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News.com.au
6 hours ago
- Sport
- News.com.au
A 3-0 win over Slovenia in Perth was the best start possible for new Matildas coach Joe Montemurro
New Matildas coach Joe Montemurro said Thursday night's 3-0 win over Slovenia in Perth was the 'perfect game'. Montemurro took charge of the Matildas for the first time since being announced as coach on June 2. He had only three training sessions with the squad before Thursday night's friendly. Montemurro said Slovenia had provided them the type of game they needed. 'We have to put ourselves in positions, especially against the team that played player on player, to be comfortable receiving the ball under pressure,' he said. 'And we made, I think, three or four big errors in that. 'But I'm not concerned, because it's the process going forward. 'For me, it was the perfect game. It was the perfect game; a team that's pressured all over the pitch, and we have to be comfortable under that pressure. 'We have to learn to be that. 'So, for me it was an important exercise tonight.' The Matildas had the first goal scored after just three minutes. None of the Slovenian players had registered a pass at that time. Australia then had to wait 83 minutes for the next goal though, which was quickly followed by a third. Substitute Hayley Raso was among the action for the last two goals, passing one to Holly McNamara for her first international goal. She kicked the last one herself. In between, Slovenia squandered the most opportunities. It had 20 shots on goal, to the Matilda's 18. Australia goalkeeper Teagan Micah was awarded player of the match for her six saves, although a couple of them were made easy by the opposition kicking it straight into her arms. 'It was an entertaining game,' Montemurro said. 'It could have been what, 6-5, or 7-6, or something? 'But look, for me, it was a very, very important test, because a team that will play player on player, in that manner, you know, we have to learn. 'We have to learn to be better under these circumstances, because a lot of teams will do this.' Slovenia is likely to do it again on Sunday when the two sides meet in the second and final friendly, again at Perth's HBF Park.
Daily Mail
7 hours ago
- Sport
- Daily Mail
Matildas start a new era with 3-0 win - but the best moment happened off the field with Sam Kerr
Holly McNamara has scored her first international goal but new Matildas coach Joe Montemurro was left with plenty to ponder after his side scratched out an unconvincing 3-0 win over Slovenia in Perth. But arguably the best moments of the win on Thursday night came after fulltime, when Sam Kerr thrilled fans by getting up close and personal with them. One young spectator broke down in tears of joy as she shared a moment with the injured striker, who made a surprise trip to her home town to train with the Tillies as she continues to fight her way back from a knee injury. Emily Gielnik's third-minute strike at HBF Park got the 15th-ranked Matildas off to a flyer, but it wasn't until McNamara scored in the 86th minute that the win was safe. Hayley Raso added the icing on the cake in the 87th minute when she waltzed through the midfield untouched before unleashing a strike from outside the box. Although the 3-0 scoreline looked good on paper, the performance was far from slick in front of a crowd of just 8678. The under-strength Matildas were error-prone throughout the night, especially in defence where they attempted to play their way out of trouble at every chance. Montemurro's possession-based game plan was always going to have teething problems, but the sheer amount of errors will be a huge concern. Things started brightly when Gielnik stayed persistent in a goalmouth scrap to score the opener. But the Matildas' determination to retain possession at all costs led to numerous sloppy turnovers, many of which should have been punished. Time and again, the Matildas opted to go backwards instead of finding the gaps further ahead - leading to problems whenever Slovenia were able to pick off the pass. One such turnover let Spela Kolbl off the leash in the 15th minute, with her floating cross glancing off the crossbar. The Matildas' best opportunities in the first half generally came when defender Ellie Carpenter found some space to charge forward, with her pace and physicality proving hard to stop. The Matildas' worst defensive error of the night arrived in the 52nd minute when Clare Hunt was unaware an opponent was bearing down on her as she attempted a short pass. She got stripped of the ball but was left breathing a huge sigh of relief when Slovenia striker Zara Kramzar fired straight at Matildas keeper Teagan Micah from close range. It was Alanna Kennedy's turn to commit a horror mistake 10 minutes later when her clumsy attempt to control the bouncing ball while running back to defend resulted in a costly deflection. Slovenian substitute Nina Kajzba pounced on the mistake, with her strike forcing Micah to make a fine diving save. McNamara, who has endured three knee reconstructions during her career, was a threat throughout the match. The 22-year-old, playing her 10th international, finally received her reward when she put away a header at the far post following a sublime cross from Raso. 'She's a player that's very, very smart in arriving in space,' Montemurro said of McNamara. 'And what I mean by that she makes her runs very, very late, which is very hard to mark. 'That's a feeling - you can't coach that.' A minute after McNamara's goal, Raso went on a run and curled in a precision strike from the edge of the box. The Matildas went into the international window missing a host of their best players, including injured superstars Sam Kerr (knee) and Mary Fowler (knee). Steph Catley, Caitlin Foord, Katrina Gorry and Cortnee Vine are all on personal leave, while Clare Wheeler left the camp earlier this week due to personal reasons.
