It’s been a big three weeks for Australian football.
Sam Kerr’s injury on the eve of the Women’s World Cup was a shock to the system and any hopes of a smooth group stage were immediately dashed.
The arrival of the tournament itself on Australian shores with met with an exhale and a “finally”. Steph Catley’s penalty against Ireland allowed the nerves and excitement and anticipation to be released.
Then came the reminder that World Cups might be fun but they’re still football; potential heartbreak is always around the corner.
No Kerr and no Mary Fowler against Nigeria had everyone feeling antsy, and the 3-2 defeat after the Super Falcons took control of the match in a clinical second half burst had the whole of Australia on edge.
The vibes were bad, and the pitchforks were sharpened in preparation for the sacking and roasting of Tony Gustavsson if the Matildas couldn’t bounce back from this loss and progress out of the group.
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The remaining hurdle came in the form of Canada. Olympic gold medallists Canada. Australians entered the match full of hope and a heaping dose of fear and left with an exhilaration that was scarcely believable. Not only did the team defeat Canada and live to fight another day, but they did so comprehensively and finished top of the group.
Next came Denmark and the folly of “should”. But the Matildas played like a team that believed in themselves and put in a mature, professional performance. The nation’s quiet confidence had been validated after an uneasy few days.
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Gustavsson proud of Matildas’ maturity against Denmark
Matildas coach Tony Gustavsson praises his team’s response to adversity through the tournament, and how they handled a challenging Denmark side.
For all of these games, sold-out crowds in their tens of thousands and, quite literally, millions more watching from home rode every goal scored and every goal conceded.
It’s hard not to feel like Aussies have been nursing both real and emotional hangovers for 22 days straight now. The nation has run the full gamut of emotions.
But it’s unsurprising. World Cups heighten things to unprecedented levels, and the Matildas, consistently ranked among Australia’s most-loved national teams, elicit strong feelings because the fans care.
As a quarterfinal date with France looms, it’s not unreasonable to wonder how the Matildas themselves are processing all of this as the most active participants in this emotional rollercoaster. Surely, they must feel the agony and ecstasy even more strongly than fans do.
“I don’t necessarily think we come down as much as you think,” Matildas midfielder Tameka Yallop explained when asked about recalibrating after matches.
“I think we always go in wanting that win… we tick the box and we move on to the next game. I don’t think we really go into any extreme lows or any extreme highs. I think we have to maintain focus all the way through, no matter the result, or the performance, because we need to be able to move on to the next one.
“I think we’ve been very well grounded in how we approach each game.
“I think that’s definitely the mental side and… emotional side as well because you do need to keep control of your emotions whether it’s within a game or after a game, and before a game as well. I think if you get too overwhelmed before a game it can affect your performance, too. So I think it is more the emotional and mental side which we’ve definitely been well supported in.”
The team isn’t on the same emotional rollercoaster that fans are riding, and they are better for it. This isn’t to suggest the team isn’t feeling things; they’re not robots. Their joy and anger , and relief and sadness, are palpable and real. But this team has an emotional maturity that has allowed them to handle the World Cup as a whole. And that maturity has been forged because of the experiences of the past few years.
It’s a readiness that Catley has not only exemplified as she effortlessly handled the captain’s armband; she also explained it before the tournament started.
“I think if this was our team four years ago, going into the situation, I would maybe feel a bit nervous about us being able to handle it,” she said at the squad announcement.
“Going out there and being able to perform under pressure in front of 80,000 people, first game, I might have been a little bit worried; but the team that we have now, with the experience that we have now, we’ve got players playing in the best leagues in the world in the most high-pressure games at club level. We’ve played high-pressure games at multiple World Cups, at Olympics. This team’s ready, this team’s experienced.
“There’s nothing in me that doubts that we’re capable of achieving great things, and obviously there’s pressure, but I think we also thrive off that. And I think the fact that it’s a home crowd, everyone’s going to be there to support us, I think we’re just going to come alive and thrive off that.
“So I’m not sort of worried about the fact that it is a big occasion and it’s a lot of pressure because I think we’re exactly where we need to be and this team is ready to handle that.”
Next up for the Matildas is the quarterfinal against France, and the possibility of a maiden World Cup semifinal should they win.
Australian fans will dust off their highest hopes once again and board the emotional rollercoaster, hoping there are a few rides left.
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