Matildas through to last 16 of World Cup
After drawing 1-1 with fifth-ranked Sweden in Edmonton, Australia escape the 'group of death' to progress to the last 16 of the Women's World Cup.
Australia 1 Sweden 1
Edmonton: Australia have escaped from the group of death at the Women's World Cup after sealing a hard-fought draw with Sweden to seal second spot and a date with Brazil.
Early strike: Lisa De Vanna celebrates her goal against Sweden. Photo: Todd Korol
It was a case of mission accomplished rather than a job well done in the Matildas' final game as they laboured to a result that propelled them into the second round.
They were at times nervous, inconsistent, but most importantly dogged as they held on against the former World Cup finalists. An early goal by co-captain Lisa De Vanna proved enough for the Matildas to escape from the hardest group at the tournament. As a match, it was not the revenge many desperately wanted after crashing out in the quarter-finals to Sweden in 2011, but the result will feel as such for a European heavyweight now facing an anxious wait to learn if their Cup dream is over.
For Australia, they will travel to the remote and small town of Moncton on the Atlantic coast of Canada where they will face the world's best ever female footballer, Marta, and her rampant Brazilian side.
"I'm very proud of the team," Matildas coach Alen Stajcic said. "It was a tough game, probably wasn't a pretty game to watch but we did enough in the end and the group has just performed so well. Certainly, it gives you so much belief and knowledge that you know you can compete against the best."
"I'm very proud of the team," Matildas coach Alen Stajcic said. "It was a tough game, probably wasn't a pretty game to watch but we did enough in the end and the group has just performed so well. Certainly, it gives you so much belief and knowledge that you know you can compete against the best."
The match started brightly for the Australians, who set course for the knock-out rounds in the fifth minute. Defender Laura Alleway will claim she let fly with a perfectly weighted through ball, Sweden will lament being caught out by a long ball but that debate will remain a moot point. What was certain was the end result. The eyes of the nation were on De Vanna but those watching would have thought otherwise as she calmly slotted a one-on-one.
That joy lasted only 10 minutes as the Matildas' dream threatened to unravel. Using her pace to avoid any meaningful pressure from Australian defenders, Sweden striker Sofia Jakobsson showed her class to get her team back into the contest. Strolling through poor defence from Kyah Simon and Steph Catley, Jakobsson unleashed a powerful left-foot drive that beat Matildas goalkeeper Lydia Williams to the corner of the net.
Just as quickly as that brought Sweden level did it destroy the confidence of the Australians. If it wasn't for a superb reaction by Williams, again tested by Jakobsson, the Swedes would have gone ahead close to half-time.
A superb Therese Sjogran curling free-kick appeared destined for the far corner and amid heavy traffic inside the box, but Williams never lost sight of the ball, clutching it dearly.
In attack, Australia relied on long-balls and there was a lack of imagination in the front line. Not even the harsh words from Alen Stajcic during the break could bring the Matildas out of thier rut and the match didn't even hit the hour mark before the small crowd ambitiously tried to to start a Mexican wave in a stadium with three stands.
Their passes were wayward, combinations disjointed but if there was something to take solace from it was that Sweden weren't any better.
They suffered another blow shortly after with De Vanna brought off in light of an ankle injury she has played through the last two games. Larissa Crummer came on in her place. Playing more as an out-and-out winger, she came close to scoring in an unlikely manner when a looping cross almost caught Sweden goalkeeper Hedvig Lindahl out of position.
With that, Australia went into survival mode. They sat deeper, they fought harder for the ball and they frustrated Sweden into submission. On a slick synthetic pitch that promoted the speed of the ball, Sweden's technical ability vanished and the Matildas soared.
With the final whistle, there was only rejoice as the Matildas.
LINEUP, BOOKINGS (0) & SUBSTITUTIONS (5)
Australia Women
- 01 Williams
- 09 Foord
- 05 Alleway
- 14 Kennedy
- 07 Catley
- 19 Gorry (Butt - 85' )
- 08 Kellond-Knight
- 10 van Egmond
- 11 De Vanna (Crummer - 63' )
- 17 Simon (Heyman - 72' )
- 20 Kerr
Substitutes
- 02 Crummer
- 03 Sykes
- 04 Polkinghorne
- 06 Uzunlar
- 12 Khamis
- 13 Butt
- 15 Polias
- 16 Raso
- 18 Barbieri
- 21 Arnold
- 22 Bolger
- 23 Heyman
Sweden Women
- 01 Lindahl
- 23 Rubensson (Thunebro - 76' )
- 14 Ilestedt
- 05 Fischer
- 18 Samuelsson
- 10 Jakobsson
- 07 Dahlkvist
- 17 Seger
- 16 Nilsson (Asllani - 74' )
- 15 Sjogran
- 08 Schelin
Substitutes
- 02 Rohlin
- 03 Sembrant
- 04 Berglund
- 06 Thunebro
- 09 Asllani
- 11 Hjohlman
- 12 Carlen
- 13 Diaz Pettersson
- 19 Lund
- 20 Appelqvist
- 21 Soberg
- 22 Schough
Ref: Lucila Venegas
Att: 10,177
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