Mary Fowler on target as Matildas secure back-to-back wins over South Korea | OneFootball

Mary Fowler gave the Matildas cause for optimism ahead of next year’s Asian Cup after a fine first-half finish and some second-half wizardry helped secure a second friendly victory over continental rivals South Korea in the space of four days, this one ending 2-0 in Newcastle in front of a record crowd.

The Matildas were missing half their first choice line-up to injury and were well-matched against the visitors for much of this physical chess match, but proved resilient in keeping the opposition scoreless and accelerated away in a dominant second half.

While uncertainty still hangs over Australia’s vacant coach position and the recovery of captain Sam Kerr, Fowler’s breakthrough in the first half offered a model for the next era of Matildas success, leveraging talent both old and emerging.

Fullback Courtney Nevin, a long-time fringe player, was brought into the starting side for Monday’s clash and had looked largely in control of the left flank after a couple of early scares. Late in the first half she made a significant contribution with a fine ball square to veteran Emily van Egmond, who had dropped back between the Koreans’ defence and midfield on the edge of the area.

After a touch to control, the Novocastrian found Fowler’s angled run in between two Korean defenders with a majestically weighted ball that allowed the new face of the Matildas to burst through and finish from inside 10 yards, keeping her feet even as two red-shirted defenders lay sprawled on the turf.

The move was a reminder of the magic of the Matildas that has been sorely lacking since their semi-final performance at the 2023 World Cup, in a disappointing run that saw the side drop to their equal lowest world ranking of 16.

Given South Korea stood just three places beneath them, this series served as a marker indicating which direction the Matildas are heading, especially given the shock of the 2022 Asian Cup quarter-final between the sides that ended the Matildas’ run in that tournament.

What this two-match series showed is that while Australia are far from guaranteed to leap back towards the summit of world football, at least they are no longer tumbling the other way. The turnout in Newcastle – 28,019 – shows the side retains the faith of the Australian public, and means around 65,000 fans attended these two friendly matches.

They were treated to a comedy delight of a goal in the second half, and this time it started with Fowler. She won possession on the left wing and delivered a teasing lofted cross that sent panic through the Korean defence, and half-time substitute Caitlin Foord – who could have had a hat-trick after her introduction – had a string of efforts blocked.

The ball finally spilled to another substitute, Kaitlyn Torpey, who smashed an effort into the hapless Lim Seonjoo who was scurrying back towards her net. It left the Korean defender lying prone across the goal-line with another own goal to her name after her unfortunate intervention in Friday’s clash. To make matters worse, Lim was taken from the field injured.

The Matildas continued to dominate the second half despite a succession of substitutions, with Foord – having avoided serious injury from a head clash on Friday – central to much of the positive play. South Korea had the ball in the net with five minutes to go from a set piece crossed into the box, but the goal was ruled out for offside.

With five first choice players unavailable due to injury – Mackenzie Arnold, Ellie Carpenter, Katrina Gorry, Hayley Raso and Sam Kerr – this was a chance to impress for the next generation.

Everton’s Clare Wheeler was slotted into one of the two holding midfielder roles along Kyra Cooney-Cross, relegating Wini Heatley the bench. But Wheeler’s mistake in giving away possession on the edge of the area almost gifted the visitors the opener inside the first 10 minutes.

Both sides had half chances in the early period as Australia’s new line-up struggled to settle. But that gave way to an arm-wrestle between two teams who at that stage appeared evenly matched. A lull took over the game, with the Koreans finding a way to evade the Australian press, and the home side unable to find enough quality around the area.

Yet from when Fowler – with boyfriend Nathan Cleary watching from the stands – stormed onto Van Egmond’s ball in the box, steadied, then smashed home, the Matildas only grew in confidence. That optimism will come in handy as the team looks forward to the friendlies against Argentina next month, and then to the Asian Cup on home soil early next year.

Header image: [Photograph: Cameron Spencer/Getty Images]