Australia XI
matilda starting lineup: Mackenzie Arnold; Ellie Carpenter, Winnona Heatley, Claire Wheeler, Steph Catley, Kaitlyn Torpey; Claire Wheeler, Alana Kennedy, Mary Fowler; Hayley Raso, Sam Kerr, Caitlin Ford (captain).
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Speaking to the media on Monday, he said, Montemurro Was happy to narrow the defeat despite much-needed experience of playing against different styles ahead of the World Cup.
“They went straighter and longer and we struggled to keep up with it,” he said.
I put all this in context because that’s what these games are about. Different styles, different ideas. In my entire career I’ve only seen two teams elevate their fullbacks that high… I haven’t seen a team do that in a long time. We had to study it, analyze it and not get emotional about it.
my colleagues martin pagan While on deck for the first game, he wrote that Matilda paid the price for wasted chances.
Preface

Joe Khan
Hello and welcome to our live coverage of the Matildas’ second international friendly against Mexico.
Saturday’s result looked like a shock to the system for the home team, as they had to be cautioned in the final minutes. Ordóñez’s goal marked the second time Mexico had scored against Australia in 12 matches.
Reaching zero stoppage time despite Matilda dominating possession, reflects their ongoing problems converting transitions in the final third. Which Caitlin Ford acknowledged after the game.
We just need to make a few more shots in the front third, and improve the final pass.
With the 2027 World Cup looming temptingly on the horizon, I’ll be interested to see if Joe Montemurro sticks to a similar starting XI with the aim of pushing for the first game or starting fresh and giving some of those fringe players good game time.
We’re about to find out! Kick-off is half an hour away at CommBank Stadium in Parramatta.
Please send any thoughts or questions to jo.khan@theguardian.com.
let’s go!
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