The Matildas were 2nd best all night, England are 2-3 levels above our girls.

Decentric said:

I'm not sure why, but the Matildas have dropped back quickly.

I think it is probably that France, Spain, England, all world powerhouses in men's football, have started to take women's football seriously, and have developed good domestic leagues - quickly.

I watched until Kennedy was sent off at 18 mins. Don't like watching 10 v 11 much. England dominated. Their off the ball Squeezing was much more intensive than Aus's.

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I’d say one reason why the Matilda’s have dropped back is because there is no depth in the women’s game in Australia. There are very few younger players coming through and putting any pressure on the incumbents.

Off the top of my head, i think 9 of the Matilda’s team that started against England played in the WC 2023 semi. Many of those 9 have been regular starters for years, up to 10 years probably for some off them. Where are the young players coming through?

Compare this with England. I haven’t done a check, but my guess from recognising or not recognising names is at least 5 or 6 in their starting team did not play in the WC semi. And yes I know some players weren’t there through injury, but the players replacing the injured players seem equally as good. This is a team which has multiple players coming through, rejuvenating the team. Even though they won the last two Euros and finished second in the World Cup, they continuously have new talent breaking into the team.

rebelliousfeminist974 said:

Alarm bells should have been ringing following our disastrous Olympics campaign in Paris last year and more so following the winless SheBelieves Cup campaign including getting thrashed 4-0 by Japan on opening day, but to be fair selection calls and omissions also have a part to play in our regression over the past two years.

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100%. We should have done a proper overhaul straight after the Olympics. The period of one year with an interim coach has also hurt us.

Decentric said:

Where was that article, Zimbos?

I'd like to read it.

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Matildas analysis: What We Learned from England, Wales matches https://share.google/WkWPhIibVbciWZsey