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          No Sam Kerr, no worries as Matildas notch first win in six months

          • Marissa Lordanic
          Oct 9, 2022, 01:26 AM

          Australia enjoyed its first win in six months with a 4-1 victory over South Africa in London on Saturday.

          While there was no Sam Kerr in the starting lineup for the Matildas, as well as a host of other staring XI players missing through injury, the Aussies found the back of the net with ease.

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          Cortnee Vine, starting up top in place of Kerr, bagged the first two goals of the game and of her international career. Clare Polkinghorne stuck to her brand and headed home Australia's third, before Caitlin Foord added a fourth from an acute angle after a brilliant individual effort.

          The Matildas were the dominant side all day but could not hold on for a clean sheet. Instead it was South Africa who would enjoy the last goal of the match. Hildah Magaia pounced on the long ball over the top, beat Australia's defence and cheekily chipped the ball over Teagan Micah.

          JUMP TO: Player ratings | Best/worst performers | Highlights and notable moments | Post-match quotes | Key stats | Upcoming fixtures

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          1. No Kerr, no worries

          An illness kept Kerr away from the starting XI and forced a slightly different look front three for the Matildas. With plenty of attacking options to choose from, head coach Tony Gustavsson settled on a front three of Foord out on the left, Vine central, and Hayley Raso on the right.

          Vine loomed as the odd woman out, not based on talent or the like, but for being the only one not currently in season. While other more obvious No. 9 replacements were present in the squad, Gustavsson explained that Vine's last few camps, dating back to the June window, have been too good to ignore.

          "We wanted a little bit of a different type of No. 9 in this game, like a poacher. We know she's always going for everything that goes on, follows those loose balls up and have that penetration threats," he said.

          But just because it worked against South Africa doesn't mean it is a permanent solution for a Kerr absence, a fact Gustavsson admitted.

          "This time it turned out good and I don't think it was a coincidence that Vine scored because she's been looking good in in multiple camps now so well deserved," he said.

          2. Steph Catley. That's the tweet.

          Catley is undeniably an indispensable part of this Matildas line up. Nevertheless her enforced absences, most recently through injury for both friendlies against Canada in September, make her returns all the more telling.

          When injury-free, Catley is up there as one of the first names on the team sheet. A defensively solid player who offers her weight in gold going forward. Each goal in the first half had her fingerprints on it. Her set pieces have long been world class and it was her corners which teed up Mary Fowler to assist Vine as well as Polkinghorne directly.

          Perhaps most pleasing was her combination with Foord down the left. Gustavsson lauded the duo and credited Arsenal for all the work that had gone into honing and perfecting the combo. He was simply delighted to be able to copy and paste it into the national team.

          Their understanding for Vine's second goal, which included a perfectly timed and weighted Catley chip past the South African defence into space for Foord, was sensational.

          3. The injury list

          The Matildas' injury list had one name removed from it with Chloe Logarzo officially making her return back to the national team. Her seven-minute cameo capped off 13 months away from the park in green and gold. Her tears and the long hugs shared between her and her teammates highlighted just how much it meant to the midfielder to once again represent her country.

          But for every player regained, it feels like another two are lost to injuries with varying degrees of severity. Kyah Simon's midweek ACL tear while playing for Tottenham saw her join the likes of Tameka Yallop, Emily van Egmond and Clare Wheeler as needing to withdraw from this series. Alanna Kennedy, meanwhile, was in the stands at Kingsmeadow with her arm in a sling after shoulder surgery, and Lydia Williams will not take part in this international window thanks to an ankle injury.

          "It's been a lot of challenges for us when it comes to players being unavailable," Gustavsson explained post-match. "And then if you add Sam to that as well, we had seven before the camp start and then Sam. Someone sent me the list about seven starters from that GB game not being available from the Olympics in this game."

          Gustavsson's craving for consistency in his squad and for fewer curveballs will have to wait another international window to be satisfied.

          Player Ratings

          Australia: Teagan Micah 5, Charlotte Grant 5, Aivi Luik 5, Clare Polkinghorne 5, Steph Catley 8, Katrina Gorry 6, Kyra Cooney-Cross 5, Mary Fowler 5, Cortnee Vine 7, Caitlin Foord 8, Hayley Raso 6
          Subs: Alex Chidiac 6, Emily Gielnik 5, Courtney Nevin 5, Larissa Crummer 5, Sam Kerr 6, Chloe Logarzo 5

          South Africa: Regirl Ngobeni 4, Bongeka Gamede 5, Fikile Magama, Thalea Smidt 5, Hildah Magaia 6, Gabriela Salgado 5, Linda Motlhalo 6, Jermaine Seoposenwe 6, Bambanani Mbane 5, Tiisetso Makhubela 5, Sibulele Holweni 5
          Subs: Thato Letsoso 4, Thubelihle Shamase 5, Robyn Moodaly 4, Melinda Kgadiete 5

          Best and worst performers

          BEST: Catley

          Catley was in everything in the first 45 minutes for the Matildas. Her corners and combination with Arsenal team mate, Foord, down the left contributed to all three goals for Australia in the first half.

          WORST: Makhubela

          It was a forgettable afternoon for the South African rearguard, not least for the Mamelodi Sundowns defender.

          Highlights and notable moments

          The #VineTime hashtag got a workout as Vine netted twice to notch up her first two goals in green and gold. While they were the definition of poacher's goals, they all count.

          From a woman who scored her first-ever Matildas goals to a woman who has scored plenty before, Foord's purple patch of form for club and country continued against South Africa. Her dash, run, and acute finish couldn't have come at a better time, not only in the match but for Foord herself.

          In a week where the Matildas lost Simon to an ACL injury for the foreseeable future, Logarzo making her return from the same injury was a sight for sore eyes. Her cameo was brief but her emotion post-game spoke to the importance of the moment for the midfielder.

          After the match: What the managers, players said

          Vine to Channel 10 post-game on her move from the wing to No. 9: "It's a hard role to fill. Obviously it's Sam's spot there. But yeah, it's different to wing you don't touch the ball as much. And when you do, you got to finish. They're only opportunities you get when you touch the ball so different, it just felt different."

          Gustavsson on preparations for this match: "First of all, I want to say this with all due respect, everyone knows the love of playing at home soil in Australia, especially in the World Cup year to get that connection with the fans and do it all together with the football community back home. In that sense, it's important that we're playing back home in Australia.

          "From a football preparation standpoint, it's massive that we get these camps in Europe, we have five training days now compared to the last camp in Australia, where we had two and a half days. And also we had four players coming in not playing a game this weekend. So the refresh from Monday, so we can play five training sessions straight with football, was massive. And I think you could see that we've been looking for a solid performance of 90 minutes for a long time. And this was the most solid performance over time. We've seen 50 minutes here, a half here, 30 minutes here, but haven't seen a 90 minutes performance as of today. And I think it definitely has to do with the five days preparation."

          Key stats

          - Matildas first win since April 12, 2022.

          - Foord's first national team goal since Jan. 21, 2022.

          Up next

          Australia: A date with Denmark rounds out the October window for the Matildas. Gustavsson's team lost 3-2 to the Danes back in June 2021 -- Gustavsson's third game in charge -- making the match up a great indicator of how the Matildas have progressed under the manager.

          South Africa: With no scheduled matches for the rest of the year, Banyana Banyana's attention will instead turn to the Women's World Cup draw on Oct. 22 where they will learn their opponents for the group stage in 2023. South Africa qualified for a second straight Women's World Cup following their maiden WAFCON victory.