CommBank Matildas midfielder Kyra Cooney-Cross said that it was "really special" to score her first international goal on home turf.
She scored the second goal of her Matildas career in the team's 5-0 victory over New Zealand in Gosford on Friday evening. She scored her first goal against Germany, but that game was away from home. Scoring another superb long-range strike was made all the more memorable by being in front of home fans.
"I didn't think I was going to be scoring for another 50 games, so to be scoring tonight, it's a really nice feeling," she said.
"It definitely feels a lot more special tonight compared to when we played Germany away. Watching that video back and hearing the crowd, it's amazing, and it's really special scoring on home turf.
"We're in Australia and we have our fans supporting us, we have our family and friends, young boys and girls that want to just be like the Matildas - it makes it really special."
She laughed when asked if she was even capable of scoring a more straightforward goal.
"Let's keep it as only bangers," she joked.
It can seem to the outside that a long-range strike like the one that Cooney-Cross scored is a spur-of-the-moment decision. However, the 23-year-old revealed that she had been plotting it for much of the game.
"I saw the keeper off her line throughout the whole game," she said.
"I was yelling at a couple of the girls to have a shot while the keeper was off her line. So I knew the whole game, before I got the ball."
Playing significant minutes for Australia, on the back of consecutive 90-minute performances for club side Arsenal, is something that she said signified "progress" for her as a player.
"Before coming here, I played two 90-minute games," she recalled.
"I always had to be ready for when I got that opportunity at Arsenal - and also coming here, potentially playing 90 minutes as well. Getting that goal tonight is progress, building slowly, and it feels good.
"[Friday's game] is a massive confidence booster, a massive win as well. Going into our next match in Adelaide on Tuesday, we're going to have a lot of confidence, but we also know it's not going to be an easy game. They're going to come in harder, and we have so many more things to work on. We'll work on that going into it."
She had a simple message for fans on Tuesday evening.
"It's going to be another good game, with hopefully many more goals. Come out and support us in Adelaide."
COMMBANK MATILDAS | NEXT GAME
CommBank Matildas v New Zealand
Date: Tuesday, 2 December 2025
Kick-off: 8pm ACDT
Venue: Coopers Stadium, Adelaide
Broadcast: Network 10, 10 Play and Paramount+
Tickets: Buy Tickets