Australia got off to a winning World Cup start, but were still left with an enormous worry in terms of their prospects as contenders.
The Matildas defeated the Republic of Ireland 1-0 before over 75,000 fans at Stadium Australia in Sydney on Thursday, and had to do so without superstar striker Sam Kerr. The Chelsea forward was held out of the match due to a calf strain apparently suffered in their final training session before the match.
Minutes before announcing their starting lineup to the public, Football Australia took to social media to announce the bad news.
“Sam Kerr is unavailable tonight after she picked up a calf injury at training on [matchday-minus-one],” said Australia’s announcement. “Sam will be unavailable for the next two matches with the Matildas Medical Team to re-assess her following our second group stage match.”
SQUAD NOTE: Sam Kerr is unavailable tonight after she picked up a calf injury at training on MD-1. Sam will be unavailable for the next two matches with the Matildas Medical Team to re-assess her following our second group stage match.
— CommBank Matildas (@TheMatildas) July 20, 2023
With Kerr out, Australia had a void to fill in terms of both their captaincy and their penalty taker. Arsenal left back Steph Catley stepped up in both cases, captaining the Matildas and converting a second-half spot kick in a closer-than-anticipated victory.
“Losing a player like Sam, probably the best player in the world – and just for her as a person – we were completely heartbroken,” said Catley in a post-match press conference. “We used her spirit and used the fact that she wasn’t able to be out there with us to help us push on and to all add a bit to what we already bring.
“That’s what it’s going to take for as long as she misses… she’s massive for us and she’s so important. She’s our spiritual leader and whatever role she plays in the next however long, will be massive.”
That “however long” is a key issue. While Australia said that Kerr will also miss the team’s next match against Nigeria, the only information they could offer was that they would evaluate her status after that match’s finish.
“We have to be honest with you, we said she will be out for two games. After that we will reassess it,” said Matildas manager Tony Gustavsson. “Right now we don’t know what grade [the strain] is.”
It is hard to overstate Kerr’s importance to Australia. She is the undisputed face of the team, a leader as Catley said, and also its best player. Her 63 international goals in 121 appearances represent an outstanding scoring record, and in truth the Matildas don’t have a similar but lesser player they can plug into their lineup.
Without Kerr, Gustavsson brought Cortnee Vine into the team on the left wing, pushing Caitlin Foord up to lead the line. Australia struggled to turn possession into looks in the final third against a rugged Ireland side, and will have to expect more of the same in terms of opposition tactics from Nigeria and (should Kerr remain out) Canada in their Group B finale.
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