Written by Thomas Esamie.
| Announced in December 2018 Australia hosted a 4 nations tournament on home soil in preparation for the World Cup later in 2019. This match against New Zealand is almost 40 years since the first Matildas match, which was against this same opponent, in October 1979. Between the announcement of the tournament and its taking place coach Alen Stajcic was controversially dismissed for reasons that were not disclosed. Ante Milicic was installed as his replacement on February 18 barely 3 months before the start of the World Cup in a sequence of events that Australian Football fans are becoming all too familiar with. Note this match was moved from the original venue of Jubilee Oval in Kogarah due to concerns about the playing surface. This was a Friendly match. | ||||
| Played : February 28 | Venue : Leichhardt Oval, Kogarah | |||
| Australia Lydia Williams, Ellie Carpenter, Stephanie Catley, Clare Polkinghorne, Alanna Kennedy (Laura Alleway 63), Elise Kellond-Knight (Amy Harrison 63), Emily van Egmond (Teresa Polias 63), Tameka Butt (Alexandra Chidiac 78), Samantha Kerr (Lisa De Vanna 63), Emily Gielnik (Hayley Raso 72), Caitlin Foord Goals : Gielnik 44, Raso 75 |
2 | - | 0 | New Zealand Erin Nayler, Ria Percival, Ali Riley, Abby Erceg, Rebekah Stott, Meikayla Moore, Betsy Hassett, Annalie Longo (Emma Kete 82), Katie Bowen, Rosie White (Catherine Bott 74), Sarah Gregorius (Paige Satchell 66) |
| Referee : Fusako Kajiyama (Japan) Attendance : 6805 Coaches : Ante Milicic (Australia), Tom Sermanni (New Zealand) | ||||
| Australian squad | ||||
| Next up South Korea who had soundly beaten Argentina in the first round so the winner here was likely in the box seat to be the overall winner as well. This was a Friendly match. | ||||
| Played : March 3 | Venue : Lang Park, Brisbane | |||
| Australia Mackenzie Arnold, Ellie Carpenter, Gema Simon, Clare Polkinghorne, Laura Alleway, Aivi Luik (Elise Kellond-Knight 64), Emily van Egmond (Amy Harrison 75), Tameka Butt (Alexandra Chidiac 75), Samantha Kerr (Caitlin Foord 64), Hayley Raso (Emily Gielnik 79), Lisa De Vanna (Princess Ibini-Isei 64) Goals : Kerr 6pk, 45, De Vanna 37, Gielnik 81 |
4 | - | 1 | South Korea Kim Jung-Mi, Park Sera, Jang Sel-Gi, Lim Seon-Joo (Jang Chang 73), Jeong Yeon-Ga (Shin Dam-Yeong 52), Cho So-Hyun, Ji So-Yun, Lee Mi-na (Lee So-Dam 46), Son Hwa-yeon (Han Chae-Rin 70), Lee Geum-Min, Moon Mi-Ra (Jeon Ga-Eul 46) Goal : Ji Soo Yun 12 |
| Referee : Attendance : 10520 Coaches : Ante Milicic (Australia), Yoon Deok Yeo (South Korea) | ||||
| Australian squad | ||||
| Australia rounded out the tournament with 3 wins against Argentina to claim the overall title ahead of their next outing against the USA. This was a Friendly match. | ||||
| Played : March 6 | Venue : Melbourne Rectangular Stadium | |||
| Australia Lydia Williams, Teigen Allen, Stephanie Catley, Laura Alleway (Gema Simon 23), Alanna Kennedy (Claire Polkinghorne 81), Elise Kellond-Knight, Amy Harrison (Aivi Luik 46), Alexandra Chidiac (Tameka Butt 69), Samantha Kerr (Lisa De Vanna 61), Emily Gielnik (Hayley Raso 61), Caitlin Foord Goals : Kerr 4, Kennedy 33, Foord 90pk |
3 | - | 0 | Argentina Vanina Correa (Gabriela Garton 45), Adriana Sachs, Eliana Stabile, Agustina Barroso, Aldana Cometti, Lorena Benitez (Linda Bravo 90), Mariana Larroquette, Vanesa Santana (Miriam Mayorga 83), Estefania Banini, Flor Bosegundo (Yamila Rodriguez 69), Soledad Jaimes (Maria Potassa 82) |
