feet on the ball and her finish against the Danes was top class. Hayley Raso top scored with three goals but didn’t provide the same spark as Foord on the other side or Mary Fowler, who only scored once but held up the ball nicely and distributed quite well, most noticeably for the Foord goal against Denmark.
Sam Kerr’s calf injury was one of the major talking points throughout the campaign. She missed the group stage, came off the bench twice and started in the losses to England and Sweden. Her impact was hampered by that injury, but she still managed to show her world class quality with one of the goals of the tournament, a glimpse as to what might have been had she stayed fit.
The world of football moves quickly, and lucky for us, the Matildas are back on the pitch in less than two weeks at HBF Park on the 26th against Iran, followed by a massive clash against the Philippines at Optus Stadium before returning to HBF to face Chinese Taipei. The switch of venue for the Philippines match raised many eyebrows, mine included. In the end, the decision works out best for everyone in my eyes. Those who missed out on tickets early get the chance to watch at least one match in what will be a nearly sold-out stadium,and the ones who snapped them up will be provided with the proper football experience and atmosphere a stadium can’t bring.
The squad coming to Perth features two changes from the World Cup squad with Kyah Simon and Aivi Luik coming out through injury, opening the door for Charlize Rule and Amy Sayer to impress the boss. Two more domestic games remain for each squad member, though for the likes of Tameka Yallop, Lydia Williams and Cortnee Vine, it will be their first two games as the A-League Women kicks off.
Glory hunting first finals berth in four years
Not since the days of Sam Kerr, Rachel Hill and Bobby Despotovski have the Glory girls reached the top four and a finals spot, but Alex Epakis has built a solid squad and this season could be the one where the next big step is made. Perth have been in and around mid-table, narrowly missing out last year despite a strong finish to the campaign. The challenge will be starting the same way, after winning once in the opening seven. Challenge number one are the runners-up Western United, out to avenge their loss to Sydney FC and return to winning form in Perth after losing 3-2 on New Year’s Day.
Some shrewd signings will turn out in purple for the first time in a couple of hours as of the time of writing. New Zealand international Grace Jale transferred across from Canberra United and will be joined by a duo of Philippines internationals Jessika Cowart and Quinley Quezada, who is their all-time record goal scorer. The final international player adds plenty of experience from England, ex-Leicester and Crystal Palace striker Millie Farrow. The 27-year-old already has a hattrick in Glory colours, in a 4-0 win over the Gold Fields WA State Team.
The Aussie contingent remains strong thanks to the introduction of Isobel Dalton to midfield and a lot of youth prospects, which includes Lilly Bailey in goal, the likes of Anika Stajcic, Georgia Cassidy, Grace Johnston and Tanika Lala.
Tash Rigby will captain the side for the fifth season running, looking to lead her team to the promised land in what is set to be the highest attended ALW season in history, on the back of record membership numbers. Macedonia Park remains the home of the side and can hopefully become the fortress on which a successful campaign is built. That being said, the double header next weekend at HBF Park is a great chance to get a big crowd in and show support for both of the Glory sides for those who can’t get to Balcatta for the season opener.
Women in Ultimate Team
On a lighter note, the new EA Sports football game has recently been released and for the first time ever, women’s players have been added to Ultimate Team. This addition has shaken the system for the better, creating new squad building opportunities and a unique platform for the women’s game to grow.
The game has created many cult heroes in football, the likes of which include Alexander Esswein, the famous trio of Ibarbo, Doumbia and Gervinho and the overpowered Jack Butland on FIFA 17. The gaming community makes up a small part of the overall football crowd, but it is helping to make household names of many female players. Alexia Putellas has some of the best stats in the game for a gold card, with above 90 in shooting, passing and dribbling.
Others proving popular are Caroline Graham Hansen, Alex Morgan and Kadidiatou Diani. All with great shooting and dribbling stats, with dribbling in particular an even more important component of gameplay than in years gone by. Another popular player among gamers is Carson Pickett, the American left back who is the first player in the game’s history with a limb difference.
The addition of women makes building an Australian team much easier and stronger. Sam Kerr is the highest rated Australian gold card with a 90 rating and a Nike promo card already. Arsenal duo Foord and Catley are next with ratings of 84 and 83. Ellie Carpenter is also rated 83, with good pace and defending making her a viable candidate for those needing a good right back.
With evolutions being introduced into the game and tons of promos to come, the Matildas should be getting some awesome cards in the game. Gone are the days of building amainly silver or gold non-rare Australian team, and with some cards relating to real life performances, all the more reason totune in to the women’s leagues this season.
Wrap up
With the influx of action coming our way, there is reason to be excited and optimistic about the upcoming season. Ange Postecoglou put a lid on expectations and said he doesn’t expect any changes in terms of long-term benefit or investment in the game. While part of me agrees with him, there’s another which is more hopeful this time around things will be different. If it doesn’t happen now, it won’t happen at all. So let’s make it happen, and right now is the first step in the process to the success every football fan in Australia has been craving.
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