The Matildas keep showing the Socceroos how it's done

Woof woof

@Nemesis - very timely comment about punching. Just saw on the news some AFL player in blue cowardly punch another player in the jaw. Broken jaw and 3 missing teeth. Do the players in AFL get inspired by seeing the punch ups in the crowd or is it the other way around?

@ Nemesis 6.8 In soccer, as well as Australian Football, it is illegal to DELIBERATELY kick an opponent. Both sports suspend players for deliberate kicks to an opponent. Soccer IS, relatively, a very safe game to play -and this safety is strategically and heavily emphasized in FFA and soccer Club marketing. Everyone knows about the ubiquitous "soccer mums". Your point about the "dangers" of playing soccer is poor. I challenge your slur and categorization "...some Aussie Rules fans think it is a sign of masculine toughness to punch people when they are not looking". If they do exist, they would be miniscule in numbers. You're fabricating stories again. Did you see this in your visions of an Australian Football match on Easter Saturday? You are having aural delusions as well? The current, justified, widespread and angry uproar over the A.Gaff assault refutes your derogatory claims. Deliberate punches to the face are very rare in Australian Football -and attract heavy Tribunal suspensions, and the possible threat of police criminal action. Also, there are sanctions imposed by the offender's own Club. For you to regularly cherrypick such a rare action in Australian Football, coupled with your obvious distaste for the game, reveals you have debased motives. You are desperate to use and promote any aspect (even those very rare) to attack Australian Football. Are you advocating that Australian Football should allow players to be tackled after taking a mark? Why? Aren't they tackled enough (average games have about 140 tackles in total)? As you often state you only follow soccer, I assume you disapprove of tackling. I hope you are not absurdly suggesting a PREDICTIBLE round ball is more difficult to kick than an OVAL ball, which obviously has a smaller sweet spot! I hope you are not suggesting elite Australian Footballers just "run"! Some elite players can occasionally run up to 21 kms in a game -with the added impediment of constantly tackling /bumping etc/being tackled/bumped etc. (which considerably drains fitness). I hope you are not suggesting elite Australian footballers just "jump"!

"At any level of Australian Football, players are being constantly tackled/bumped/swung/pushed; and even opponent" In football, we don't stop the game & protect the player when they make an accurate pass. I think Aussie Rules & Netball are the only ball passing sports that allows such protection. In football, the player has to control the ball without using his hands and try to pass, or score, with the constant threat of being kicked. This happens for the full 90'. The only time an outfield player with the ball is safe from being kicked is when play stops due to a foul or ball going out of play. In Aussie Rules, if you kick someone it's a report & suspension. For sure, Aussie Rules players have to cope with being punched in the face - usually, by a coward who does it when the victim is unable to protect himself. Most of society would call such behaviour grubby & cowardly, but some Aussie Rules fans think it's the sign of masculine toughness to punch people when they're not looking. Anyone can run. Anyone can jump. The fundamental skill with football is to be able to control & transition a round ball, without using hands. An Aussie Rules player is as likely as a swimmer, baseball player, tennis player, volleyball player, basketball player, etc to be able to transition his existing skills to the skills required to play professional football.

@ Nemesis 5.8 3.15 pm Of course goals are generally harder to kick in soccer than they are in Australian Football. Crossbar, and goal keeper on the line! I never suggested otherwise. My response to Kanga above related to ALL the relative skill requirements of both sports ie not just kicking goals. You are incorrect, in a practical sense, when you say "..the Aussie Rules ...kicking...area...( is) INFINITY metres high". If someone is 20 metres, the practical kicking area might be 12 metres high. If someone is 70 metres out, the practical kicking area might be less than 4 metres high(unless the kicker tries the much more difficult torpedo). If someone is on a very tight angle, the kicking area width might be less than 1 metre (unless the kicker tries the very risky and difficult inwards or outwards banana kick, or bouncing grubber kick). At any level of Australian Football, players are being constantly tackled/bumped/swung/pushed; and even opponent or "friendly-fire" accidental collisions in marking contests can cause serious injuries. Australian Football players, therefore, play with a permanent fear of constant and strong physical contact -and understandable fear of pain and/or injury. This fear is INIMICAL to good skill execution (unless one knows for certain contact will not occur eg a free kick). Australian Football, due to these factors, requires much courage to play. Soccer, as a primarily non-body contact sport, does not induce similar fears in its players, nor does it require much courage to play. I, therefore, reject the notion that a very skilful soccer player could automatically transfer to Australian Football (at any level). It would depend on the soccer player's pain tolerance levels and courage -traits not associated with soccer, due to its Rules, and it diving etc. 'cultural foundations'. I am not saying soccer players per se do not have these inherent traits; nor am I saying the average soccer player (after MUCH training on the tackle and bump bags!) could not become a competitive Australian Football player at District level.

Football requires players to move a ball into a goal area that is around 7m wide by 2.5m high without using hands. If Aussie Rules, swimming, golf, tennis, or any sport provides kids, juniors, teens with good grounding to do this then those sports will also be able to provide good football talent. From my observations, Aussie Rules requires people to catch & carry an oval ball with the aim of kicking it into an area approximately 2m wide and infinity meters high. There is more likelihood that a footballer who fails at professional level in football can succeed at professional level at Aussie Rules (e.g. Brad Green).

@ Kanga 3.8 8.22pm Notwithstanding that both games are completely different, I disagree with your view that " Aussie Rules footy doesn't require the skills that soccer does"; and your suggestion that soccer is more difficult to play than Australian Football. How many years did you play Australian Football as a junior? And as a senior (over 18 y.o.)? You have previously written you have also played many games in soccer and League. How many years did you play soccer as a junior? And as a senior? How many years did you play League as a junior? And as a senior?

