Lordanic: Catley phenomenal from the spot in Australia’s win (0:51)
Marissa Lordanic recaps Australia’s 1-0 win over Ireland in their World Cup opener. (0:51)
- Marissa Lordanic
Jul 22, 2023, 10:57 PM ET
BRISBANE – The Matildas have returned to the training track following Thursday’s 1-0 victory over the Republic of Ireland in their opening Women’s World Cup match.
As expected, injured skipper Sam Kerr did not participate in the warm-up, but looked to be walking unencumbered and without strapping around her leg as she greeted fans at an official FIFA training session.
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Kerr was a shock late scratching from Australia’s win over Ireland with a calf strain suffered the day before and is already ruled out of Thursday night’s clash against Nigeria in Brisbane.
Kerr was joined by Kyah Simon on the sidelines as the attacker continues to work her way back from an ACL injury. The only other players not participating in training were centre-back pairing Alanna Kennedy and Clare Hunt, with their loads being managed.
Hunt has been out of season since April while Kennedy is in only her second game back from a torrid injury run. The duo played the full game against Ireland and had plenty of work to do in a pressure-filled final 15 minutes.
In better news for the Matildas, midfielder Tameka Yallop trained with the main group, but still had some heavy strapping around her left thigh. In the leadup to the Ireland match, Yallop had trained away from the rest of the team but appears to be in contention for selection against Nigeria.
