The pressure is on for Australia. The Australians entered this Women’s World Cup as co-hosts looking to win the tournament on home soil, and quickly struggled.
After losing their star striker Sam Kerr right before the first game, Australia eked out a win over scrappy Ireland, 1-0, before falling to Nigeria, 3-2. Now, the Australians are in a fight for their tournament lives, effectively needing a win over Canada to advance. The good news is that Kerr is back, as she said on Saturday that she would be available against Canada. But she won’t start, her team said Monday just before the game, and it remains to be seen how much she might play, if at all.
The Australians will take all she can give as they try to beat a Canadian team that shares their title ambitions.
Canada vs. Australia
The most anticipated matchup of Group B sees Canada, trying to establish itself as a contender despite a shaky start, facing the host country Australia, a team that faltered in its most recent loss to Nigeria, 3-2. Australia lost three key players to injury ahead of that Nigeria match, including Kerr, its leading scorer and the face of the team who has missed the first two games of this tournament. Kerr, who sustained a calf injury in training ahead of the opening match, said Saturday that she is…
