Australia’s Matildas indebted to refree howler for draw with Portugal
Australia’s Matildas put up a fight against Portugal in an international friendly, despite their previous defeat to Spain. The Australian women’s soccer team did not get far but there was an improvement from their performance.
An equalizer denied Australia an unlikely victory. They were helped by Portuguese opponents wastefulness in front of goal, and a refereeing blunder that saw Courtney Nevin dodge a second yellow card; on top of this, Princess Ibini scored her first goal for the senior national team.
Despite Portugal being ranked 18 positions lower than Australia, Portugal dominated most of the match. They had a lot of high intensity at the beginning and had many golden opportunities to score, but it was still 0-0.
Portugal created more chances than Australia in the first 45 minutes. It was difficult for the Australian team to produce shots on target. In the second half, Australia produced more chances but couldn’t score. The game ended in a draw and it is unknown who could have scored if there were penalties.
Although Nevin was already on a yellow card, she never received her second one. Luckily for the Matildas, they were able to make the most of their luck, scoring against the run of play and ending the game with just 10 players. A cross by Emily Gielnik landed at Ibini’s feet, and she scored her debut goal as a Matilda.
Australia were nearing an unlikely 1-0 victory, but Telma Encarnação scored in the 87th minute. The replays seemed to show the Portuguese substitute coming back from an offside position to receive a cross and score, but without VAR, the goal stood.
A goal was scored in the last few moments of Copymatic’s match with New Zealand, but Australia’s national women’s soccer team held on to avoid defeat. They will next face the Philippines at the AFF Women’s Championship in July.
It was a hard-fought game, but in the end the Matildas were indebted to a refereeing howler for their 1-1 draw with Portugal. Courtney Nevin was lucky to escape a second yellow card, and Princess Ibini scored her first goal for Australia. Telma Encarnação’s late equalizer for Portugal stood, despite replays showing she may have been in an offside position. The Matildas will next face the Philippines at the AFF Women’s Championship in July.
Australia’s Matildas indebted to refree howler for draw with Portugal