By now, you’ve likely heard the news and seen the results — Australia, one of the host countries of the FIFA Women’s World Cup and one of the cup favourites, is on the edge of being knocked out of the tournament. It’s not over yet, though, and Aussies always have a fighting spirit and a never-say-die attitude.

Will that be enough to make it to the next round? 

Recap of action so far

After two rounds of action in the Group Stage, Australia is sitting in third position and is on the cusp of their World Cup journey coming to an unexpected and premature end. 

Here’s a recap of the Group B action so far.

Round 1

The Group’s Round 1 action started with Australia getting a 1-0 win against the Republic of Ireland. Although it took a penalty kick to break the deadlock, the win was a positive sign for a team that was without its star player, Sam Kerr, after a last-minute withdrawal due to injury. Australia dominated possession in this game, showing good ball movement, and creating a number of good chances on goal.

The Round’s other action saw Nigeria and Canada play out a goalless draw, leaving Australia in prime position at the top of the ladder, albeit after only one game. Many saw this game as what should’ve been an easy win for Canada, so the goalless end result was a surprise. Canada maintained most of the possession in this game and carved out 16 shots on goal, three of which were on target.

Round 2

Round 2 action is where Australia managed to put themselves in a precarious position. On Wednesday, Canada played the Republic of Ireland at Perth Rectangular Stadium in front of 17,065 spectators — a huge crowd for a game played on a wet and windy evening.

The Republic of Ireland got off to a cracking start, with Katie McCabe scoring in the fourth minute. Canada pressed hard and forced an own-goal equaliser late in first-half stoppage time. Early in the second half, Adriana Leon scored Canada’s second goal, ultimately winning the game and sealing Republic of Ireland’s early exit from the tournament. 

Thursday night’s other Group B game is the one that’s had the most impact, though, with Australia losing to Nigeria in a massive upset for the home team. Australia again managed to dominate possession, carving out 28 shots at goal in the process. 

Both teams scored during first-half stoppage time making it a tied game going into the half-time break. In the second half, Nigeria scored two goals in quick succession to stun Australia and take a 3-1 lead in the game. Australia scored a late goal in second-half stoppage; however, it wasn’t enough to change the outcome of the game. 

The Group B Table

Matildas v Canada – Australia’s path to the knockout stages

With Australia sitting in third place in the Group Stage table, the third and final game in this stage becomes crucial. That game is against Canada on Monday night at 6:00 pm AWST.

Nigeria has the Group’s top spot all but guaranteed — they play the Republic of Ireland in their final Group game, a team that has mathematically been eliminated and has only scored one goal so far this tournament. If I was placing a friendly wager on the outcome, it would be hard to bet against Nigeria. 

That greatly adds significance to the Canada vs Australia game as the outcome will decide who gets that second spot to advance to the Knockout Stages. Australia has everything to do as a win and only a win will see them advancing. For Canada, a win or draw will do the job; they’ll more be looking at improving their goal difference in a win so they have a chance of taking the number one spot, giving them an easier Round of 16.

The big question is going to be whether Sam Kerr will have recovered and be fit to play.

Our prediction is that Australia will dig deep and bounce back. Aussies are known for finding that little bit extra in big moments like these. It will be a tough game and Canada is an excellent team; however, we’re backing the Matildas to win 1-0. 

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This article was sponsored by TABtouch. Feature image credit: facebook.com/matildas