With a 3-1 win over co-host Australia on Wednesday, England advanced to its first Women’s World Cup final match and put an end to the Matildas’ thrilling tournament run.
The Matildas’ standout player Sam Kerr of Australia started her first game of the competition and scored a goal, but it wasn’t enough to defeat European champion England.
The Lionesses had the majority of the ball in the first half after Ella Toone’s goal gave England a 1-0 lead in the 36th minute.
The 75,000+ spectators had some optimism after Kerr’s equaliser in the 63rd, but Lauren Hemp restored England’s advantage in the 71st and then set up Alessia Russo for the game-winning through ball four minutes from the end of regulation.
When England and Spain face off in the Women’s World Cup final on Sunday at Stadium Australia, it will be their first time participating in the event. Since 2003, there has not been an all-European final.
Sarina Wiegman, the manager of England, made history by being the first coach to guide two nations to the Women’s World Cup final. Before losing to the US in the 2019 championship game, she led the Netherlands to the final.
“You make it to finals, it’s really special,” Wiegman remarked in a post-game television interview. “I’d never take anything for granted, but I feel like I’m in a fairytale or something,” the speaker said.
On Saturday in Brisbane, Australia will play Sweden for third place.
“We wanted to control the game, but we didn’t. In her 100th game for her country, Australia midfielder Katrina Gorry said, “And we wanted to probably create more scoring opportunities, but we didn’t do that.” However, we have a short turnaround and aim to take home the bronze.
Australia made their debut in the last four, while England was playing in its third straight Women’s World Cup semifinal.
Particularly in the first half and the final 20 minutes, it became apparent.
In addition to having a harsher edge and being more precise when it mattered, England played a game that frequently denied Australia possession.
In their 7-6 victory against France in a penalty shootout last weekend—their first victory in four Women’s World Cup quarterfinal appearances—the Australians appeared to have played their final.
Due to a calf muscle injury she suffered on the day of the event, Australia had to wait five games for Kerr to start for them in their home tournament.
The superstar striker made a huge entry with an equaliser just after the hour after being restrained by England’s defence during the first half. Kerr received the ball near midfield, made a solo run up the pitch and caught a defender off guard before firing a right-foot shot from the outside that barely touched defender Mille Bright before into the upper left corner of the net.
England swiftly countered when Hemp sprinted onto a long ball into the box and scored with a left-foot finish after Australia defender Ellie Carpenter overran the ball as Kerr started to gain ground.
When Kerr missed another opportunity to tie the score in the 82nd minute by heading the ball over the crossbar, England made the host team pay by scoring the winning goal through Russo.
