Australia striker Sam Kerr scored an astonishing goal to draw her side level in the FIFA Women’s World Cup semi-final against England in Sydney on Wednesday. Kerr’s stunning long-ranger, however, proved to be futile as Australia had to suffer a 3-1 defeat. With the hosts trailing by one goal to nil, Kerr received the ball around the halfway line in the second half. Kerr, who started her first match of the competition, dribbled past opposition defenders with sheer ease and struck an audacious shot into the top corner from 25 yards out.
English goalkeeper Mary Earps did dive in an attempt to stop the shot but she could not thwart Kerr from scoring an equaliser in the 63rd minute. Earlier, English midfielder Ella Toone found the back of the net in the 36th minute to earn a 1-0 lead for her side. The Manchester United footballer’s strike against Australia helped her in becoming the first England player, for both men’s and women’s teams, to score in quarter-final, semi-final and final of major international competitions. The Matildas kicked off the second half with renewed vigour and their relentless attacking football paid off in the 63rd minute when Sam Kerr scored the much-needed equaliser.
Eight minutes later, Lauren Hemp registered her name on the scoresheet to clinch a 2-1 lead for the English side. Alessia Russo scored the insurance goal for England in the 86th minute. The emphatic 3-1 win helped the Lionesses in reaching the FIFA Women’s World Cup final for the very first time. In the summit clash, England will face Spain on Sunday, August 20.
The semi-final victory also turned out to be quite special for England manager Sarina Wiegman. She became the first coach to guide two nations to the final stage of the FIFA Women’s World Cup. Previously, the Netherlands, under her guidance, had reached the final at the 2019 World Cup. “You make it to finals, it’s really special. I’d never take anything for granted, but I’m like, ‘Am I here in the middle of a fairytale or something,’” Wiegman was quoted as saying in a post-match television interview by news agency AP.
Meanwhile, hosts Australia will vie for the third spot against Sweden on Saturday, August 19. Despite suffering a heart-breaking defeat in front of the home crowd of 75,784 fans, Australia midfielder Katrina Gorry vowed to win the bronze medal. “We wanted to dominate the game, we didn’t do that. And we wanted to probably create more scoring opportunities and we didn’t do that. But you know, we’ve got a quick turnaround and we want to win the bronze medal,” said Gorry, who featured in her 100th game for Australia in the semi-final. Spain, on the other hand, defeated Sweden 2-1 to seal their spot in this year’s FIFA Women’s World Cup final.
