There are some hard taskmasters on here.

In the Iran game it was difficult for a lot  of the Aussie second stringers to break down a deep defensive block used by Iran - which was often a Half Press or Partial Press. It was good that Tony G gave then a run though, although disjointed at times. At least we had a lot of possession, but couldn't capitalise on the scoreboard.

It made quite a difference when Kerr, Fowler and Catley came on for a superb well taken team goal to make it 2-0.

Against Philippines, the circulation football was the best I've seen for years. Everything clicked with the first elven. Tony G played a 4-4-2 bowl shaped midfield with the ball and a flat midfield  4-4-2 when they had the ball.

I haven't read up on the Phillipines, but I thought they qualified for the World Cup and had at least a good result against a big team or/and may have reached the last 16? I thought they were on top of the table current WCQ group table too?

For those bemoaning Aus's lack of technique, there were heaps of instances of flashy turns and dribbling techniques I've coached from Brazilian Soccer Schools and in Skills Acquisition Programs used by a number of Aussies. 

The ball circulation was pretty quick with the first eleven. Tony G had the team  slick passing in the attacking half and attacking third better than the Matildas have done before under his tutelage. The handling speed of the first eleven was notably quicker than when the subs came on.

Australia was also clinical around goal.

Wheeler's goal was superb!

When the subs came on, it seemed Van E in particular always played down the right flank, rathern than previously, when Aus switched play a lot. When Fowler was out wide left, she had little ball played to her.  This was a waste of a very good resource! 

The crowd looked huge! 

60 000!

I saw a recent survey where the Matildas are challenging the Aus men's cricket team as the most popular in Aus. They might even be more popular!

After the WC I noted a lot of other sports trying to jump on the Matildas trying to push their women's sport.

It appears to me the Matildas are keen to promote their gender and the sport of football in general. I'd also expect that stakeholders in men's football are thrilled that the Matildas are generating such popularity.

To watch the national team score 8 goals was good too. I left a live cricket Shield game, which was on a knife edge, to watch the Matildas match. All my  cricket mates said, 'ha ha,  you will just watch a 0-0 or 1-0 game'.

It was ridiculous for one particular lengthy period of play where Fowler was out wide and begging for the ball and Van Egmond just recirculated the ball into the same contested area or straight back to the person who passed it to her time and again.

And broken record time I am afraid...I loosely counted Van Egmonds passing stats on my fingers...ignoring the endless backpasses and passes without pressure, 50% of her passes went to opposition players until I stopped bothering. You cannot have a team function effectively with such wasteful play let alone at the national level. That represents a liability that is not balanced out by the good she can do.

How's Kerr's blast into the top of the net for the one on one she had late in the first half? So gutsy. I'd blast that into row Z but that's why she plays for Australia I never did.

I also want to comment that Carpenter was very good in all aspects of the game.

Clearly she lost some confidence with the way the WC ended.  She was playing an unfamiliar role there.  I think that she will get max time here and watching her fly down the wing is a great sight.

...yet

Perhaps we shouldn't get carried away buy what was an easy win over a very poor opponent.

I've got a Podcast up and running called PLAY BY POD and had the pleasure of chatting with Adam Santarossa who is one of the talented young callers coming through the ranks in the football space. He currently works for ESPN.
We discuss the growth of not only women's sport, but women's football and I thought it may be of interest.
Below are links to the full clip across multiple platforms 
SPOTIFY - https://open.spotify.com/episode/6gYjQRyqm1uYK6QwI0EYSL
iTUNES - https://shorturl.at/ehFKW
AMAZON - https://tinyurl.com/ycyndzwp
iHEART - https://tinyurl.com/bddvpkff
YOUTUBE - https://youtu.be/sE6YndnoU2E?si=aQQeRc9bAu-OSwrY

Caitlin Foord is an absolute gun.

Fowler brilliant again.

The lack of quality with the final pass, cross or shot is showing. Getting into good positions then the last pass is poor. And Fowler twice, and Gorry once, have been guilty of shooting from too far out when there was open space ahead of them to get closer to goal before shooting.

Chinese Taipei have been committed and brilliantly effective at marking up one on one. Every Matilda's player with the ball has an opponent either breathing down their back or racing out to meet them. If we pass round that opponent whoever receives the ball is in an equally tight position with their own defender.

