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BY CONNOR STEPHENS
Heartbreak for our beloved Matildas as they fell 2-0 to Sweden in the third place playoff. In saying that, they have done our entire nation proud and fingers crossed we can see them lift that elusive World Cup trophy in the near future.
Unfortunately for the Matildas, Sweden just proved to be too good right from the beginning, controlling the tempo and exposing Australia’s flat Defence on a few occasions before finally hitting the scoreboard with a penalty converted in the 30th minute from Fridolina Rolfo.
Australia had their chances in attack, with Katrina Gorry moving the ball around well in Midfield, but the frontline seemed to panic, wanting to rush shots due to the immense pressure of the Swedish Defence.
While Australia played fast paced Football for the first half, trying to break even, signs of fatigue showed well before half time, and it was clear to see the Swedish had tired them out.
A half time break wasn't enough to refresh the Tillies, as Sweden added a second goal in the 60th minute, with Kosovare Asllani finishing a nice piece of play of Swedish forward movement.
2-0 down, and with the whole nation behind them, the Matildas did everything they could to make something of the game, but unfortunately they never looked like coming back, as players started to cramp up, lose movement, and ultimately concede defeat.
Despite the result, all of Australia should be proud as it is the first time in history that any Australian national Football team has reached the Semi-Final of a World Cup, and hopefully this is a sign of bigger things to come.
There is plenty of young talent in the Australian squad, talent I believe that within the next World Cup or two, can lead us to the ultimate prize!