Matildas coach Tony Gustavsson has rolled the dice on multiple stars under injury clouds as he named his 23-player squad for the Women’s World Cup on home soil.
Headlined by Sam Kerr with the skipper’s armband, Gustavsson’s troops will now prepare for a final friendly against France on July 14 before departing for camp in Brisbane the following day.
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Unlike the Socceroos squad for the Men’s World Cup, Gustavsson named a 29-player provisional squad so Aussie football fans already had a solid idea of who was going to make the final cut.
However, that didn’t spot the Swede from springing a number of surprise inclusions into his final team as they gear up for what will be a memorable World Cup campaign.
Foxsports.com.au breaks down the squad in Matildas Winners and Losers!
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WINNERS
Kyah Simon
Kyah Simon missed out on the 2019 Women’s World Cup in France after being unable to prove her fitness to then-coach Ante Milicic in brutal circumstances.
However, the 111-cap veteran ensured there would be no such repeat despite rupturing her ACL last October for club side Tottenham Hotspur.
Simon’s inclusion is a major gamble from Gustavsson considering she has not played a competitive match since the injury, but her reputation precedes itself.
If the 32-year-old partakes in the Matildas’ World Cup opener against Ireland on July 20, it will have been a staggering 291 days since her ACL injury.
Of course, Gustavsson made a point during the official squad announcement press conference that he can make changes to his squad up to 24 hours before the Ireland game.
So, if Simon is unable to be fully match fit, the Swede can dip into his reserves for a replacement.
But he has rolled the dice on the veteran forward who scored the goal that sealed Australia’s first and only knockout win at a World Cup in 2015.
Lydia Williams and Clare Polkinghorne
Granted, Lydia Williams was basically a guaranteed inclusion within the goalkeeping department.
As for Clare Polkinghorne, she wasn’t a certainty having missed action for Swedish side Vittsjo GIK since April due to a lower-leg injury.
But Polkinghorne’s veteran presence both on and off the park — Sam Kerr essentially described her as the team’s mum — will be pivotal in a tournament that will draw plenty of eyeballs.
The duo’s selections are not necessarily what makes them winners in this analysis.
Rather, it is the fact it will be both Williams and Polkinghorne’s fifth appearance at a World Cup, the most of any male or female Australian in history.
That is no feat to be sniffed at.
Williams and Polkinghorne, who have 102 and 156 caps for the Matildas respectively, began their World Cup journeys in 2007 and have never looked back.
The former is likely to struggle for game time with West Ham goalkeeper Mackenzie Arnold likely to be the preferred option between the sticks.
Yet Polkinghorne could have a big role to play in the heart of the backline with her calming presence provided she is fully recovered from the leg injury.
Australia
If it hasn’t sunk in yet, then the announcement of the Matildas’ World Cup squad should surely do the job.
Yes, Australia has had World Cups of several sporting disciplines over the years.
The Rugby World Cup in 2003. The men’s Cricket World Cup in 2015. The men’s T20 World Cup in 2022. The women’s T20 World Cup in 2020. The men’s Rugby League World Cup on several occasions.
But none of those will have the global pull quite like the Women’s World Cup.
And it’s all happening on our very shores.
Hayfever is officially out, and World Cup fever is in.
Australia, get keen.
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LOSERS
Chloe Logarzo
It was only going to be bad news for a group of six Matildas and unfortunately for Chloe Logarzo, she was one of them.
The midfielder made the 29-player cut despite a foot injury which restricted her to only a handful of appearances for A-League Women’s side Western United throughout the season.
Logarzo’s omission was made all the more brutal by the fact she had recovered from an ACL tear which had threatened to derail her World Cup plans in the first place.
The 28-year-old has plenty of energy between boxes and given the inclusion of other players who remain under injury clouds, Logarzo can certainly feel hard done by.
Logarzo would no doubt have been told by Gustavsson to keep fit in case one of the current crop of midfielders goes down with injury prior to the tournament.
But for now, she must stomach the brutal news.
Larissa Crummer
Despite featuring in every one of Gustavsson’s squads for the past 12 months, Brisbane Roar forward Larissa Crummer was another omission from the final 23-player squad.
Gustavsson has previously stated his admiration for Crummer’s remarkably pressing ability but based on his other selections, speed is the quality the Swede has valued most within his forwards.
To even get to this point for Crummer is remarkable considering she seriously feared for her playing future after a sickening injury in 2019 in which she broke her leg in two places.
But sadly it was not to be for the 27-year-old who recently secured a move to Norwegian side Brann.
Canada, Ireland and Nigeria
You bet the Matildas’ Group B rivals are losers in this piece.
Why?
Well, they’re the ones who will have to play out of their skins to stop the host nation from overcoming the first major hurdle.
And, with a squad brimming with fresh talent in terms of World Cup debutants and several veterans of multiple iterations of the tournament, this is a Matildas squad that has plenty of stars at the peak of their careers.
Ireland has the tall task of taking on the Matildas in their World Cup opener in front of a sellout crowd at Accor Stadium on July 20.
Then it’s down to Melbourne on July 27 where a clash against Nigeria awaits.
The Matildas then round out their Group B experience against Canada in Brisbane on July 31.
With Gustavsson’s squad now locked in, the three rival nations know exactly what lays ahead.
It’s not a test many would be willing to face.