THE SQUIZ

Sure, it’s been a day and a half since the Matildas beat France in an epic 20-penalty shootout to make the semi-finals of the Women’s World Cup, but the thrill hasn’t worn off. That buzz you can hear is nationwide delight as the team progressed beyond the quarter-final stage of the mega tournament for the first time ever. As coach Tony Gustavsson (who surely qualifies for honourary citizenship…) said, Australia is “so freaking proud of this team”. 

CALM DOWN AND TELL ME WHAT IT MEANS…

OK, deep breaths… Probably the first thing to note is that Aussies have bought into the Matildas big time, taking women’s sport to a new high water mark. Actually, scrap that – taking sports viewership to a new level. Saturday night’s game was one of the most-viewed TV events in 2 decades, with an average audience of 4.17 million, and that doesn’t factor in the huge numbers watching it at pubs, the live sites, and on planes. From the MCG, para-tennis great Dylan Alcott said it was “the closest I’ve ever been to standing up”… The only event to have beaten it when it comes to a TV audience is Cathy Freeman’s gold medal run at the Sydney Olympics – that’s how much of a unifying moment the game was. The other thing is we now know a lot more about the team than superstar/excellent jersey-giver Sam Kerr. To mention 2 – Mackenzie Arnold and Cortnee Vine are now etched in our minds…

AND THE NEXT GAME IS…

…an opportunity for Australia to deepen our already fierce sporting rivalry with England. The Lionesses beat Colombia on Saturday night 2-1 in regular time. They came from behind to win, but it was a less dramatic/shorter game than the Matildas played, and some commentators say that’s in their favour as we head towards the semi on Wednesday night in Sydney. If it helps, French President Emmanuel Macron is cheering the Matildas on too… As for the rest of the field, there are only 2 other teams to clock – Spain and Sweden are also through – they play off tomorrow night for a spot in Sunday’s final. Bring. It. On…