Aug 12, 2023 at 12:01 PM Update: 13 minutes ago
Australia reached the semi-finals of the World Cup in their own country and New Zealand in a memorable game on Saturday. The formation of national coach Tony Gustafsson settled with France after penalties (7-6) after no goals were scored in regular playing time.
The achievement marks a first for Australia: never before have the ‘Matilda’s‘ it to the last four in a global final round.
The penalty shootout in Brisbane will not soon be forgotten, also because the French national coach Hervé Renard replaced goalkeeper Pauline for Solène Durand just before the start of the series, who only completed her third international match. This tactic, which Louis van Gaal applied in 2014 during the World Cup match between the Orange and Costa Rica with Tim Krul in an absolute leading role, was unsuccessful.
No less than twenty penalties were taken in a blood-curdling series: France failed four times, Australia three times. After keeper Mackenzie Arnold and Clare Hunt had failed to redeem a ‘match point’, Cortnee Vine did strike on behalf of the host country.
Australia will meet the winner of the meeting between England and Colombia in the semi-final on Wednesday, who will face each other later on Saturday. The other semi-final battle is between Spain, the conqueror of the Netherlands, and Sweden.
Best odds are for Australia
Not only in the penalty shootout, but also in regular time, there was almost no difference in strength between Australia and France.
‘The Blues‘ cherished a predominance in the early stages, but it was not the case that the Australian keeper Arnold had to make a huge number of saves. The biggest opportunity in the first half was precisely for the co-organizer. Mary Fowler seemed to score, but defender Elisa de Almeida made the save on the line.
The pace was extremely high before the break and the game also fluctuated in the second half. Sam Kerr’s substitution made a big impression on the Brisbane public. The star player suffered a calf injury just before the tournament and only made her comeback in the eighth final against Denmark.
Partly thanks to actions by Kerr, Australia created the most danger in the second half, where France handed out pinpricks through Kadidiatou Diani. In the first company of extra time, national coach Renard’s team seemed to take the lead through an own goal by Alanna Kennedy, but the arbitration ruled that the Australian was pushed by Wendie Renard.
Despite chances on both sides, a penalty shootout had to force the decision. To the great enthusiasm of the fans in Brisbane, Australia narrowly made the difference.
The striking goalkeeper change in France just before the start of the penalty series: Durand relieves Peyraud-Magnin. Photo: Getty Images
2023-08-12 10:01:04
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