| Referee : Fusako Kajiyama (Japan) Attendance : 6834 Coaches : Ante Milicic (Australia), Jose Carlos Borrello (Argentina) | ||||
| Australian squad | ||||
| Announced in early December 2018 this match would allow Australia to face the sternest of tests ahead of the World Cup This was a Friendly match. | ||||
| Played : April 4 | Venue : Dick’s Sporting Goods Park, Commerce City, Colorado | |||
| United States of America Alyssa Naeher, Emily Sonnett (Tierna Davidson 79), Crystal Dunn, Abby Dahlkemper (Carli Lloyd 85), Becky Sauerbrunn, Julie Ertz, Rose Lavelle (Samantha Mewis 46), Lindsey Horan (Christen Press 64), Alex Morgan (Allie Long 81), Tobin Heath, Megan Rapinoe (Mallory Pugh 66) Goals : Morgan 14, Heath 53, Rapinoe 61, Pugh 67, 90 |
5 | - | 3 | Australia Lydia Williams, Gema Simon, Clare Polkinghorne, Elise Kellond-Knight (Hayley Raso 68), Caitlin Foord (Mary Fowler 75), Emily van Egmond, Lisa De Vanna (Emily Gielnik 57), Tameka Butt (Katrina Gorry 90), Alanna Kennedy, Sam Kerr, Ellie Carpenter Goals : De Vanna 29, Foord 47, Kerr 81 |
| Referee : Karen Abt (USA) Attendance : 17264 Coaches : Ante Milicic (Australia), Jill Ellis (USA) | ||||
| Australian squad | ||||
| Announced in early April this match was to be the final hit out for the Matildas after their training camp in Turkey ahead of the World Cup. A good first half showing slowly petered out and despite some chances and a goal ruled out (correctly) for offside Australia couldn't get on the board. The Dutch were keen to impress at home and their speed eventually wore away the defence and just as Australia might have had a few goals the Dutch could have had a few more. This was a Friendly match. | ||||
| Played : June 1 | Venue : Philips Stadium, Eindhoven, Netherlands | |||
| Netherlands Sari van Veenendaal, Desiree van Lunteren, Kika van Es (Merel van Dongen 12), Stefanie van der Gragt (Danique Kerkdijk 84), Dominique Bloodworth, Sherida Spitse (Renate Jansen 85), Shanice van de Sanden (Lineth Beerensteyn 75), Jackie Groenen, Danielle van de Donk, Lieke Martens (Jill Roord 78), Vivianne Miedema Goals : van de Sanden 45, 71, Miedema 49 |
3 | - | 0 | Australia Lydia Williams, Ellie Carpenter, Stephanie Catley, Clare Polkinghorne, Alanna Kennedy, Emily van Egmond, Hayley Raso (Emily Gielnik 77), Tameka Yallop, Caitlin Foord (Katrina Gorry 77), Chloe Logarzo (Lisa De Vanna 63), Samantha Kerr |
| Referee : Cheryl Foster (Wales) Attendance : 30640 Coaches : Ante Milicic (Australia), Sarina Wiegman (Netherlands) | ||||
| Australian squad | ||||
| In a less than convincing start Australia avoided going down a goal early due to a tight offside ruling against the Italians and while displaying some of their deserved ranking the Italian team did their homework and disrupted the Matildas rhythm and ultimately broke their resistance deep into injury time. Both Italian goals came from Australian errors. Australia's goal came from Kerr successfully following up on her saved penalty. It was tight. This was a World Cup Finals match. | ||||
| Played : June 9 | Venue : Stade du Hainaut, Valenciennes, France | |||
