In a match between the world No. 8 Japanese and No. 15 Aussies, it looked like it would have been a close match as the Matildas look to put a dire 2024 behind them.
Unfortunately, it was a horror show in the Matildas’ first match since December as Asia’s true powerhouse put the Aussies to the sword.
The result was the biggest ever loss by the Matildas to Japan and should have been much worse with some terrible shots, but what was worse was that the Aussies quite literally didn’t even fire a shot, with no shots on goal throughout the 90 minutes.
At halftime, the commentators were stunned by the 2-0 deficit, with calls for the Matildas to break out of their malaise.
Host Tara Rushton said it was “difficult to watch”.
“It looks like a team that doesn’t really know where they’re at with each other, and a little bit flat and bereft of energy.”
Aussie football veteran Andy Harper agreed.
“This was beyond less than acceptable. This is nowhere near good enough,” he said on Paramount+.
“Tom Sermanni came in, wanted to build stability with this first game, get off to a winning start. This team knows each other intimately. There’s almost 1000 caps spread across … this is so far away from being an acceptable first half of football from our national team in a preparation for an Asian Cup which we’re hosting.”
The Matildas were thrashed by Japan. Photo: Jack Gorman/Getty Images/AFPSource: AFP
Former Matilda Grace Gill said the team would have to “take a good hard look at themselves at halftime”, hitting out at the team’s wasteful first half performance.
The only half chance the Matildas had a strong ball from Kyra Cooney-Cross that found an off-side Caitlin Foord but there was little else that could be considered a positive from a dire first half.
Even the Japanese goals were far from screamers with Mina Tanaka scoring off a weak strike after a failed header clearance from Australia.
The second was little more than a tap in after Clare Hunt and Alanna Kennedy ran into each other.
And the Matildas were lucky to not be further behind after a near-certain header clanged off the crossbar.
Gill said the goals were “easily preventable, easily fixed”.
“It was not controlling the ball, it was not settling things down, everything was going Japan’s way,” Gill says.
“Those (Japan) goals are easily defendable … it’s just defensively poor.
“It feels like the intensity is not there.”
But it was more of the same in the second half with the third goal five minutes after the break.
Despite a few positive moments from Japan showed the gulf in class with a sharp passing move giving Maika Hamano the easiest of tap ins.
At full-time, Harper called it “very very poor”.
“Disappointing doesn’t really come close to covering it,” Harper said.
“It was a morning which simply did not work.”
Hayley Raso reacts for the Matildas. Photo by Jack Gorman/Getty ImagesSource: Getty Images
Gill said it exposed the “chasm” between the teams.
Harper said the loss exposed a hard truth for Australian football.
“We’re having the same discussion after a Matildas game against Japan as we have after a men’s game against Japan,” he said.
“This is not a team against another team, this is a system against another system.
“While Japan over five, 10, 15 years have made vast progress on a technical level with their players, we sit here sending out national teams out and the chasm between Japan and Australia technically seems to be getting wider, not narrower.”
Fans were quick to take aim at the performance, with criticisms focusing on the fact the Matildas still have an interim coach.
Sport broadcaster Daniel Garb slammed the performance.
“That’s a disaster for The Matildas with as strong a side as it can name at present. Heaviest ever loss to Japan. Concerning a year out from a home Asian Cup,” he said.
“Tom Sermanni is a great of the women’s game & is not to blame but they’ve got to get a move on with a permanent coach.”
The West Australian’s Ben Smith commented: “One shot on target. Matildas in dire need of a direction and a coach, because right now they’re just spinning the wheels. Sermanni in a tough spot, but there doesn’t feel like there’s any jeopardy for senior players.”
“This she believes cup was the perfect time to have a full-time coach in camp with the Matildas. Why there isn’t one yet is insane,” one fan said.
Another added: “The Matildas look seriously out of form and poorly organised. They are a metaphor for @FootbalAUS. We have NO coach and the classy Japanese have an Australian assistant coach. We have a thin bench and a porous defence. Reform is an urgent need.”
There was nothing to celebrate for the Matildas. Photo by Maria Lysaker/Getty ImagesSource: Getty Images
Speaking after the game, defender Ellie Carpenter lamented a horrific day at the office.
“It was a bad performance from us and we need to regroup, refocus for the game against the US,” she said.
“I think we weren’t all on the same page with the press. But like I said, it wasn’t good enough tonight and we just need to refocus, regroup and focus on the next match.”
It gets no easier for the Aussies with the Matildas facing hosts and world No. 1 the US on Monday before finishing against Colombia next Thursday.
The gloom created by the Matildas’ group stage exit at the Olympics might be starting to fade after two positive results, but there is still a host of fundamental issues the side needs to address before they can really move on from what happened in France.
The squad arrived in camp in Zurich desperate to step out of the shadow created by their performances at the Games. Vice captain Ellie Carpenter stressed multiple times in the lead-up to the 1-1 draw with Switzerland that this was a “clean slate” and a “new cycle” and the chance to put the Olympics behind them was “exactly what [they’ve] needed.”
Switzerland proved to be a frustrating opponent while a 2-1 win over Germany was the type of result that – while an upset and perhaps a little more than they deserved on the balance of play – can be a building block for a side that was self-admittedly low on confidence.
These are the four biggest takeaways from Australia’s performances during this international window.
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MARY FOWLER MYSTERY A SIMPLE FIX
Mary Fowler struggled to make an impact against Switzerland and the debate around where she’s best suited in this team immediately reignited.
It’s a question that was also put to former Matildas coach Tony Gustavsson during his tenure, and one he struggled with until the end of his time with the side.
