Mary Fowler and Sam Kerr absences felt as Matildas fans blast ‘pathetic’ Brazilian tactics

Matildas fans were left fuming over some of the time-wasting tactics and rough play from Brazil on Thursday night as Australia felt the absence of Mary Fowler and Sam Kerr in a 3-1 loss. The Brazilians bullied the Matildas from kick-off and dominated the home side with physicality.

The ‘friendly’ turned into a physical, fiery and spiteful clash at Suncorp Stadium, with Caitlin Foord and Hayley Raso becoming incensed by some of the treatment they received. The Brazilians were eventually reduced to 10 players after Vitoria Calhau received a second yellow card in the 86th minute for a professional foul on Ellie Carpenter.

But even with an extra player the Matildas couldn’t score, with the strike-power of Fowler and Kerr noticeably missing up front. Kerr is still recovering after rupturing her ACL in January, while Fowler has opted to skip the friendlies against Brazil and Taiwan to prioritise her physical and mental wellbeing.

It means the Aussies are missing two of their biggest attacking weapons, and it was glaring for all to see as the Matildas struggled to finish off chances on Thursday night. Foord found the back of the net near the end of the first half, but the Matildas seemed to wilt under the relentless physicality of the away team.

“It was a super-physical game. We expect that from Brazil, but it definitely was another level tonight,” captain Steph Catley said after the game. “Maybe it wasn’t controlled early enough, and it then got a little bit reckless as the game opened up, and people got a bit more tired. So that was a little bit disappointing.

“But a lot of the duels we had, we saw Caitlin and Raso fighting up there and trying to keep the ball and trying to make chances from what we could, and in games like that you just have to ride the wave at points. We tried to figure things out at times. We didn’t get it right. And it’ll be something we have to go back and look at. We tried to match it and do our best in that area. But obviously, we didn’t do enough.”

Matildas manager critical of refereeing against Brazil

The Matildas’ interim manager Tom Sermanni said Brazil’s pace and physicality at the start of the game proved the difference, but lamented the lack of authority shown from the referee. “I don’t think the referee necessarily determined the outcome of the game, but she certainly determined how the game was played,” he said.

“And with her lack of control and allowing Brazil to basically bully her, it changed the dynamic of the game and made it a little bit more difficult for us. So that certainly had, I think, an impact.

“Our players did as well as they could. They showed the frustration to the referee, but they still, I thought, maintained the discipline within the game, and didn’t do anything reckless. But it became very frustrating, and it did dictate, I think, how the game was played. We just hope that, obviously, that doesn’t happen in the second game.”

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Fans lash ‘pathetic’ Brazilian tactics against Matildas

Some Brazilian players suffered legitimate injuries, but others appeared to go down very easily to waste time. There were large chunks of additional time added in both halves, leaving fans frustrated and describing it was “awful” and “pathetic” on social media.

“It is frustrating but unfortunately that’s international football,” Catley said. “And that’s part of playing against teams like this. They’re very street smart, and we let them get two goals early, and that opens the door to those kind of tactics, and that’s on us.

“If we’re in the game and we haven’t let them score, then they have to score, and they don’t have time to do stuff like that. That’s international football. It’s frustrating, but you’ve got to try and keep your head as much as you can and hope that the referees are controlling it and giving us as much of a chance, despite the tactics.”

with AAP