| Australia Lydia Williams, Ellie Carpenter, Stephanie Catley, Clare Polkinghorne, Alanna Kennedy, Emily van Egmond, Hayley Raso (Katrina Gorry 69), Caitlin Foord, Tameka Yallop (Elise Kellond-Knight 83), Chloe Logarzo (Lisa De Vanna 61), Samantha Kerr Goal : Kerr 22 |
1 | - | 2 | Italy Laura Giuliani, Valentina Bergamaschi, Alia Guagni, Sara Gama, Elena Linari, Manuela Giugliano, Aurora Galli (Elisa Bartoli 46), Cristiana Girelli, Valentina Cernoia, Barbara Bonansea, Ilaria Mauro (Daniela Sabatino 58) Goals : Bonansea 56, 90 |
| Referee : Melissa Borjas (Honduras) Attendance : 15380 Coaches : Ante Milicic (Australia), Milena Bertolini (Italy) | ||||
| Australian squad | ||||
| Despite having the better of the early play the Matildas found themselves down 2-0 with a mountain to climb but a goal just before the break, and the replacement of the tired old legs of Marta and Formiga at halftime gave the Matildas the ascendancy and they pulled through thanks to a controversially awarded own goal that was initially flagged off for offside but given after VAR review. The dream remains alive. This was a World Cup Finals match. | ||||
| Played : June 13 | Venue : Stade de la Mosson, Montpellier, France | |||
| Australia Lydia Williams, Ellie Carpenter, Elise Kellond-Knight, Alanna Kennedy, Stephanie Catley, Emily van Egmond, Tameka Yallop, Chloe Logarzo, Samantha Kerr, Emily Gielnik (Hayley Raso 72), Caitlin Foord (Karly Roestbakken 90) Goals : Foord 45, Logarzo 58, Monica 68og |
3 | - | 2 | Brazil Barbara Micheline do Monte Barbosa, Letícia Santos, Tamires Cassia Dias Gomes, Kathellen Sousa Feitoza, Monica Hickmann Alves, Miraildes Maciel Mota (Luana Bertolucci Paixao 46), Andressa Alves da Silva, Marta Vieira da Silva (Ludmila da Silva 46), Thaisa de Moraes Rosa Moreno, Debora Cristiane de Oliveira, Cristiane Rozeira de Souza Silva (Beatriz Zaneratto Joao 75) Goals : Marta 27pk, Cristiane 38 |
| Referee : Esther Staublie (Switzerland) Attendance : 17032 Coaches : Ante Milicic (Australia), Oswaldo Fumeiro Alvarez (Brazil) | ||||
| Australian squad | ||||
| Brazil, Italy and Australia all finished on 6 points in this group and the finishing order came down to goal differences and thanks to the 4th goal in this match Australia finished narrowly ahead of Brazil on goals scored but behind Italy who beat the Jamaicans 5-0 and lost to Brazil 1-0 to finish with +5 ahead of Australia's +3 and Brazils +3. This was a World Cup Finals match. | ||||
| Played : June 18 | Venue : Stade des Alpes, Grenoble, France | |||
| Australia Lydia Williams, Ellie Carpenter, Karly Roestbakken, Alanna Kennedy, Stephanie Catley, Emily van Egmond, Katrina Gorry (Aivi Luik 87), Chloe Logarzo, Samantha Kerr, Emily Gielnik (Caitlin Foord 59), Lisa De Vanna (Hayley Raso 63) Goals : Kerr 11, 42, 69, 83 |
4 | - | 1 | Jamaica Nicole McClure, Sashana Campbell, Deneisha Blackwood, Allyson Swaby, Konya Plummer, Toriana Patterson, Mireya Grey (Jody Brown 72), Chantelle Swaby, Khadija Shaw, Tiffany Cameron (Havana Solaun 46), Cheyna Matthews (Trudi Carter 59) Goal : Solaun 49 |
| Referee : Katalin Kulcsar (Hungary) Attendance : 17402 Coaches : Ante Milicic (Australia), Hue Menzies (Jamaica) | ||||
| Australian squad | ||||
