LIVE: Australia’s opening match of the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup is underway, with the Matildas hosting Republic of Ireland in front of a record crowd at Stadium Australia in Sydney.
But they are without talismanic striker Sam Kerr, who will miss the first two group stage matches with a calf injury sustained in training on Tuesday.
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It is a devastating blow to the Matildas, with Kerr Australia’s highest scorer of all-time in men’s or women’s international football and one of the finest strikers in world football.
Kerr wrote on social media: “Unfortunately I sustained a calf injury yesterday in training. I wanted to share this with everyone so there is no distraction from us doing what we came here to achieve.
“Of course I would have loved to have been out there tonight but I can’t wait to be a part of this amazing journey which starts now.”
The Matildas announced: “Sam will be unavailable for the next two matches with the Matildas Medical Team to re-assess her following our second group stage match.”
Australia has been forced into a single change from their line-up that beat France in a warm-up game on Friday, with youngster Mary Fowler – who scored the winner against France – replacing Kerr. Veteran fullback Steph Catley takes the captain’s armband for Australia.
It is the second match of the tournament, after co-hosts New Zealand earned their first ever win at a World Cup with a 1-0 boilover of Norway in Auckland.
Follow all the live action in our blog below!
MATCH CENTRE: Teams, live stats, and more
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PREVIEW
Almost 80,000 fans are set to flood into Stadium Australia, breaking the record for a stand-alone women’s football match in Australia, set just last week when 50,629 Melburnians witnessed the Matildas beat world no. 5 France in their final warm-up match.
That was a ninth win in the last 10 matches for Australia, who are carrying the hopes of a nation as they look to progress beyond the quarter-finals for the first time in history – and perhaps even go all the way.
Sam Kerr said yesterday the team was confident they wouldn’t be overwhelmed by the weight of expectations – or the memories of a disappointing early exit in 2019.
“As a team it’s going to go up and down, we have to just live in the moment,” she said. “We spoke about it briefly today – it’s OK to feel nervous, it’s OK to get overawed by the crowd. That’s life, that’s football.”
FULL PREVIEW: The blood, sweat and tears the Matildas shed to become World Cup contenders
World no. 10 Australia, co-hosting the tournament with New Zealand, will kick off their campaign against the world’s 22nd-ranked side.
Ireland, ‘The Girls in Green’, are one of a bunch of teams competing in their first World Cup this tournament, after beating Scotland in a playoff.
They may arrive with lower expectations than the Australians, but with a number of players regularly impressing at top clubs – particularly captain Katie McCabe of Arsenal – they are confident of an upset victory.
However, Ireland has struggled for form since qualifying for the World Cup, winning just twice in their last six matches.
Fowler nets one for the Tillies! | 00:32
27-year-old McCabe, who has captained the side for six years already, says her team are ready to embrace the underdog moniker.
“As a small nation, you carry that title I guess,” McCabe said. “We know we are debutants, but we know what we want to do. We don’t want to just be happy to be here. We want to compete, and we want to give Australia, Canada and Nigeria the hardest games possible.
“It’s going to be exciting. We know what Australia have. They have got quality all over the park. But we also know what we can do.”
But as Kerr said yesterday, “we have a lot of respect for Ireland … [but] it’s about us tomorrow.”
The two teams have been placed in Group B, along with Nigeria and Tokyo Olympics gold medallists Canada, both of which the Australians will also face in the group stage this fortnight. The top two teams progress to the knockouts.
Matildas call out FIFA over gender gap | 01:35
CONFIRMED AUSSIE XI
Mackenzie Arnold; Steph Catley, Alanna Kennedy, Clare Hunt, Ellie Carpenter; Katrina Gorry, Kyra Cooney-Cross; Mary Fowler, Hayley Raso, Cortnee Vine, Caitlin Foord.
CONFIRMED IRELAND XI
Courtney Brosnan; Louise Quinn, Niamh Fahey, Megan Connolly, Ruesha Littlejohn, Denise O’Sullivan, Katie McCabe, Heather PAyne, Sinead Farrelly, Kyra Carusa, Marissa Sheva
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