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Thursday 30 June 2011

We lost to Brazil, Uzbekistan and the tennis - Great night!

Ok I set the alarm and got up for the Matildas game - I'm still on a high from their last World Cup and with Tom Sermanni changing the whole team - why wouldn't I get up.

I thought we might beat Brazil - more later.

I fell asleep after the game only to wake to see Dylan Tombides getting sent-off for kicking an opponent - just when Jan's boys seemed to have some pressure on the ballas well - and then Teeboy gets sent-off - that's what you get when you take a 15 year old to a World Cup - great experience for him - but he can't go to the next one due to FIFA regulations not his age he's only 15 - so his 30 minutes here he'd better remember.

Back to the main game - the Matildas.

Brazil seemed so scared of De Vanna they dropped off and let us have the ball - and this Matildas team likes the ball - so despite the reputation of the Brazilians it was only control errors from young Cailtin Foord that actually gave the Samba stars any chance to make a goal in the first half.

Too harsh? David Carney would get the same treatment and this is a World Cup, 16 years of age or not!

The Brazilians nearly scored - they wouldn't have deserved it.

Australia played well throughout - the tempo of the game was always going to switch back and forth but we out possessed Brazil - a great sign for the rest of the tournament.

But we didn't score and in Lisa De Vanna we had our chances. Everyone talks Marta but De Vanna is a mercurial genius probably best used over 45 minutes than a whole game; she had two great opportunities for any striker and she fluffed them. Such is football.

Brazil scored a stinker of a goal - if only Cheryl Salisbury was four years younger - the ball bobbled and bounced and whilst there were a hundred Matildas in sight of the ball it just wouldn't get hoofed. I can't watch it again.

We looked good at times, very good playing out and keeping possession often - much more often than we did in the Asia Cup. But with no Kate Gill we're lacking something in the final third, at least against Brazil.

Caitlin Foord had a great game - remember the Brazilians are the favourites, Emily Van Egmond also did well more composed than I'd ever seen her for Canberra United - a new role, deeper and it worked. She's only 17.

Heather Garriock lacked the performance and energy of 2007. Her energy from that period alone could have been enough to carry us to victory last night. She wasn't bad - just not brilliant such was her performances in 2007. We needed just a little more thrust, more dynamism at times in the final third.

But we couldn't do it and gave away a nightmare goal.

We still gave away the ball a little too often against a top team - sometimes despite playing well it was our ball passing that let Brazil back in rather than their efforts. Disappointing.

Now it gets tense.

We have to win the next game against Equitorial Guinea themselves defeated by Norway. 10pm on Sunday night - I can do that!

We're playing well, no wonder Tom Sermanni has been upbeat - but we neegoal or two. We have the players should be afraid of no-one on last nights performance - let's hope the team gets the points against Guinea and set's up a humdinger against Norway.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Brazil is the best lol!