Women’s World Cup: Sam Kerr returns as Australia book place in quarter-finals in front of 75,784 fans

Australia 2 Denmark 0

On Sunday, ahead of Australia’s round of 16 encounter with Denmark in Sydney, Caitlin Foord issued a challenge to Matildas fans. “We love a big crowd, we love a loud crowd,” said Foord, who grew up just an hour away, on Australia’s southeast coast. “I still think Sydney can be louder.”

When Foord scored midway through the first-half on Monday evening, the first of two goals from the Matildas that saw them past Denmark and into the World Cup quarterfinals, she wheeled away towards the corner flag. The Arsenal attacker looked up at the green and gold-clad fans, as they had begun a goal-induced moment of collective ecstasy. Foord raised a hand to her ear, as if to say “louder still”. The crowd erupted and the winger duly leapt into the air in gratitude. It was loud all right.

The moment marked the start of a jubilant night for the Matildas, as they reached the last eight for just the second time in the team’s history. Midfielder Hayley Raso put the game beyond doubt in the second half, before the team’s talismanic striker Sam Kerr – the face of this home World Cup – made her return to the pitch following the calf injury she suffered on the eve of the tournament. It was not an easy win, but it was an accomplished win. The sort of win that suggests the Matildas could go deep in this tournament.

Last time these teams met, the Danish scored within the first minute – and in Sydney they again started strongly, testing Australian goalkeeper Mackenzie Arnold with several early opportunities. The Matildas soon regained composure but struggled to break through Denmark’s robust midfield; if their counter-attack against Canada last week had been like a hot knife through butter, this felt like the Australians were running into a brick wall.

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Unable to find space through the midfield, the Matildas reverted to long diagonal balls to the wings with little effect. Meanwhile, the Danes continued to threaten – Kerr’s former Chelsea team-mate Pernille Harder showing why she was once the most expensive player in the world. A knock to captain Steph Catley briefly silenced the raucous 75,784 crowd – equalling the attendance record set in the opening match against Ireland last month – only for the noise to resume when the pacy wingback jogged back into position.

The pace came off the match as the first half continued, with the occasional frenetic moment down the flanks enlivening what otherwise became a chess-like tactical battle. But as is the magic of football, this beautiful game that enraptures so many of us, that it only took one of those split-second moments to change everything.

An attacking ball from Denmark on the edge of the Matildas’ box was miscued and found its way to Foord, lurking much further back than her left-wing positioning would ordinarily dictate. It reflected the concerted pressure the Danes had mounted during the first-half, but it would also prove their undoing. Foord gathered the ball and laid it off to Mary Fowler, who brought it through the middle of the pitch. Foord did not waste a second – breaking down the left with such ferocity that she may as well have been competing in a 100-metre sprint.

It was a box-to-box effort and Fowler’s perfectly-placed through ball was waiting for Foord when she reached Denmark’s 18-yard line. The Matildas’ attacking ace was too fast for chasing Danish defender Stine Ballisager, and Foord dispatched past onrushing goalkeeper Lene Christensen in the nick of time.

If the Matildas learned one lesson from their group stage loss to Nigeria, it was that the minutes between scoring and the half-time whistle are critical. Nigeria’s sucker-punch on the eve of the half turned the game against Australia. But this time there would be no repeat. As the minutes ticked down towards the break and Denmark’s pressure increased, the Matildas held on. It was not pretty but it was effective, and Australia entered the intermission with their one goal advantage.

It was much the same in the early phases of the second half, with the crowd seemingly more excited by Sam Kerr warming up on the sidelines than the nervy tussles on the main stage. She disappeared briefly, down the tunnel, before returning with a new playing shirt to yet more applause.

The distraction did not last long. Fowler collected the ball on the halfway line and drove it through the heart of the Danish midfield, before finding Kyra Cooney-Cross out wide. The ball came back central for more Fowler magic, this time at the top of Denmark’s box. She sliced a pass through to Emily van Egmond lurking in the six-yard box, who considered a shot before passing back towards an unmarked Raso. The recent Real Madrid signing rifled her shot past Christensen, earning her third goal of the tournament. Cue more jubilation in the stands of Stadium Australia. A World Cup quarter-final was in grasp.

But the crowd saved its biggest roar for the 79th minute. Kerr, the Matildas captain, was ready to enter the game for the first time at this World Cup. The No 20 came up on the substitute board and suddenly this was it, the moment an entire nation had anxiously awaited over the past three weeks. Kerr-watch had become Kerr-time. Her every touch was celebrated and although she had limited impact on the game, the symbolism was just as significant.

Australia will now head to Brisbane ahead of the quarter-final on Saturday, where they will face the winner of Tuesday’s clash between France and Morocco. – Guardian