Before a ball had been kicked, there was confusion.
The line-up for the Matildas’ clash against the USA announced the front three of Sam Kerr, Caitlin Foord and Kyah Simon for a third straight game.
After their exploits in the previous matches and with 281 caps between them, it made sense.
Except when the camera panned across the Australian players during the national anthem, there was no Foord. Instead, between Emily van Egmond and Ellie Carpenter was 18-year-old Mary Fowler.
Caitlin Foord of the Matildas (Photo by Steve Christo/Corbis via Getty Images)
Fowler ran out the full 90 against the USA and was on the end of the Matildas’ best chance in a scoreless draw. Her link up play with Simon, in particular, was excellent. She rotated through the front three as all of Australia’s forwards have at this tournament.
She did not look out of place at all.
“As a kid, it’s the one dream I had in sports so it feels amazing,” Fowler shared on the Matildas website after the squad announcement.
“It was just the thing that would top off my sporting career, to say that I’m an Olympian, I’ve been there.”
Not only has she been there but she’s contributed. Depending on the severity of the niggle that saw Foord withdrawn, there could be more to come.
Fowler has been a constant in 2021 for the Matildas, featuring in each of their eight games this year. But it feels like it took forever to get to this point.
Fowler emerged as a prodigiously talented 15-year-old. She made her debut against Brazil in 2018, replacing Sam Kerr in injury time of a Tournament of Nations game. She featured in friendlies later that year against England and France.
“She’s probably got the most amount of weapons I’ve seen from a young player her age in women’s football,” former Matildas coach Alen Stajcic told AAP back in 2018.
Australian fans liked what they saw. Excitement grew when then-16-year-old Fowler was named to the squad to go to France for the 2019 World Cup.
That should have been the time for Fowler to impress on the world stage. But she never took to the park.
Mary Fowler for the Young Matildas in 2018. (Photo by Jason McCawley/Getty Images).
It was frustrating on two levels. Firstly, with talent and fearlessness, Fowler could have helped the Matildas during the tournament. Instead she was on the bench.
Secondly, Fowler’s future in a green and gold shirt wasn’t certain. Despite being a Young Matilda with over 15 goals to her name and minutes in ‘A’ internationals for the senior team, Australia wasn’t the only team available to her.
Fowler was eligible for Ireland through her father. Two of her siblings had represented the country at youth level. And with no minutes in a major tournament, she wasn’t country-tied to Australia.
Excitement turned to frustration in some quarters. ‘Why didn’t we cap her?’ was a catch cry for many months after the World Cup. There was fear that Australia would lose this supreme talent. Previous fractures with the governing body over Mary’s father blocking her call-up to a camp had the potential to wreak havoc.
But a season with Adelaide United, a mended relationship with the governing body, and a move to Montpellier seemed to fix things. All that was left was that country-tying cap.
It came in Tokyo, in the 75th minute against New Zealand.
Now Australian fans can enjoy Fowler’s football knowing a long career with the Matildas has only begun.
Lionheart
Roar Rookie
yes, I agree Jupiter53, she's all over the place in most games, not all, but it is irritating at times because she doesn't have the best touch and she's not a midfielder. She sometimes disrupts play with her touch. Having said that, I remember a W League semi-final, two seasons back I think, where she really did win the game with her play multiple-positions technique.
jupiter53
Roar Pro
Her combativeness and work ethic is something that I have come to expect from anyone in the Matildas squad. To me, the really exciting thing about Mary Fowler is her touch. She has the best close control in the team; she brings the ball quickly and economically under control, and keeps it close as she chooses what to do. Many of the other Matildas struggle with basic control; even such a high level player as Carpenter regularly hits the ball too far ahead when dribbling, and has to chase it into a needless contest. Fowler has the sort of touch that gives time to look up and dictate play; and given that she appears intelligently aware of those around her, it is going to be really exciting to see her as a regular starter.
jupiter53
Roar Pro
From my observations, Kerr makes lots of runs back into midfield looking for the ball, which often does not come, so she runs forward and then back into midfield, again and again. She makes sideways runs, rotating position to both flanks to interchange with the other forwards to try to disrupt defensive marking. She is active in the first line of defence, as are the other forwards, and she comes back her penalty area to defend when that is needed. In summary, she runs a lot. I have no idea on what you based your conclusion, but you are flat out wrong.
chris
Guest
Thanks for the article Marissa. She definitely is a player going places and she doesn't lack confidence either. I can see our future teams being built around her and that ball of energy Ellie Carpenter.
Marissa Lordanic
Expert
Cheers! Can't wait to see a heap more of her (and hopefully a couple more goals too)
Naughty's Headband
Roar Rookie
Unlike Kerr, who is the laziest footballer in the team.
Lionheart
Roar Rookie
Nice article, thanks Marissa. She's a talent, no doubt.
Ben of Phnom Penh
Roar Guru
She is simply wonderful as a footballer; prepared to do the difficult work defending high up the pitch as well as the fun bits at the pointy end, particularly timing her runs off the shoulder of the last defender. Here’s to hoping she is afforded a start against GB.