Australia 4-0 Sweden (12/11/22)
Report by Ben Gilby with EXCLUSIVE photos from Kieran Chea at AAMI Park
Above: Celebrations for Australia after Sam Kerr put them ahead. Photo: Kieran Chea for Impetus.
Two goals from Caitlin Foord steered Australia to only their second-ever win over Sweden yesterday.
The Arsenal attacker’s brace was added to by strikes from Sam Kerr and Mary Fowler as The Matildas beat the world number two-ranked nation, who had only lost once in 20 matches going into the encounter.
Whilst the Swedes will point to their missing attackers Kosovare Asllani, Lina Hurtig, and Fridolina Rolfö, the Matildas were also without key players Ellie Carpenter, Kyah Simon, and Alanna Kennedy. Regardless, this was a hugely impressive outcome for Tony Gustavsson’s team.
Australia had the first opportunity as Kyra Cooney-Cross got through and won a corner. Kerr headed wide from the set piece.
Overall, Sweden were the strongest side in the opening 45. Johanna Rytting Kaneryd hit the angle of post and bar, and Clare Polkinghorne was forced to clear the ball off the line.
The visitors were able to nullify the threat of Cooney-Cross and Cortnee Vine for most of the opening half, but that would change in some style after the break. Australia were finding it challenging to produce the final ball as they closed in on the Swedish goal and with Madelen Janogy hugely influential across the front line and in her ability to drop both deep and wide, it was the Scandinavians who had the upper hand.
However, the one thing that Sweden couldn’t do is get on the scoresheet. They were made to pay eight minutes before the break when a typically marauding run from Hayley Raso ended with the Manchester City winger finding Kerr in the box to poke home.
Australia were red-hot from the kick-off of the second half and didn’t let up. Putting Gustavsson’s mantra of fast-paced pressing attacking football into action, Raso’s backheel released Cooney-Cross who in turn found Foord. The Arsenal star is in career-best form and cut inside to steer a sensational shot into the corner of the net.
Confidence coursed through the Matildas and Cooney-Cross, loudly supported by the Melbourne Victory fans that idolised her in this very stadium during her A-League Women spell was all over it. Those on-point switches of play were back and a joy to see as the 20-year-old gun mixed it and prospered against the world’s second-ranked side.
It could have been three when, from a corner, Kerr flicked a header across to Raso who couldn’t quite direct her shot on target, with the ball dribbling agonisingly wide by centimetres.
Her Manchester City teammate Mary Fowler came on just after the hour mark and within 10 minutes put the Matildas’ fans in dreamland when her angled shot deflected into the net.
Foord made it 4-0 with 12 minutes remaining with substitute Emily van Egmond claiming an assist.
This was Australia’s first win over Sweden since 1997. It also extended their present winning run to three matches, with 11 goals scored in those matches. With Thailand to follow in Gosford on Tuesday, all is set for a celebratory evening on the Central Coast as the Matildas end their campaign for 2022 before moving into a home World Cup year.
Teams: AUSTRALIA: Micah, Nevin, Polkinghorne, Vine (Fowler 64′), Catley, Foord (Crummer 82′), Raso, Gorry, Kerr, Grant (Luik 83′), Cooney-Cross (van Egmond 75′).
Scorers: Kerr 37′, Foord 51′, 78′. Fowler 73′.
SWEDEN: Mušović, Kullberg, Sembrant, Björn, Andersson, Bennison, Janogy, Rubensson, Rytting Kaneryd, Jakobsson.
Attendance: 22,065.
More of Kieran Chea’s exclusive photos from AAMI Park:
impetusfootball.org 