Interim coach Tom Sermanni used Fowler in a more withdrawn role on the right side of a midfield trio alongside Katrina Gorry and Kyra Cooney-Cross and she barely touched the ball.
The problem wasn’t that Mary went missing, but more her teammates struggled to find her feet.
Fowler is a player capable and comfortable in extremely tight spaces on the field. It may look like passing into that space is risky, but the 21-year-old is able to turn on a dime and create attacking opportunities from those situations.
Watching Fowler’s movements on the field, in isolation, is an interesting exercise. She constantly drifts into threatening spaces, but often when it appears she’s having a quiet night, it can also be the case that she’s just not being given the ball.
Questioned on this prior to Australia’s win over Germany, Sermanni conceded that it was something he’d noticed.
“It’s a good point, and in essence should be an easy fixable point in a sense of players even having a chat with each other, and saying, ‘just give me the ball and I can handle it,’” Sermanni said.
DUISBURG, GERMANY – OCTOBER 28: Mary Fowler of Australia passes the ball whilst under pressure from Giulia Gwinn of Germany during the Women’s international friendly match between Germany and Australia at Schauinsland-Reisen-Arena on October 28, 2024 in Duisburg, Germany. (Photo by Frederic Scheidemann/Getty Images for Football Australia)Source: Getty Images
“It’s a combination of perhaps players looking and thinking it’s too tight and of Mary being in a space, and regardless if that space is tight or if it’s big, to actually want to look like you want to get on the ball.”
Mystery solved then.
Fowler needed to be more vocal and display body language that told her teammates she was ready to receive the ball in those tight spaces. Her teammates needed to be more daring and trust Fowler to handle those passes.
We didn’t quite get to see the solution play out against Germany. Fowler featured as a striker, alongside Caitlin Foord, in Duisburg, and was afforded far more time and space than against Switzerland.
However, she was significantly more involved and looked a constant threat, especially in the first half.
THE CONFIDENCE BOOST THE MATILDAS NEEDED
The Matildas weren’t hiding it; they were low on confidence when they reported for camp.
The aura of invincibility, developed during their incredible run to the semi-finals at a home World Cup in 2023, had been wiped away by an Olympic campaign that had promised plenty and delivered only heartache.
Germany completely outclassed them in the first group stage game in Marseille. It finished 3-nil but could’ve easily have been more. They needed an 11-goal thriller to beat Zambia 6-5 in Nice and were knocked out after losing to the USA 2-1.
“To be honest I think the team did come into camp feeling a little bit low,” Sermanni told reporters prior to the game against Switzerland.
Back-to-back defeats during this window would hardly have raised morale.
Losing, just as much as winning, can become a habit, but walking away with a draw against Switzerland and a victory over a side, in Germany, who were significantly better than them just months ago is a huge step in the right direction.
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NEW COACH NOT LIKELY UNTIL THE NEW YEAR
Tony Gustavsson left his post the day after the Matildas exit from the Olympics was sealed.
That was in early August and now with November knocking, Football Australia still doesn’t have a full-time replacement in place.
In a way, Sermanni is the perfect man for this moment.
The players respect him immensely. For many, it’s a full-circle moment, with Sermanni having given them their debuts when they were just teenagers, during his second stint in charge of the national side between 2005 and 2012.
If Football Australia was looking for a coach with an ability to instil belief in a playing group again, then they found it with the 70-year-old Scottish born manager.
However, Sermanni has made it clear that he does not want the role fulltime, meaning the side is just circling until a successor is named.
DUISBURG, GERMANY – OCTOBER 28: Tom Sermanni, Interim Head Coach of Australia, gestures during the Women’s international friendly match between Germany and Australia at Schauinsland-Reisen-Arena on October 28, 2024 in Duisburg, Germany. (Photo by Frederic Scheidemann/Getty Images for Football Australia)Source: Getty Images
He can implement tactics and build confidence, but both of those things are likely to be done differently when Football Australia settles on its preferred candidate.
Sermanni expects to be in charge when the Matildas return to Australia for two games against Brazil and two against Chinese Taipei in November and December.
It means whoever takes over won’t start their era until 2025.
There are six international windows next year and the big goal is the 2026 Asian Cup on home soil.
Sermanni believes any coach would need all next year to prepare the team properly for that tournament.
So, on this front, there’s still time, but the clock is ticking.
BALL USE NEEDS TO BE BETTER TO CHALLENGE THE BEST
Neither the draw with Switzerland nor the win over Germany was pretty (an incredible long-range lobbed goal from Kyra Cooney-Cross in Duisburg aside.)
In large part though, Sermanni’s brief is not so much about style, but substance. Don’t lose and rebuild confidence is the goal and on that front, its job done.
Given the chance to win ugly or lose while playing breathtaking football, Sermanni said he’d take the former over the latter. It wasn’t exactly ugly, but it did leave plenty of room for improvement next month.
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In moments of pressure, against Germany in particular, the Matildas often struggled to find a teammate. After managing to win the ball back, opportunities to transition from defence to attack also broke down quickly.
The Aussies had just 25 per cent possession and 63 per cent pass accuracy against Germany in the first half and those numbers (26 per cent possession and 62 per cent pass accuracy) didn’t change too much by full-time.
The results during this window are undeniably a positive, but those numbers aren’t sustainable for the goals they have in mind over the next four years through to the 2028 Olympics. That road takes them past the Asian Cup in Australia in 2026 and the 2027 World Cup in Brazil.
Sam Kerr and the rest of the Matildas leadership group have held meetings with Football Australia about the search for a new coach as they prepare to take on Switzerland and Germany in a pair of friendlies over the next week.
Kerr isn’t in camp with the side in Zurich at the moment as she continues to recover from an ACL injury suffered earlier this year but has been in contact with Football Australia about the direction the search should take.