Every backpass we do from pressure is conceding any gain or advantage we have won leading up to that moment because Chinese Taipei simply resets.

In my ignorant eyes, if we are marked one on one we have to be smart enough to pass the ball then work at speed off the ball to be the extra player in space. If we pass the ball but do nothing else other than repeat that manouver we never force our opponents to make decisions or get drawn out of position.

Chinese Taipei are fast and skilful enough to challenge the ball carrier, get back with bodies when we approach, and cover most of our individual play. Teamwork involving fast interplay is the only way I see to unlocking them.

I prefer Foord out wide to Foord in the middle. Kennedy pushing up with the ball does not seem to bear much fruit compared to passing it forward. We have appeared clueless and lost for ideas quite a few times trying to play out from the back, but we have been pretty effective bringing it up the wings. As you say Keeper66, we then fail to do something really meaningful at that point.

I have to say we have been a bit 'unlucky' with our shots on goal - in that we are normally a bit more capable of finishing at least one of our chances by now. There is a lack of composure this game from just about everyone in front of goals and I guess you have to put that down to the close marking and desperation of Chinese Taipei and maybe the pressure being felt by Matilda's to 'have to win' every game now that they are firmly in focus as our national representatives. Expectation must be crippling.

Foord doesn't mind taking players on. Great to see. Has great close ball skills. Rolls off her defender time and time again.

What a touch, what a goal.

In front of her new boyfriend too.

Yep, good first touch, great hit.

Foord doing Foord things. She has been great tonight. And just in general.

Foord and Fowler players of the match.  And the keeper for Taiwan.

She is on fire this GK.

Grant looks so much like Carpenter, not just how she looks but how she plays. Even down to the crappy touches and shit crossing.

He he hee. I was thinking very similarly. Carpenter is the stronger, faster and Grant has better vision but they produce similar finishes.

Fowler flashing one wide at a thousand miles an hour with her left towards the end. Scored with her right from distance for the first.

Played most off the second half on the right but scored when she was on the left and cleaned up at the back a couple of times for shits and giggles.

There's nothing she can't do.


Charlie Grant excellent going forward but with some poor touches. Probably lack of game tome. Carpenter should be worried but will still be picked over Grant.

Foord a non stop energizer bunny tonight. Amazing game from her.

Is is explicitly stated anywhere how the next round will be drawn? I hate this about the AFC at times. Why can't there be easily accessible clear instructions about the entire process from the outset? best 2nd placed team still open. 

...or alternatively, wait until the energy required to do the constant press wears them out.

Brilliant from Fowler for her goal. She tried the same shot earlier and missed but she hit that one beautifully. Kerr on the spot as she so often is to pick up her goal, and finally a team based goal to finish it off.

I was surprised how poorly Chinese Taipei handled the ball after they had won through our backline. So many passes to nobody (literally into space with nobody heading that way). They showed excellent passing combinations, ran off the ball well, earned the breaking of our backline, then just gave up the ball.

Great to see a team trying to win by playing football - their bus parking came at the back of high pressing and they deserve credit for the effort to get back after pushing so hard further up. To me that is not really bus parking - it is just resilient and controlled defending when your opposition keeps coming at you.

Glad Fowler broke the drought - the game was such a dire battle until then. Going a goal down I was pleased to see the game open up - they did not try to go down just 1-0.

Game ended better than it started for us. Credit to the organisation and effort from our opponents to last 60 minutes the way they played.

Wheeler seemed quiet to me and often invisible on my tv - did she do more that I missed? Cooney-Cross showed some great moments through traffic particularly. I still think Foord is a bit of a ball hog in front of goal but she has improved her decision making considerably to be among our best now. It is why I like her out wide - where she is meant to hold the ball until she gets an opportunity to pass or shoot.

Tough game to gauge our defenders in. Chinese Taipei did so much closing down our attack but lost the ball often to our midfield recovery crew. Have to give credit for any game with a clean sheet - just not such a high pressure game at the back tonight.

Strange to me that with such a height advantage we still did not manage to score from the air and rarely looked that dangerous - off target or weakly hit. Looked like the balls in were just slightly too high for the waiting players when we did pick a pass rather than just popping it in and hoping.