| That Australia should lose at this stage of the tournament is the sort of thing that comes with football, that they should lose in this manner can only partly be attributed to the well drilled Norwegians. In the end the penalty shootout lottery came up glaringly short for Australia and all the promise of this side remains unfulfilled. This was a World Cup Finals match. | ||||
| Played : June 22 | Venue : Allianz Riviera, Nice, France | |||
| Norway Ingrid Hjelmseth, Ingrid Moe Wold (Skinnes Hansen 102), Kristine Minde, Maren Mjelde, Maria Thorisdottir, Vilde Risa, Karina Saevik (Frida Maanum 72), Ingrid Engen, Guro Reiten, Isabell Herlovsen (Lisa-Marie Utland 77), Graham Hansen Goal : Herlovsen 31 Penalties : Hansen, Reiten, Mjelde, Engen |
1 aet 4pk |
- | 1 aet 1pk |
Australia Lydia Williams, Ellie Carpenter (Amy Harrison 120), Elise Kellond-Knight (Clare Polkinghorne 94), Alanna Kennedy (sent off 104), Stephanie Catley, Tameka Yallop, Emily van Egmond (Karly Roestbakken 116), Chloe Logarzo, Samantha Kerr, Hayley Raso (Emily Gielnik 74), Caitlin Foord Goal : Kellond-Knight 83 Penalties : Kerr (miss), Gielnik (saved), Catley |
| Referee : Riem Hussein (Germany) Attendance : 12229 Coaches : Ante Milicic (Australia), Martin Sjogren (Norway) | ||||
| Australian squad | ||||
| Announced at the end of August the 2 match series against Chile is starting to look like an annual event. A late rally by Chile kept the game interesting but if not for Endler's heroics this could have been a much more emphatic result. This was a Friendly match. | ||||
| Played : November 9 | Venue : Parramatta Stadium, Sydney | |||
| Australia Lydia Williams, Ellie Carpenter, Stephanie Catley, Clare Polkinghorne, Jenna McCormick (Emma Checker 86), Aivi Luik, Emily van Egmond (Amy Harrison 69), Chloe Logarzo, Sam Kerr, Hayley Raso (Emily Gielnik 75), Caitlin Foord Goals : Kerr 3, 72 |
2 |
- | 1 |
Chile Christiane Endler, Rocio Soto (Su Helen Galaz 60), Carla Guerrero, Maria Mardones (Javiera Toro 85), Camila Saez, Daniela Pardo (Karen Araya 79), Daniela Zamora, Paloma Lopez (Rosario Balmaceda 46), Francisca Lara, Yanara Aedo, Maria Jose Urrutia (Javiera Roa 63) Goal : Saez 89 |
| Referee : Rebecca Durcau (Australia) Attendance : 20029 Coaches : Ante Milicic (Australia), Jose Letelier (Chile) | ||||
| Australian squad | ||||
| Announced at the end of August the 2 match series against Chile is starting to look like an annual event. The match was played mainly in Chile's half but their defence was resolute and the goalkeeper even saved a penalty (that she conceded) from Sam Kerr. They could easily have drawn the match but in the end the Matildas were equally resolute. This was a Friendly match. | ||||
| Played : November 12 | Venue : Hindmarsh Stadium, Adelaide | |||
| Australia Lydia Williams, Ellie Carpenter, Stephanie Catley, Clare Polkinghorne (Jenna McCormick 46), Alanna Kennedy (Emma Checker 77), Tameka Yallop (Aivi Luik 75), Amy Harrison (Emily van Egmond 65), Chloe Logarzo, Sam Kerr, Emily Gielnik (Hayley Raso 63), Caitlin Foord Goal : Gielnik 23 |
1 |
- | 0 |
Chile Natalia Campos, Su Helen Galaz, Fernanda Pinilla (Javiera Toro 46), Carla Guerrero, Camila Saez, Nayadet Lopez, Rosario Balmaceda, Karen Araya, Yanara Aedo (Paloma Lopez 77), Francisca Lara (Maria Mardones 90), Daniela Zamora (Yazmin Torrealba 86) |
| Referee : Anna-Marie Keighley (New Zealand) Attendance : 10342 Coaches : Ante Milicic (Australia), Jose Letelier (Chile) | ||||
| Australian squad | ||||