CommBank Matildas defender Steph Catley said that the team backs themselves to get the job done at the AFC Women’s Asian Cup Australia 2026™ final against a strong Japan team.
She was speaking to media on Thursday morning after the team learned their opponents for the final, which will take place on Saturday.
“They're very technical and a great team, but it's definitely not ‘mission impossible,’” she said.
“We’ve beaten Japan before. We have our own strengths that they’ll be looking at and they'll be worried about. The fact that it's a final - anything can happen. I’ve played in so many finals where my team's been the underdog and everyone's not given us a chance or written us off, and we’ve come out and won.
“It’s football, and anything can happen. We’re a great footballing side, and we back ourselves. We're absolutely ready, and I'm sure it will be a great game.”
She said she watched Japan’s semi-final against Korea Republic with an analytical eye, discussing areas that the team might be able to exploit with teammate Caitlin Foord.
Catley, Foord and Kyra Cooney-Cross’ Arsenal was victorious in the UEFA Women’s Champions League final last year against Barcelona in similar circumstances, where their opponents were considered the favourites for the match.
“Naturally, you look at different ways that you can exploit a team. You look at different ways where they're very good, and you think about how you can alleviate that,” she said.
“They look like a complete team at the moment. They look very, very strong. They've had a great tournament, and seemingly cruised through most of the time. It’ll be really interesting.
“I sat there [watching the game] with Caitlin Foord in treatment, and we were just discussing ways that we thought would be best to set up and where we can take advantage of certain areas.
“At the end of the day, that's up to the coaching staff. We'll see what game plan they come up with, and then it's our job to execute it as best we can.”
She explained the team would be looking to be better on the ball in the final, but that they had strengths in multiple different areas that could benefit them against Japan.
“In terms of possession, we probably didn't protect the ball as well as we could have in the last game, so it's definitely something we're looking to improve on,” she said.
“You can't keep giving the ball back to a team like Japan, you've got to keep it. We’ve got a team full of top footballers, so we definitely can be better on the ball.
“We're also a team full of athletes and very good athletic players, so counter-attacking football is something that we're very good at as well. The fact that we can do both is definitely one of our strengths.
“We’ll see what Joe [Montemurro] has in store for us in terms of the game plan, and we just have to go out and execute it.”
Catley expressed how much winning the trophy on Saturday would mean to her.
“I'm very proud to play for my country,” she said.
“I've been playing with a lot of these girls since I was in youth age groups, 13 or 14 years old. We have not won a major trophy. We put ourselves in a position to a few times. It would just be incredible to come away with the trophy for this group. It's a generation of footballers that I'm proud to be part of.
“This team in particular, this time around, this Asian Cup - this squad is really, really special. It's been a great tournament to be part of, and the young girls coming through have been amazing as well. To get the ultimate prize at the end of it would be amazing.
“At the end of the day, getting a trophy with this national team would mean absolutely everything to me.”
Ultimately, while the team are aware of the challenge against Japan, the CommBank Matildas are incredibly excited for it.
“We play against loads of their players in the WSL consistently, and they're always up there with the most talented, most consistent players in the team,” she said.
“They're just full of talent. They're so intelligent. As a unit, they're just a great team. So it's something we're going to have to be so ready for, and it's a massive challenge - but we're excited for it.”
AFC Women’s Asian Cup Australia 2026™ Final
Japan v CommBank Matildas
Date: Saturday, 21 March 2026
Venue: Stadium Australia, Sydney
Time: 8:00pm AEDT
Broadcast: Network 10 and Paramount+
Radio: ABC Sport & ABC Listen
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