Great to get the third win. Surprising to me to see the three games play out so differently.

I am wondering if they are going to look at the points, goal difference and goals scored to determine a sub-table of the top 4. So a second placed team could conceivably rate better than the top team of another group and end up as the 3rd rated team.

I thought it funny that every home team in this third lot of games had the later timeslot so they knew what they had to do before the game ended. No 'same group kickoff time' in this comp.

China vs South Kore has just ended 1:1. Uzbekistan are in as the best 2nd placed team. 

I was thinking it might be something like the Toulon tournament with 3 groups. It would appear the group with the two advancing teams simply can't have those teams play again in the semi final. At the same time Australia ranked highest of the 4 and Panama lowest by a single goal and we faced them in the semi final.

Here Japan and Uzbekistan have advanced from the same group. Would they be expected to play each other again straight up? 
Ranking based on the group stage results is Australia, Japan, North Korea, Uzbekistan. Based on rankings and apparent Toulon system

Australia vs Uzbekistan
Japan vs North Korea 

By no means should there be any rigging but it I would be an insane disservice to have Australia and Japan face off. Sure, if teams slipped up accordingly and the rules see them face off ok, but I can't see how it would ever make sense given they are the two top ranked teams by group stage results and FIFA ranking.

All the recent articles say Australia vs Uzbekistan and Japan vs North Korea.
South Korea unlucky, by far a better team than Uzbekistan. Better for the Matilda’s though and we should easily make the Olympics.

The Matildas will play Uzbekistan in a two-legged playoff for a spot at the 2024 Olympics, with the first leg away on February 24 and the return leg in Australia on February 28.

I'd have to say as a coach, I marvelled at how well Chinese T defended under so much pressure for 65 mins. Fair play to them!

 CT struggled to keep the ball for long when they turned Aus attacks over, but their 5-4-1 shape when we had the ball was hard to penetrate.  They used the Half Press and Partial press ( often defending deep when they kept the shape compact defending close to their goal line). They had good distance within,  and between the lines. Also, they were desperate and courageous. They were also disciplined.

The CT keeper was amazing! She stopped so many good shots heading for corners. 

It was also good to see our players play with a lot more possession. Our build ups featured some slower and steadier build ups, instead of constant accelerated attacks. We also played through the attacking central third more than in other games, featuring  more patient build ups, but CT kept  nullifying shots on goal.

Then Fowler's tremendous strike from distance outside the penalty box was a brilliant way to  break the deadlock. What a goal!

Once the CT defence was  breached, Kerr and Yallop scored close to the goal shortly afterwards.

Tony G doesn't appear  to use the formations that are now part and parcel of our system /curriculum in Ball Possession. He always seems to have two midfield screeners/DMs screening the defence.

However , against teams where we are more likely to  dominate I wish he would try a 4-3-3 with an attacking midfield triangle. Or try a 3-4-3  with a midfield diamond, or even a flat midfield 3-4-3.

A few posters have expressed concern  claiming our female players have less technique than their opposition.

In Mary Fowler's case she is one  of the better technicians in global female football.

She shoots superbly with both feet from outside the pen box.

She has exceptionally fast handling speed (ability to receive the ball and pass it on).

She also uses shoulder feints effectively on both sides of the body, as well as having an array of other dribbling techniques.

She has has fast feet.

Kerr is already one of the greatest players Aus has produced in either gender, based on global reputation and goal conversion.  She shoots well with both feet, and heads well.

Foord is a good dribbler, with a superb outside of the foot body serve on the right side.

Cooney-Cross is a good ball carrier.

Gorry is  a pin point passer over range.

I could go on.

The Matildas have technical qualities that are not too bad compared the their opposition, compared to the Socceroos. I see heaps of techniques used in the SAP coaching programs, Brazilisn Soccer Schools and the old Coerver programs.

99% of the posters bagging technique are talking about Carpenter.

24 February2024 Olympic Qualifiers R3	Uzbekistan	v	Australia	hideTashkent, Uzbekistan
14:00 UTC+5		Source		Stadium: Milliy Stadium

28 February2024 Olympic Qualifiers R3	Australia	v	Uzbekistan	hideMelbourne, Australia
20:00 UTC+11		Source		Stadium: Marvel Stadium

The away game an 8pm Australia kick off. Top!