Sam Kerr - "For us it’s a big win, but we’re not getting too far ahead of ourselves"

Goal-scorer and captain Sam Kerr emphasised the importance of keeping calm as she conducted her post-match press duties after the CommBank Matildas defeated England 2-0 on Wednesday morning (AEST).

“It’s always nice to put in a good team performance and beat a top team, but we’ve got to take everything with a grain of salt before the World Cup,” she said.

“It’s about building on our performances and where we can get better. Of course it feels really nice right now, and we will enjoy it tonight, but it’s just one step in the journey towards the World Cup.”

She agreed that the result would be a confidence boost for the side, but no one was getting too ahead of themselves.

“Unfortunately, beating England tonight doesn’t win us anything. I wouldn’t be here if it did, I’d be out celebrating!” she joked.

“But no, it’s obviously really, really nice to put in a good performance. We’ve had some up and down performances over the last couple of months so to finish out tonight before the World Cup is really nice.

“England are a really good team. A lot of girls haven’t played a team like this or players as good as them, so it’s a big performance for us as a team. Some players also played really well individually too.”

Kerr scored the opening goal of the match, a poacher’s goal that pounced on an error from England captain Leah Williamson after a long ball from Clare Hunt.

“Honestly I thought the ball was going to get to me without the bounce, without Leah touching it, but the wind was swirly all night so I just had to prey on it,” she explained.

“Obviously as a striker that’s kind of what you do, you have to hope that someone makes a mistake, and just had to make sure I was there. Once I saw that it was floating, I knew that there was going to be a miscommunication between the two [Williamson and Mary Earps]. Unfortunately – well, fortunately for me, it went well.”

There were some concern’s over Kerr’s fitness after she missed the game against Scotland on Friday and was seen limping off the field this time around. She was quick to assure those present that she is okay.

“I’ve had a big few months – I’ve got a bit of a sore foot – but it was about the bigger picture,” she said.

“There’s a World Cup coming. Between the national team and Chelsea we’ve tried to figure out the best plan for myself which is best for both teams. This week, the best plan was, after a really big month with Chelsea, that it was best that we manage my load. The plan was always to play 90 minutes tonight.

“I’m good to go, and I’ll be good to go on Sunday against Villa.”

Finally, she was asked about the reaction back home to a CommBank Matildas victory against England this morning (AEST).

“England is such a footballing nation that when people wake up and see that the Matildas have beat England, it’s big news,” she said.

“For us it’s a big win, but like I said we’re not getting too far ahead of ourselves. England are a good team. We have to go home and play with all of those pressures of the home crowd, but these wins are obviously good for the team and obviously for the fans.

“Hopefully waking up today there’s a few happy Aussies.”