There were twelve CommBank Matildas on the pitch at Marvel Stadium on Friday night, as the A-League All Stars Women took on Arsenal.
In the starting eleven for the All Stars were seven Matildas: Lydia Williams; Elise Kellond-Knight; Alex Chidiac; Cortnee Vine; Tameka Yallop; Kyah Simon; and Michelle Heyman. The team consisted of all of the best performers from the A-League Women in the 2023/24 season.
Jada Whyman and Sophie Harding rounded out the Matildas from the bench.
They came up against an Arsenal team stacked with talent. The players that started included French legend Sarah Bouhaddi in goals, Scottish international and former A-League Women player Kim Little, England international Alessia Russo, and Republic of Ireland captain Katie McCabe.
But, of course, the Gunners aren’t known as ‘Ausenal’ for nothing – and Kyra Cooney-Cross, Steph Catley, and Caitlin Foord all started the match.
It was Cortnee Vine who looked the most likely for the All Stars in the early stages. Her threat up the right-hand side was causing consistent headaches for Arsenal, particularly Katie McCabe, who she was in direct confrontation with.
Caitlin Foord was also busy for Arsenal, relying on her trademark run at the defence from wide and before cutting back inside. It is an approach that has caused problems for defenses all over the world and it again looked dangerous on Friday night.
It was the Gunners who opened the scoring. Youngster Vivienne Lia’s cross found Alessia Russo in the box, who made no mistake from close range, heading in the first goal of the game.
Just before half-time, goalkeeper Jada Whyman was introduced to the pitch in place of Lydia Williams. Williams left the field to a standing ovation after having announced her retirement from the CommBank Matildas, effective after Paris 2024™, in the past fortnight.
The break saw a raft of changes for both sides, with Steph Catley and Tameka Yallop withdrawn from their respective teams. It meant that the second half had a different feel to it than the first as the All Stars tried to get back into the game.
Julie Dolan medallist for best A-League Women's player for the 2023/24 season Sophie Harding entered the pitch in the 55th minute.
The best chance for the All Stars to equalise came late in the second half when New Zealand international Hannah Wilkinson found an opening. However, young Arsenal goalkeeper Naomi Williams came up big with a save to remember.
All in all, it was a night to remember for the over 42,000 fans who turned up to Marvel Stadium to see their heroes - Matildas Abroad, and At Home - battle it out.