Impetus’ Ben Gilby heard from Tameka Yallop in Australia’s Queensland training camp ahead of the first of their two friendlies against Canada (1/9/22).
Above: Tameka Yallop speaking from the Matildas training camp earlier today. Image: Football Australia.
The Matildas were back at Queensland Sport and Athletics Centre this morning for a second full team session ahead of their clash with Canada this Saturday afternoon.
For midfielder Tameka Yallop, and many of the Queensland-raised team members, the venue brought back some familiar memories.
“I was reminiscing when we drove around the ring road and all the memories came flooding back,” Yallop said. “It’s great to be back here and back in Australia.”
“Today was a good session. It’s great to have the girls all in together and it was a good vibe. We’ve been focusing on defence and attack.”
Yallop touched on the fact that she’s played in so many different positions for the national team, and hinted that she’s been experiencing something a bit different again today.
“Yeah, mostly I’ve been used in an attacking sense, but today I was more in the backline, but I relish it, I like learning new things. I don’t know what makes me so versatile, but it has helped me in my game. Learning the new positions helps me to connect with other players on the pitch – where everyone else would be.
“Obviously, we take it game by game so the first one [against Canada] is most important. It feels like time’s going fast now and to have matches like this, to really narrow down the details and focus on the finer things is really important.”
“We’ve got great focus here within the group so these games will be really good for us heading into the World Cup.”
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