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Football Australia have also sought out the opinion of current captain Steph Catley and co vice-captains Ellie Carpenter and Emily van Egmond.
“I think there have been conversations with the leadership group. There’s been a few,” forward Caitlin Foord said prior to the sides first training session in Zurich.
“I think there’ll be more throughout this camp.”
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Foord isn’t part of the leadership group, but was asked what she’d tell FA about the qualities a new coach should have, if questioned.
“For me, it would purely be what’s best for the team and what we need to take us to the next level to have that Australian fighting spirit.”
Tom Sermanni will take charge, of the next two games at least, on an interim basis, but there’s four more fixtures before the end of the year as well.
Whether a new coach will be installed in time for those games against Brazil and Chinese Taipei from November 28 to December 7 on home soil remains unclear, but Football Australia’s focus is on having Tony Gustavsson’s successor in place for a crucial lead-up phase to the Asian Cup on home soil in 2026.
“We have the time now to find the right person for the job,” Foord said.
“When the time is right, it will happen.”
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Expectation around the side come the Asian Cup will almost be as high as when the World Cup kicked off.
Australia remains a regional powerhouse, despite their recent struggles, and was Asia’s highest finisher at football’s global showpiece in 2023.
Whoever is handed the role will need time to bed down ideas and structures, but Foord says the playing group is remaining patient.
“Obviously, the sooner the better, but at the same time we don’t really want to rush into anything.”
It has been an odd few months for Foord when it comes to coaches.
Gustavsson left his post as coach of the Matildas the day after a 2-1 defeat to the US ended their Paris Olympic campaign in the group stage.
The 29-year-old then returned to Arsenal, where the future of her manager in north London, another Swede in Jonas Eidevall, was a hot topic of conversation as well.
Eidevall resigned last week, just four games into the Women’s Super League season, leaving Foord without a full-time coach for club or country.
“It’s weird, I’ve never been in this position before,” she said.
“It’s strange, but it’s just down to me to play the football and I trust in both club and country, that when the coach comes in it will be the right person.”
Despite all the drama swirling around her domestically and internationally, Foord has been in good form so far this season.
She has six goals to her name already across the Champions League and Women’s Super League.
“Off the back of the Olympics and feeling like as a team and myself personally, I didn’t perform the way I would’ve liked to, the start of the season was another opportunity,” Foord said.
The 126-cap Matilda will now get the chance to add to her tally of 36 international goals on Saturday morning (AEDT) against Switzerland.
Injuries continue to trouble the Matildas ahead of their Paris Olympic Games opener against Germany in less than two weeks, with key forward Caitlin Foord a late withdrawal from Australia’s 2-1 loss in its warm-up clash against Canada.
Having already announced last week that captain Steph Catley and Kaitlyn Torpey would miss the game against the Canadians due to lower leg injuries, the Matildas suffered another blow pre-match when Arsenal star Foord withdrew from Sunday morning’s contest after experiencing tightness in her quad.
Others who weren’t considered for selection for the game played at the Matildas training base in Marbella, Spain were Brisbane Roar’s Tameka Yallop, who suffered what was described as a “minor impact” leg injury at training, and back-up goalkeeper Teagan Micah, who continues to recover from an ankle injury she suffered in May while on duty for her club Liverpool.
“You always want to have all your players fit and in form … (but) sometimes it’s a challenge,” Matildas coach Tony Gustavsson said.
“I’ve also been around long enough to know that the only thing that we can focus on is what we can control.
“Caitlin felt something in the warm-up, and I said `let’s play it safe’.”
In the absence of Foord, Yallop’s Roar teammate Sharn Freier, who had originally been named among the substitutes, was called into the starting side, and made the most of her opportunity by scoring in the 24th minute to give the Matildas the lead after being fed by playmaker Mary Fowler.
Sharn Freier (right) scored Australia’s only goal in the Matildas’ 2-1 loss to Canada. Picture: Mark Brake/Getty ImagesSource: Getty Images
However, it was a goal that came against the run of play, with the Canadians having been the better team in the first half.
Gustavsson wouldn’t have been happy with the Matildas’ sloppiness in possession particularly when faced with Canada’s pressing tactics.
It was also an error from Australian goalkeeper Mackenzie Arnold that gifted the Canadians an equaliser in the 41st minute.
Arnold fumbled a cross from Cloe Lacasse, with Nichelle Prince pouncing on the loose ball to level the scores.
The Matildas made a host of changes at the start of the second-half, with Charlotte Grant, Clare Polkinghorne, Emily van Egmond, Michelle Heyman and Courtney Nevin entering the contest.
The five players replaced were right-back Ellie Carpenter – who had worn the captain’s armband in the absence of Catley – central defender Alanna Kennedy, midfielder Katrina Gorry and attacking weapons Hayley Raso and Cortnee Vine.
Winonah Heatley also came on later in the half for centre-back Clare Hunt.
Despite the changes, the Canadians continued to assert their superiority, leading to the game’s winning goal in the 85th minute from substitute Evelyne Viens.
Gustavsson said his side’s error-ridden display was partly due to a heavy training load in camp.
He was more concerned about Australia’s creativity in attack.
“I don’t think we created enough. We normally create a lot of chances when we play,” Gustavsson said.
“I want to create more. I want to attack.”
The Matildas are set to relocate to France later this week ahead of the opening match of their Olympic Games campaign against Germany in Marseille on July 26 (AEST).
The rapid rise of Kaitlyn Torpey has left Charlotte Grant out in the cold as the Matildas coach Tony Gustavsson revealed his 18-player squad for the Paris Olympics.