Another great article Stu. Lets just hope that the W-League keep producing great players like this current crop for a long time to come,especially with AFLW and women’s cricket gaining strength and depth.

It's a moot point. They are still miles ahead of many African, South American, or Southern European teams when it comes to professionalism. And that's more than just payment, it's access to facilities and coaches too. My point is that these are the countries churning out talent on the men's side, far beyond what Australia is able to now or maybe ever. This just does not exist in the women's game.

@ Chris 3.8 2.11 pm I note you have neither challenged, nor rebutted, the many assertions I have made above. In particular, how does a young girl, aged, 15 who has only played soccer for 3 years, make the national Matilda's team -and stars in it! This repudiates your implication that soccer is more skilful than Australian Football. Kerr was not a "star" in junior Australian Football. The feedback from many female Australian Football players is that they prefer the COMPLEXITY of Australian Football. One has to use hands AND feet, both left AND right, mastering the far more difficult OVAL shaped ball (smaller sweetspot)...simultaneously whilst an opponent is usually trying to tackle/bump/push you (or perceived pressure). Obviously, not all have a cultural cringe that you seem to have ie " soccer is an international sport, ipso facto it is a superior game/pursuit to Australian Football". Erin Phillips (twice WNBA Champion and Olympics basketballer) and Sharni Layton (ex Diamonds Netball captain and winner of 2 world titles with the Diamonds) want to play in the AFLW. Melissa Barbieri, on TDFS podcast has stated, paraphrasing, " Many young girls will want to play Aussie Rules. I, and the other Matildas, love watching it, its tough, hard, and its our game". Cherrypicking individual players is facile. The current general skill level of AFLW players, compared to men in the AFL, is generally low- they have not been playing since they were 5 y.o. The AFLW only started in 2017, and it is the first time these players have been exposed to professional training etc. In about 10 years, it is expected the average skill levels will be FAR higher. The public AFLW support/crowds/Ratings etc (and participation levels) will then be significantly boosted. Even now, the AFLW, with average crowds of about 6500 per match, has probably the highest home and away competition, non-international, female stand-alone crowds in the world. After only 2 seasons! (I'm not sure if the WNBA ever plays double-headers with the NBA)

X In regards to your point about transferring to other sports. I found the transition to playing 10 years of semi pro Aussie rules incredibly easy , despite my grounding in rugby league and soccer. Its a tough gig to get to the top of any sport, but Aussie rules footy doesn’t require the skills that soccer does . It was my lack of skills at soccer is why I turned to the tackle sports . I think players like Andrew Johns and peter sterling and Nathen Buckley and akermmanis mark Ella were skilled enough if they took up soccer at a young age they could have made it .

That’s a simplistic view I don’t think the women work any harder then the men to make it to a professional level . There is no evidence that any professional player men or women didn’t work his butt off to get where they are . Are you implying there is a complacency from the Aussie men’s team. . Stunning observation after watching their most recent efforts in the World Cup Also the men play all year round with I’m guessing 2 weeks annual leave from training. Also A league players are playing 3 months of pre seadon games , usually about 8 games before the 7 month season . I totally enjoy the Matilda’s, but it’s just a unnecessary comparison to compare them to the men’s .

"The Matildas would all bank 6 figures. Easily enough to play full time." This is football. Not cricket. The National Team is picked based on the coach's choice for each tournament. They're not just contracted to the FFA because they played well 12 months ago. So, a complete novice like Mary Fowler gets picked based on her current form. In recent tournaments, Alex Chidiac & Elle Carpenter have been picked at young ages. They were not earning 6 figures when they got picked. If they don't perform, they'll get dropped from the National Team. The coach doesn't have to keep picking them because the Head Office has them under contract.

The minimum is not much, but that's for squad players. The Matildas would all bank 6 figures. Easily enough to play full time.

We are the same guy so I'm answering for myself. Probably saying they don't field a team is not quite right. More like they don't take the women's game seriously, it's not professional, women aren't free to access the game in those countries, or it's socially unacceptable for them to play. My comment is only to say that the women's game has a long way to go before the depth of quality can compare to the men, and Australia is one of the lucky few countries where women are free to pursue what they like.

"It’s not long ago that girs couldn’t play Australian Football beyond the age of 12." Really? Why was that? Did the AFL issue some sort of a ban, or religious sanction on anyone who orgainsed 2 teams of girls in a park to kick, catch & carry an oval ball? Was this ban legally enforeable? If it wasn't legally enforceable, what stopped 36 girls/women/females from gathering in a park & organising a game once a week? Once a month?

Maybe maybe not, however,Sam Kerr's brother who won a premiership in the AFL said, he give up his premiership medal to achieve what his sister had done, play in the Olympics, recognised around the world & be regarded as one of the world's best.

I think that's a reasonable point that joy of x is making. It's not long ago that girs couldn't play Australian Football beyond the age of 12, and there are a few famous of such girls turning to soccer and becoming quite successful. Now that we've had girls competition for a few years now, that's less likely to happen in the future. I don't think there will be a big impact, but the next time a Sam Kerr comes along, there's a strong chance she will stick with Australian Football rather than turn to soccer.

X I was merely pointing out what Sam Kerr has stated in the past about being asked (numerous times) why not go back to AFL? Even someone as young as Sam who grew up in an AFL home with a famous brother etc etc knows bs when she sees it. I suspect the AFL suits won't go public again asking her as she certainly pantsed them. I doubt they want to be embarrassed again by someone highlighting how insular their sport is. And on your point about AFLW players going to football etc. That will never surpass the number of footballers going to AFLW. I know a number of girls I have coached that have gone to play for GWS who were basically on their way down from playing semi top level football.

I think you got lost on the tabs here, this is the football tab, you want the AFL tab.