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There is no longer any debate that women’s sport has started its long overdue rise, both in Australia and overseas, and what a great thing it is to see.
Playing team sport is such a positive element in people’s lives, promoting health, discipline, and teamwork. Having female teams and heroes for the next generations of kids will improve our society in a multitude of ways.
The AFL Women’s league has been a wonderful success and various cricket, rugby union, and league sides are joining the long-established netball and hockey teams at the forefront of national sport in Australia.
But the footballers are something different. The Matildas are arguably our best national team. They are perfectly placed to become the foremost female national side in Australia over the coming years.
We’ve seen record numbers and hugely enthusiastic crowds in Penrith and Newcastle, dominated by families. More merchandise has been sold at the recent Matildas’ games than those of the Socceroos.
The Matildas play the world’s largest sport and despite only being founded in 1979, they have worked tirelessly to become real contenders for world glory.
They were the 2010 Asian Cup Champions and are currently the top-ranked Asian side. They also won the Tournament of Nations earlier this year over Japan, Brazil and the top-ranked team in the world, the USA. They won the tournament with 11 goals scored and only two conceded.
The Matildas’ world ranking of 6th is on the rise and this will continue over the next few years, especially given they have such a young, vibrant team.
They also have debatably the best female football player in the world in Sam Kerr, who is the top scorer in the USA’s National Women’s Soccer League.
(Photo by Zak Kaczmarek/Getty Images)
A dream run of international world class tournaments in the Asian Cup, World Cup, and Olympics over the next three years will continue to grow their profile and provide them plenty of opportunities to play the strongest sides.
They are genuine contenders for the FIFA Women’s World Cup in 2019, which will be hosted by France. Add to that the FFA’s bid to host the tournament in Australia in 2023 and the Matildas could also become world champions on home soil.
So, in the immediate future, we have world class players, who have lots of potential for further improvement, top coaching, massive tournaments on the horizon and the right moment in history to catch public support.
All the hard work done by current and past Matildas and their support teams over the decades is coming to fruition. All the part-time jobs and sacrifices to represent Australia will be embodied by the current team representing both themselves and their predecessors.
Some of the best athletes that Australia has to offer, including Steph Catley, Lisa De Vanna, Lydia Williams, and Sam Kerr are about to become Australia’s best international team. Their skill, steel, and sheer untainted enthusiasm will make the next few years a lot of fun.
That steely determination is why we re-designed our logo on their sleeves to be a shield, symbolising their awesome efforts.
Go the generation-inspiring, boundary-breaking, never give up, never surrender, Matildas. Continue to play football as world class women.
Declan Boylan is the founder of Seven Consulting, official sponsor of the Westfield Matildas.
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