Foxsports.com.au breaks down the team headed for Paris in Matildas Winners and Losers!
In the space of a week, Torpey earned a move from Melbourne City to NWSL powerhouse San Diego Wave and was called up to the Matildas squad for the first time.
Torpey, who can play as both a full back and a winger, made her debut on February 24 against Uzbekistan and has not looked back since.
The 24-year-old even scored in just her second international game for the Matildas against Uzbekistan in the Aussies’ 10-0 demolition on February 28.
Torpey also started the first friendly against China and showed promising signs in her link-up play with winger Cortnee Vine on the right flank.
Gustavsson clearly has plenty of faith in Torpey and one imagines her versatility will be vital in a relatively thin squad at the Olympics.
Katrina Gorry
There were serious fears Gorry would miss the Olympics when she was forced off the field just 21 minutes into West Ham’s WSL clash against Chelsea in March.
Gorry left the stadium limping in a moon boot as her season was unfortunately brought to an early end, with the tough-tackling midfielder undergoing surgery in early April.
She was also not named in the Matildas squad for the recent friendlies against China.
However, Gustavsson has plenty of faith she can complete a full recovery in time for the Matildas’ first group game against Germany on July 25.
Gorry has formed a tight bond with Kyra Cooney-Cross in the Matildas’ midfield and if the two are alongside each other on the park in France, it’ll no doubt give a massive boost to the team.
Gorry has not played since March. (Photo by Robert Cianflone/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images
Caitlin Foord
After a taxing season for Arsenal and the Matildas, Gustavsson knew Foord was one of several that had to be carefully managed during the friendlies against China.
So when Foord went down just 15 minutes after coming on in the Adelaide fixture clutching her hamstring, some pondered if the Matildas were about to be short of yet another attacking option.
Thankfully Foord was not severely injured and would have been declared fit to keep playing, but Matildas medical staff deemed it wise to bring her off given how close the Olympics were.
Unsurprisingly, Foord played no part in the second friendly against China as the team wrapped her in cotton wool.
LOSERS
Charlotte Grant
Grant can consider herself tremendously unlucky not to have made the final cut.
The South Australian came into the fold as Ellie Carpenter’s replacement due to the latter’s ACL injury and looked at home in the Matildas backline, even scoring in a 2-0 win over England last April.
However, Grant has rarely featured for the Matildas since Carpenter’s return and now finds herself as a reserve player for the Olympics with Torpey taking her place.
Lydia Williams
Gustavsson opted not to call on Williams’ experience at the Olympics as Teagan Micah was preferred as Mackenzie Arnold’s back-up.
Williams recently announced she would retire from international football after the Olympics and was given a fitting farewell in the Matildas’ second friendly against China.
Could Gustavsson have done with a cool head like Williams in Paris had the pressure cranked up after a tough result?
Williams enjoyed a fitting farewell in the Matildas’ second friendly against China. (Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images
Sharn Freier
Freier was an unlikely candidate to have made the final 18-player squad but when Foord went down holding her hamstring against China, the Brisbane Roar forward’s inclusion might not have seemed so far fetched.
The 22-year-old could still feature having been named as an alternate player so if Foord or any other forwards have injury issues, she may still feature at the Olympics.
Freier enjoyed a breakout season for the Roar with three goals and five assists as well as creating the third-most chances in the A-League Womens.
Her impressive form earned a deserved call-up to the Matildas squad for the China friendlies and clearly impressed Gustavsson while in camp.
Substitutes Clare Wheeler and Cortnee Vine had crucial impacts off the bench as the Matildas farewelled Australia before heading to the Paris Olympics with a 2-0 win over China on Monday night.
In front of more than 76,000 fans at Sydney’s Accor Stadium, the Matildas produced a better attacking display than they showed in last Friday’s 1-1 draw against the same opponent at Adelaide Oval.
However, they still had to wait until after half-time to break China’s resistance, with Wheeler and Vine key factors in the win after entering the contest at the start of the second-half.
Mary Fowler, Hayley Raso and Cortnee Vine celebrate. (Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images
Midfielder Wheeler, who came on for Emily van Egmond, heading the hosts into the lead in the 48th minute after timing her run to perfection to be first to a well-placed free-kick from Steph Catley.
Sydney FC star Vine, who replaced striker Michelle Heyman, provided the assist for Australia’s second goal in the 56th minute.
Her inch-perfect through ball found Hayley Raso, who rounded goalkeeper Xu Huan before guiding the ball home.
China had a couple of opportunities to fight their way back into the contest, but they were comfortably dealt with by Matildas keeper Mackenzie Arnold, who came on late in the first half for Lydia Williams.
The Matildas should have gone ahead as early as the 11th minute with a chance created by right-back Ellie Carpenter, who mesmerised China’s defence with a superb turn before storming into the penalty area and delivering a low cross that Wu Haiyan failed to properly clear.
The ball fell invitingly for the unmarked Tameka Yallop, but the Brisbane Roar star rushed her shot and failed to test goalkeeper Xu.
The official crowd attendance figure of 76,798 is displayed on the big screen. (Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images
However, Xu was called into action five minutes later, standing tall to deny Matildas winger Hayley Raso, who should have done better with her chance.
But Raso made amends after half-time with the match-sealing goal as the Australians did more than enough to take winning form to Paris.
“We wanted to turn up, we wanted to win the game, we wanted to put on a show, so we came out and did a little better than we did in the last game,” Raso told Network 10.
The Matildas’ Olympics squad will be announced on Tuesday but the players were informed before Tuesday night’s match if they had been chosen.
Farewell Lydia
In her 104th and most likely final appearance for the Matildas, veteran goalkeeper Lydia Williams started the match and wore the captain’s armband.
