Kerr-less Aussies beat Ireland with a penalty before a record crowd in Sydney

20th July 2023

July 20 – Rocked by the forced withdrawal of skipper Sam Kerr, the poster girl of the tournament, co-hosts Australia got off to a winning start in the women’s World Cup with a 1-0 victory over the Republic of Ireland.

Steph Catley swept home a 52nd-minute penalty to end Ireland’s resistance and spark huge celebrations among the 75,784 fans inside Stadium Australia in Sydney, a record for a Australian women’s team game.

Kerr, who will also miss the second game of Group B against Nigeria, suffered a calf injury in training on Wednesday but at the final whistle was on the field, arm-in-arm with her Matildas teammates after they were pushed to the limit by the unheralded Irish playing in their first World Cup

The crowd only learned of Kerr’s injury about an hour before kick-off and it is not even certain she will be back to face Canada in the team’s final group game in Melbourne on July 31.

Mary Fowler, who has Irish heritage, replaced Kerr in Australia’s attack but her absence clearly took its toll, with the co-hosts – one of the tournament’s favoured sides – bereft of a cutting edge.

“It’s incredible to get the win, I think this is the longest buildup to a game in my entire life,” Catley told reporters. “Losing a player like Sam, probably the best player in the world and her as a person, obviously we were heartbroken. We had to use her spirit … to help us push on. She’s so, so important, she’s our spiritual leader.”

The Sydney result meant both co-hosts started the tournament with wins, after New Zealand upset Norway earlier by the same score in Auckland.

WWC2023: Rainbow armbands banned, England pick other ‘moral’ causes

21st July 2023

July 21 – England captain Millie Bright has been passed fit for her country’s opening  game of the women’s World Cup and will wear armbands to raise awareness for a range of social causes.

When England meet Haiti on Saturday, Bright, who had been an injury doubt, will wear the ‘Unite for Inclusion’ armband.

She will switch to ‘Unite for Indigenous People’ for the second match against Denmark. In the final group game against China, she will wear the one stating ‘Unite for Gender Equality’.

“As a group, we felt really strongly about all the causes, and we couldn’t separate one from the other,” Bright said, adding that the team will support new causes if they advance to the knockout round.

Like at the men’s World Cup in Qatar, teams are banned from wearing the ‘OneLove’ rainbow armband in support of LGBTQ+ rights.

Instead, players are able to choose from eight alternative armbands and the Lionesses intend to wear a new one for each game.

“We’ve only just come to a decision recently, as we wanted to take time to process it all and to make sure we spoke collectively,” said Bright.

“As a team, we know what we stand for, what we believe in and we also know the changes that we want to make. So regardless of an armband, we would like to think our actions and our morals represent everything that we believe in and stand for.”

England’s Earps gets shirty over Nike’s lack of goalkeeper jerseys

21st July 2023

July 21 – England goalkeeper Mary Earps says she is hurt and disappointed that fans cannot buy a replica of her shirt for the second tournament running.

Fans were unable to buy Earps’ kit during last summer’s Euros but she says she was told the issue would be resolved ahead of the World Cup.

The 30-year-old was named the world’s top goalkeeper at last year’s FIFA Best awards.

England’s kit for the World Cup is manufactured by Nike but the company has no current sponsorship of female goalkeepers.

Replicas of Earps’ kit with Manchester United, who she plays for in the Women’s Super League, sold out last season.

“All my team-mates have ordered a lot of shirts for their friends and family,” said Earps. “On a personal level, it is hugely hurtful. There has been an incredible rise in goalkeeping participation. It’s a very scary message that’s being sent to goalkeepers worldwide that “you’re not important”.

“I can’t really sugar-coat this in any way, so I am not going to try. It is hugely disappointing and very hurtful.”

Contact the writer of this story at moc.llabtoofdlrowedisni@wahsraw.werdna