Yahoo
13 hours ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Australia beat Slovenia to ensure winning start for Montemurro
An understrength Australia beat Slovenia 3-0 in a friendly in Perth on Thursday to ensure Joe Montemurro's reign as coach got off to a winning start. Montemurro has vowed to implement an attacking, possession-based style with the Matildas, who have started preparations for next year's Asian Cup on home soil. Advertisement It didn't take long for the hosts to take heed of Montemurro's blueprint when forward Emily Gielnik poked in after three minutes. The crowd of 8,678 were left slightly disappointed until Holly McNamara and substitute Hayley Raso scored in the dying minutes to put gloss on the scoreline. "We have to learn to be comfortable under pressure," Montemurro said of the 15th-ranked Matildas. "It was an important exercise tonight, it's about the process going forward." The 55-year-old Australian was appointed coach this month, ending a long search after Tony Gustavsson departed following the Matildas' lacklustre performance at the Paris Olympics. Advertisement Montemurro enjoyed successful coaching stints at Arsenal, Juventus and Lyon, who he recently steered to their fourth consecutive league title. Australia were without English Women's Super League stars Sam Kerr, Mary Fowler and Clare Wheeler. The talismanic Kerr, Australia's leading scorer in international football, has not played since January last year when she ruptured an anterior cruciate ligament with Chelsea. Kerr won't make her long-awaited return in this block of friendlies, but has rejoined the squad and watched the game on the sidelines. After a fast start the Matildas were in danger of letting Slovenia back into the game. Advertisement Forward Spela Kolbl almost equalised in the 14th minute only for her chip to smack off the crossbar. Slovenia kept pressing after the interval, but rued errant finishing with Zara Kramzar's shot from point-blank range straight at goalkeeper Teagan Micah. The 38th-ranked Slovenia's chances of an upset were dealt a blow when midfielder Sara Makovec hobbled off early in the second half with a knee injury. "Something popped in her knee, hopefully she's going to be alright," coach Sasa Kolman said of Makovec, who plays in Austria. The teams meet again at the same venue on Sunday before Australia face Panama in a pair of home friendlies next week. tl/pst
The Guardian
27-02-2025
- Sport
- The Guardian
Matildas end horror SheBelieves Cup winless after defeat to Colombia
With a year to go before the Asian Cup kicks off on home soil, the Matildas' recent travails appear no closer to abating after a third successive defeat. This latest outing ended with a 2-1 loss to a spiky Colombia side, leaving Australia pointless at the SheBelieves Cup and still unsure what the immediate future might hold. After the Matildas conceded early once again as Wendy Bonilla fired home for Colombia, Hayley Raso's typically tenacious equaliser midway through the second half ultimately came to nought as the South American side, with a degree of fortune, settled the game thanks to Catalina Usme's heavily-deflected strike on 73 minutes. As this dead rubber played out in San Diego, Football Australia simultaneously held events back home in Sydney, the Gold Coast and Perth to mark the milestone of one year to go before the Women's Asian Cup begins. The timing of FA's announcement was odd, but it did serve to bring into sharp focus the scale of the challenge facing the Matildas over the next 12 months. It has been a taxing week for the Matildas in their first appearance at the prestigious tournament in the US. Three defeats, including one abject performance against Japan, have caused concern, while uncertainty over the identity of who will be in the coaching hot seat come next year's showpiece on home soil remains, unhelpfully so. And as of Wednesday, thanks to a comedian with a concerningly poor line in the stock of his trade, they find themselves in the middle of a broader national conversation about women's sport. There is no flying under the radar for this team. The spotlight could intensify further as the clock ticks towards the big kick off of the Asian Cup – especially if results don't improve between now and 1 March 2026. After this latest loss, interim coach Tom Sermanni's record now reads five losses, three wins and a draw. With another notch in the L column, it's hardly the form of a trophy-winning team. Sermanni was not helped in this latest outing by his team having to play catch-up once again after conceding inside the opening quarter-hour for a third successive match. Tegan Micah, preferred to Mackenzie Arnold in the starting XI, had already justified her selection with a brilliant save to deny dangerwoman Mayra Ramirez, but there was little she could do to stop Bonilla's precise effort across the face of goal as it cannoned in off the upright. Ramirez and strike partner Linda Caicedo showed in fits and starts why they are such a feared duo but with problems arising behind them, and Colombia's defence prone to error especially when attempting to play out of the back, Australia weren't devoid of opportunities of their own. But Michelle Heyman, another given a chance to impress with a starting berth, fluffed her lines in front of goal, and Kyra Cooney-Cross not once but twice spurned a shooting chance. Sign up to Moving the Goalposts No topic is too small or too big for us to cover as we deliver a twice-weekly roundup of the wonderful world of women's football after newsletter promotion Ellie Carpenter was forced off injured just before the break – another immediate concern for Sermanni and potentially his successor too – while the introduction of first Caitlin Foord and then Mary Fowler midway through the second half signalled the Matildas' intentions as they chased the game with their first-choice front four for the final 25 minutes. The changes paid off with the impressive Fowler involved in the build up to Raso's goal on 69 minutes; the Manchester City star played a neat ball to Charli Grant to deliver a ball into the box. Raso's persistence in the penalty box was rewarded as her shot, via a slight deflection, flew past Colombian keeper Natalia Giraldo. But parity lasted just four minutes after Usme let fly from distance and the ball took a wicked deflection off Clare Hunt, looping over Micah and into the back of the net, to leave the Matildas frustrated and wondering what might have been.