Emotional before the game when honoured in a ceremony that involved Australian sporting great Evonne Goolagong Cawley, Williams remained composed during her time on the pitch despite the crowd roaring every time she touched the ball.
She was then given a hero’s farewell when replaced by Australia’s first-choice goalkeeper Mackenzie Arnold in the 43rd minute.
After handing over the skipper’s armband to Steph Catley, Williams was embraced by all of her teammates as she left the field.
Lydia Williams is presented with a gift from Evonne Goolagong Cawley. (Photo by Matt King/Getty Images)Source: Getty ImagesMatildas players create a guard of honour. (Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)Source: Getty ImagesLydia Williams thanks the crowd. (Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images
The hugs continued when she reached the sidelined, where she shared a special moment with Arnold, after which she was cuddled by coach Tony Gustavsson and the Matildas’ entire bench.
Williams has announced she will retire from international football after the upcoming Olympic Games.
“To come this far has been incredible,” Williams said.
We will know on Tuesday whether she is selected in Australia’s 18-player squad for Paris, or is among the four travelling reserves.
The recovery task proved too hard for injured Matildas captain Sam Kerr who will miss the Paris Olympics as coach Tony Gustavsson endured a “very, very tough period with injuries” ahead of the Games.
Kerr suffered an ACL injury while on a training camp with her club Chelsea in early January and Football Australia confirmed the superstar striker would continue her rehabilitation program in her home club environment and subsequently will not be available for selection.
The captain’s name was always going to absent from a squad for pre-Olympic clashes with China which includes key defender Clare Hunt who has recovered from a foot injury.
The Paris Saint-Germain centre-back missed the Matildas’ 2-0 win over Mexico last month, but fears she would be in doubt for Australia’s Olympic Games campaign have been eased with her selection for games against China on May 31 (Adelaide) and June 3 (Sydney).
Also returning to the squad after overcoming injuries are Leicester City defender Courtney Nevin and Melbourne Victory goalkeeper Lydia Williams, who will retire from international football after the Olympics.
The squad also includes three members of the Arsenal team – Steph Catley, Caitlin Foord and Kyra Cooney-Cross – taking on the A-League women’s All-Stars at Marvel Stadium on Friday night.
However, star midfielder Katrina Gorry (ankle) and veteran Aivi Luik (hamstring) remain sidelined along with long-term casualties Amy Sayer (knee) and Kerr.
“Unfortunately we have had a very very tough period with injuries,” Gustavsson said.
“I just got the summary sheet here a week ago and 15 out of these 37 players are either injured or just coming back from injury which means some of the players that are selected now is selected to be evaluated where they are with their physical status in the gym window and see where they will potentially become the Olympics.
“I think everyone can do the math here and understand that obviously the Olympic roster will be based mostly out of those that are in camp. “
Clare Hunt is back in the Matildas squad. Picture: Brendon Thorne/Getty ImagesSource: Getty Images
Gustavsson knows exactly which players he wants in his squad in terms of positions, but knows he may have to wait to see who is actually available as the Matildas pursue a first ever Olympics medal.
“This window will be a tough one for me and my staff in terms of evaluating players, where they are, and then the final selection process for Paris,” he said.
“I have to make some decisions in June based on players that I think might become available come the Olympics and then closer to the tournament we can see if we have to do an injury replacement or not but that comes into place as well.”
“We want to use this camp to summarise the evolved playing style we have built upon in the last couple of months.
“With the Olympics approaching, selection is about seeing the overall picture over four years of performance and assembling the best team possible.
“We have looked at providing cover in each of the different positions and ensuring the player profile for those positions enhance the squad.
“We are pleased and confident we have those options across the pitch.”
The Matildas will play China in Adelaide and Sydney before the Paris Olympics.
Matildas: Mackenzie Arnold, Ellie Carpenter, Steph Catley (c), Kyra Cooney-Cross, Caitlin Foord, Mary Fowler, Sharn Freier, Charlotte Grant, Winonah Heatley, Michelle Heyman, Clare Hunt, Alanna Kennedy, Teagan Micah, Courtney Nevin, Clare Polkinghorne, Hayley Raso, Kaitlyn Torpey, Emily van Egmond, Cortnee Vine, Clare Wheeler, Jada Whyman, Lydia Williams, Tameka Yallop.
Mary Fowler scored two fine strikes for Manchester City as a 4-0 win relegated struggling Bristol City and moved the Cityzens six points clear atop the Women’s Super League table.
Fowler opened the scoring in the 62nd minute with a sublime left-footed shot that slammed into the net from outside the area, before doubling the lead in the 75th minute with a slick poacher’s finish with her right foot from close range.
Two more goals for City made up for the absence of leading scorer Khadija ‘Bunny’ Shaw, who has 21 goals from just 18 matches but will miss the final two matches after a foot injury.
Matildas centre-back Alanna Kennedy also started for City but was substituted at halftime.
Mary Fowler is in fine form for City.Source: Getty Images
Second-place Chelsea have two games in hand on City, who have just two games to play in the WSL – including next up against Arsenal and their Matildas trio of Kyra Cooney-Cross, Caitlin Foord and Steph Catley.
That trio all featured overnight for the Gunners in a 1-1 draw against Aussie Clare Wheeler’s Everton, who snatched a point with a 95th-minute goal against a Arsenal team that wasted far too many chances.
16-year-old academy product Isabella Hobson made history for the Toffees, the late strike making her the youngest-ever WSL scorer.
Clare Wheeler was in the thick of things.Source: Getty Images
Mackenzie Arnold and Katrina Gorry’s West Ham ensured they would avoid relegation this season with a 1-1 draw with Aston Villa, with Arnold playing the full 90 while Gorry remains sidelined for the rest of the season following ankle surgery.
