Australia’s Round of 16 hopes have received a major boost after star Sam Kerr emphatically confirmed her availability to face Canada in the co-hosts’ crucial do-or-die Group A match on Monday.
The Matildas were forced to navigate their first two World Cup matches without the Chelsea striker after Kerr sustained a calf injury on the eve of the tournament.
And while Australia mustered a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Republic of Ireland in their opening match courtesy of a second-half Steph Catley penalty, the Kerr-sized hole proved too glaring as Tony Gustavsson ’s side lost an early lead to suffer a shock 3-2 defeat to Nigeria.
Following Canada’s 2-1 comeback victory over Republic of Ireland, Australia sit third in Group A and require victory over second-place Canada to secure progression to the tournament’s knockout stages.
It’s a heady task, one far from that envisioned by Gustavsson and co. heading into the tournament's opening stages. But the Matilda’s relished positive news as all-time scorer Kerr declared herself fit to face the reigning Olympic champions just days after the Australian manager provided a concerning update on the 29-year-old.
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“I'm feeling good," said Kerr. "I was out on the pitch today.
“It's going to go down to the wire - I'm definitely going to be available.
"It's hilarious because I have the biggest calves in the world so I'm not sure why it decided to play up the day before the World Cup.
"But that's football, isn't it? I'm going to be there. I'm going to be ready. And, like we said at the very start of [the injury], the plan was to miss the first two games and reassess and that's where we are now.”
Sam Kerr of Australia looks on during the FIFA Women's World Cup Group B match between Australia and Nigeria (Photo by Elsa - FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images)An all-or-nothing World Cup match on home soil is precisely the type of stage made for Kerr, whose litany of big-game moments reads like a biblical appendix.
That Kerr has not been able to provide those moments for her country has proven tough and she admitted that she’s “not a good bench sitter”.
As her side tossed away a 1-0 lead over Nigeria, her inability to impact the match grated harshly against the striker, but Kerr considered herself lucky that the injury sustained was minor, referencing what appears to be an ACL tear suffered by England’s Keira Walsh on Friday against Denmark.
"I've never had an injury like this in my career,” Kerr said. “I mean touch wood this is the last [one], but normally when I've been injured it's been really a big one where I've been out for months on end.
"So it's kind of an easy pill to swallow, but I think with these ones it's a bit more annoying.
“It was obviously disappointing and then I had to kind of suck it up. I'm part of a team. I'm not a part of an individual sport, it's not about me and that's what I've done over the last however many days; I've had to put the team first.
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"I've done everything under the sun to get fit to be selected. I've given everything in the last 10 days, and four years before that, to be here.”
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