Charlotte Grant picked up her first league start since February for Tottenham in a 1-1 draw with Brighton & Hove Albion, with Charlie Rule still ruled out with injury for the Seagulls.
Meanwhile, Matildas fullback Ellie Carpenter booked her spot in the final of the Champions League as her Lyon side beat fellow French giants PSG 2-1 in the second leg of their semi-final.
It ensured a 5-3 aggregate victory over another Australian in Clare Hunt, though the centre-back was absent with injury.
The Matildas are facing a tough road to their first Olympic medal after being drawn into a group alongside USA and Germany on Thursday morning.
Tony Gustavsson’s side will later be joined in Group B by either Zambia or Morocco, who face off in an Africa playoff over two legs next month.
The Matildas will be looking to build on last year’s stunning run to the semi-finals at the World Cup and also had a successful last start at the 2020 Games in Tokyo, where they came up just short of a medal.
On that occasion they went down 4-3 to the USA but will have a chance to exact revenge in the group stages.
The US is FIFA’s fourth-ranked nation and has four Olympic gold medals to its name, although it will be without legendary captain Megan Rapinoe.
Germany, meanwhile, won gold at the Rio Games in 2016 and is ranked fifth in the world.
The Matildas did avoid host nation France along with last year’s World Cup winners Spain and Tokyo 2020 gold medallists Canada.
Gustavsson told reporters on Wednesday that “some very good players” will miss out as he prepares to name the Matildas’ Olympic Games squad.
Gustavsson picked a 23-player squad for the April 10 friendly international against Mexico in Texas, but will need to cut that number down a further five names for Paris.
Vine returns to Matildas squad | 00:50
“Unfortunately, due to limited roster spots for the Olympics, that results in some very good players in strong form missing out on selection for this window and for the Olympics,” he said.
“That those (selection) decisions will be difficult speaks to the genuine depth and competition for places that we have created over the past three years.
“We have been consistent on the keys for squad selection which incorporates individual performances for club and in previous camps, combined with connection and chemistry.
“The upcoming international against Mexico will see one eye on preparation mode against a quality opponent who recently defeated the United States while also continuing to implement our evolving playing style ahead of what will be a very competitive Olympic tournament.
“Our attention turns fully to ensuring the best preparation in terms of matches and training activity for the Olympics.”
Matildas squad against Mexico: Mackenzie Arnold, Ellie Carpenter, Steph Catley (c), Kyra Cooney-Cross, Caitlin Foord, Mary Fowler, Katrina Gorry, Charlotte Grant, Michelle Heyman, Clare Hunt, Alanna Kennedy, Aivi Luik, Teagan Micah, Courtney Nevin, Clare Polkinghorne, Hayley Raso, Amy Sayer, Kaitlyn Torpey, Emily van Egmond, Cortnee Vine, Clare Wheeler, Jada Whyman, Tameka Yallop.
Full draw for the women’s football tournament at the 2024 Olympic Games:
Group A: France, Canada, Colombia, New Zealand
Group B: USA, Germany, Australia, CAF 2
Group C: Spain, Japan, Brazil, CAF 1
Ties: Zambia vs Morocco & Nigeria vs South African
On July 27, 2018, a gifted young striker made her debut for the Matildas, replacing Sam Kerr in the fourth minute of stoppage time for the briefest of cameo appearances.
Mary Fowler, just 15 years old, had not even made a professional league appearance at that point.
Yet she was already being discussed in superlative terms. A ‘tremendous weapon’, the ‘next Sam Kerr’, a future Matildas superstar, and so on.
A fortnight ago, Fowler became the second-youngest player to reach 50 international caps for the Matildas, notching the milestone just two weeks after her 21st birthday – and celebrating with a goal and an assist as the Matildas booked their ticket to Paris.
Having starred in the Matildas’ record-breaking Women’s World Cup run last year, Fowler looms as a key figure as the team hunts a first-ever Olympics medal.
She has gone from kicking a ball with her siblings on the beaches of Cairns to playing for English giants Manchester City – and become one of the most recognisable names in Australian sport.
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But reflecting on her meteoric rise, Fowler says she still considers herself “someone super normal (who) gets to play the sport that I enjoy playing for my living.”
Fowler has now teamed up with Uber and the Australian Sports Foundation for a campaign supporting community sports, seeking to find Australia’s most deserving reserve grade community team. The winning club will earn $50,000 [more below].
She spoke to Foxsports.com.au about her own journey from community sport to the heights of the Matildas and Manchester City.
Mary Fowler after the Matildas qualified for the Paris Olympics.Source: Getty Images
HOW MARY FELL IN LOVE WITH FOOTBALL
Born in Cairns as one of five siblings, Fowler famously grew up with no TV in the family home.
Instead, she says: “I think my family spent pretty much every day at the beach. We did all sorts of sports and football just happened to be one of them. I think a big part of my competitive spirit came from there, being able to play with my siblings because there’s five of us.
“It was great. And it’s an upbringing that I’m very grateful for because I can see where I got my ambition and competitiveness and my willingness to win, and just my passion and love for sport in general. So yeah – good old days!”
She adds: “Looking back, playing in my local team, playing with my sister and my friends, that’s what I got a lot of my enjoyment from and where a lot of my love for the game was able to blossom. I think without me having that experience, maybe I wouldn’t have enjoyed football as much and maybe I wouldn’t have kept going.”
Luckily for Australia, she did keep going. By 10, she was playing for Queensland’s under-12s side – often competing against boys two years her senior. Then it was off to the NPL NSW, where her blossoming talent (and knack for banging in goals) was soon spotted at the national level.
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Mary Fowler, aged 12, holds the FNQ School Futsal Championship trophy. Picture: Brendan RadkeSource: Supplied
‘I GIGGLE AT MYSELF’: THE REMARKABLE DEBUT
Though she hadn’t even played professionally in the A-League Women (then the W-League), she was picked by then-Matildas coach Alen Stajcic for a debut as a 15-year-old.
Looking back, Fowler can’t help but ‘giggle’ at her confident younger self, saying she didn’t fully comprehend how momentous the opportunity was.
“It’s funny,” she says. “I think back on those times sometimes, and I think I was so confident in myself just because I was so young. And I was just like ‘I want to prove what I can do.’
“So I don’t think I even really thought about what it all meant or how big it was to make a debut or anything – I was just super confident in myself. ‘
“And I just thought ‘I’m young, even if I make a mistake it’s okay, I’m just going to keep growing and keep getting better’.
“I think it’s only looking back now that I can kind of see like how big that was to be able to get the chance to do it at such a young age, how fortunate I was to get the opportunity. But yeah, I kind of giggle a bit at myself in terms of looking back and seeing how I was thinking.”
Fowler was thrown in the deep end with the Matildas as a 15-year-old – facing England in 2018 before she’d even played a professional club match.Source: Getty Images
Fowler’s father Kevin hails from Dublin in Ireland, while her mother Nido is from the Papua New Guinean village of Kira Kira near the capital Port Moresby.
Besides Australia, Fowler was therefore also eligible to represent those two nations. The Republic of Ireland chased her as a teen, while two of her siblings represented that nation in junior internationals.
Speaking of her decision to pick the green and gold, Mary says: “At the end of the day it was an easy decision for me to make. I was born in Australia and I grew up there. And I think out of the three nations that I could have picked, Australia is the one that feels like home for me. I didn’t want to put on a jersey that didn’t feel like I was really representing my home.”
50 appearances and 15 goals later, she laughs: “Definitely no regrets about that decision!”
Not that she even paid attention to becoming the second-youngest Matilda to reach 50 international appearances a fortnight ago, narrowly pipping teammate Ellie Carpenter.
Fowler says: “I think I even forgot that I was making my 50th cap, like it’s just crazy to think that that’s happening!
“But I just feel super fortunate to have been given the opportunity to be able to make so many appearances for Australia, being at this age.
“I just take it and I almost use it as more motivation to want to keep going, because people have obviously given me that belief and that trust to go out and do that. So I just want to make sure I’m making the most of the opportunities that I’m getting.”
Fowler brought up her half-century in style.Source: Getty Images
DISCOVERING NEW GOALS – AND BALANCE – IN LIFE
When Fowler first arrived on the international stage as a confident 15-year-old, she made headlines when she declared she wanted to be “the best in the world”.
Having played in two World Cups and an Olympics, and having gone from Adelaide United to Montpellier in France to Manchester City in the space of just a handful of years, Fowler says her goals have changed.
“I definitely see the world a bit differently now. I think for me, the definition of success has changed a bit. I think it’s a lot more of a personal pursuit rather than trying to aim to be the best out of everyone else, I’m aiming to be the best in myself and try to do what I can to make sure that when I finish my footballing career, I feel satisfied that I’ve done what I could to become the best athlete I could.
“But I think for me a big thing that’s changed is the balance in life: being able to become the best footballer that I can in the time that I’m playing, but also being able to finish my career looking back, knowing that I did have fun off the field. I did make friends. I did go out and travel to places and have some years while I’m young where I am experiencing life and not being consumed by just football alone.
“So I think the journey has become a lot more important for me than just that single point of becoming the best in the world. So (I’ve) definitely changed a bit since that time.”
Fowler celebrates her World Cup goal against Canada.Source: Getty Images
THE ‘CRAZY YEAR’ AND WHAT KEEPS HER GROUNDED
Last year, Fowler’s fame reached stratospheric proportions.
Behind Matildas captain Sam Kerr, the 21-year-old was the second-most Googled person in Australia in 2023.
When Kerr was struck down with injury on the eve of the World Cup, Fowler took on an even greater role in the Matildas attack as the team’s depth shone through.
She was nominated for the Best FIFA Women’s Player Award and the European Golden Girl Award (for the best young player in Europe).
Off the field, she would earn a host of big-brand endorsements – including a new campaign with Uber announced today (more on that below). She graced the cover of Marie Claire for their Woman of the Year edition, and also began a relationship with NRL player Nathan Cleary.
Fowler concedes she’s still not fully comfortable with the attention.
She said: “Yeah, it has been a bit of a crazy year for me – there has been quite a lot of attention around things. But I think for me, it always comes as a surprise because I don’t really look at myself in that light. I just think of myself as someone super normal and I just get to play the sport that I enjoy playing for my living. So I’m just super grateful whenever I get a bit of recognition.
“It can sound a bit silly but my dream is to have kids and have a family, so that’s usually what grounds me at the end of the day. Even walking out into the field, I’m like: ‘what kind of story do I want to tell my kid in the future?’
“So I don’t really look too much into everything else around that and the attention that I’m getting. But I’m very much grateful for the belief and the recognition that comes with that.”
Fowler – and her iconic black gloves – have struggled to nail down a spot in a star-studded Manchester City XI.Source: Getty Images
LIFE IN MANCHESTER – AND THE HUMBLING LESSON SHE NEEDED TO LEARN
Now in her second season with City in the Women’s Super League, she’s happy to fly under the radar on the streets of Manchester, saying: “No one in Manchester recognises me, so it’s quite nice!”
But playing for one of the biggest teams in the world comes with its challenges. Fowler did not make a league start in her maiden season in Manchester, and has largely been restricted to a substitute role again this season – though she made a rare start in a cup appearance on the weekend and scored just six minutes into the match.
“It has been difficult at times. I think it can always be difficult when you feel like you’re doing well but you’re not quite getting the opportunities that you so much want.
“But I think it is a humbling experience and one that is good to go through actually. I think as a person and as a player, I’ve grown.
“I think I come to the team now and I’m like: ‘what can I bring to the team that’s not just my footballing abilities?’
“And then I think for myself personally, it’s like: ‘well why did decide to play football and what’s keeping me going?’
“It’s always bringing me back to that little girl that started, and she was so happy enjoying kicking the ball around with my family and with my friends growing up.
“Being able to show up to training and getting that same feeling, and not having to let that feeling be hooked onto just getting game time. That’s been so big for me, because I’m still able to feel that love for the game even if I’m not getting as much game time on the weekends as I’d probably like to get.”
Fowler opened the scoring against Spurs in a rare start for City.Source: Getty Images
THE OLYMPICS DREAM
In 2020, Fowler made her Olympics debut – and played a key role as the Matildas secured a best-ever finish of fourth. That included scoring a long-range screamer in extra time against heavyweights Great Britain to hand the Matildas a place in the semi-finals for the first time ever.
Fowler says the Tokyo Games motivated her to become a better player – and she’s just as excited to pull on the green and gold in Paris.
“I mean those Olympics were amazing for me,” she says. “I’ll always look back and get goosebumps thinking about it, because it was such a childhood dream to go and compete in the Olympics.
“So I look back and it’s a very special feeling – and being able to get a goal. And although we didn’t place in the top three where we’d like to, we did have a very good run at the Olympics.
“That team feeling as well, it fuelled a lot of my motivation to want to be a better player and want to be in that national team consistently and get more game time. Because I just loved that feeling being there with the team and being at such a big tournament.
“But going into the next Olympics (I’m) still getting goosebumps thinking about it, like I’d have the opportunity to go out and potentially play again in another Olympics.
“I think, not just looking back at how we were at the Olympics but how we were at the World Cup as well, I think that’s fuelling a lot of the motivation within the team to want to do better at a major tournament and come away with something this time.”
The Matildas followed up their fourth-placed Olympics finish with fourth in the World Cup last year – both their best-ever performances, but equally a heartbreaking pair of near misses.
Even with captain Sam Kerr set to miss the tournament as she recovers from an ACL injury, Fowler is confident the team will take the next step and finally stand on the podium.
She says: “I do believe that we have what it takes to finish on the podium. I think we’ve shown that in the last couple tournaments. I think it’s just pushing on through that last little bit of a tournament now. And now that it’s happened to us twice where we finish fourth, I don’t think we’re going to let that happen again.”
Fowler with Olympic great Cathy Freeman after the Matildas qualified for the Paris Games.Source: News Corp Australia
THE CAMPAIGN FOR COMMUNITY SPORT
Having grown up in Cairns, kicking a ball with her friends and family on the beach, Fowler is understandably passionate about community sport.
Today, she was unveiled as the face of a new campaign from Uber and the Australian Sports Foundation called Reserve Grade Heroes.
Reserve grade community teams across the country can enter here, with Fowler and the hosts of the Hello Sport podcast picking the most deserving team to earn a $50,000 grant for their club.
Fowler told Foxsports.com.au: “I think community sport is so important for Australian sport. I think that’s where a lot of the next generation is coming from.
“For me personally growing up in Cairns – looking back, playing in my local team, playing with my sister and my friends, that’s what I got a lot of my enjoyment from and where a lot of my love for the game was able to blossom.
“I think without me having that experience, maybe I wouldn’t have enjoyed football as much and maybe I wouldn’t have kept going.
“Being able to look back at my own career, I think it is quite important. So I hope that with this campaign, we’re able to give that same opportunity to other people coming through.”
Mary Fowler (left) playing in the State School Soccer Championship in Cairns in 2013.Source: News Limited
The Australian Sports Foundation provides a major (tax-deductible) fundraising platform for sports clubs and athletes, as well as delivers grants and other forms of support.
ASF Chief Partnerships Officer Ryan Holloway told Foxsports.com.au that community clubs around Australia were struggling in the wake of Covid-19 and a cost of living crisis.
“The Covid pandemic saw a huge decline in participation … out of Covid we [also] saw a big drop-off in volunteerism for community and grassroots sports clubs.”
“Our role at the ASF is … to reduce those barriers to participation, keep the doors open, keep their communities together.
“As we know, particularly in regional and rural areas, sport is more than a club where they go to play a game. It’s a meeting place, a place where people come to connect – it really builds the community. It’s really important that those clubs survive.”
Holloway added: “They’re definitely losing numbers and that’s why this Uber Reserve Grade Heroes campaign is an important one – trying to keep people within the club. Trying to keep those reserve graders there and coming to the sport.”
Australian research shows that girls drop out of community sport from ages 13 and up at significantly higher rates than boys.
Holloway says the ASF is working hard to support community clubs to deliver more opportunities for girls in sport – and hopefully uncover the next Fowler.
“You can’t be what you can’t see,” Holloway says. “Stories like Mary’s are what sport are all about in Australia. Any young girl that is signed up to play this year, they’re looking towards the Mary Fowlers of the world as the blueprint for them to be able to get there.
“From a smaller community to reach the heights of what she has in football just shows what’s possible.
“That’s why it’s so important for funding like this, from the Uber Reserve Grade Heroes campaign, to get into community sport so we can keep these clubs alive and thriving and make sure we don’t miss out on our next Mary Fowler.”
