Tom Sermanni took interim charge of the team in September. (Photo by Frederic Scheidemann/Getty … [+]
Australia women’s interim head coach Tom Sermanni said he is looking at Saturday’s friendly against Taiwan as an opportunity to utilize the squad and offer game time to several players.
Australia will face Taiwan in its second friendly at GMHBA Stadium in Geelong after winning the first game 3-1 in Melbourne’s AAMI Park on Wednesday.
Saturday’s match will be the Matildas’ final fixture of 2024 before the team begins its 2025 campaign at the SheBelieves Cup in February in the United States.
“These kinds of games have got a variety of purposes,” said Sermanni, who was named the interim coach in September following Tony Gustavsson’s exit after the Paris Olympics.
“Winning is one of the purposes. But also trying to have a look at players or as many players as we can.
“It’s not always possible to do that, but you try.
“What we’re trying to do is utilize the squad and give players a chance to actually get on the field at some stage.”
Sermanni said he would make changes to the team that started the first friendly but confirmed Clare Polkinghorne will be in the lineup, as she bids farewell to professional soccer.
It will be centre-back Polkinghorne’s 169th and final international appearance for Australia – 18 years after her debut.
“Speak to any Victorians — it doesn’t get any better than that for a Queenslander?” Sermanni joked, in relation to her finishing her career in Victoria.
‘It’s Looking Positive’
The Australian team celebrates a goal during the FIFA International friendly match against Taiwan at … [+]
Forward Michelle Heyman said the win over Taiwan in the first friendly helped boost the new-look side’s confidence.
Before facing Taiwan, Australia played two friendlies against Brazil, losing 3-1 and 2-1.
“I think the last two games against Brazil were very physical, so I think for ourselves, [winning] just builds confidence, especially having a new squad within this team,” said Heyman.
“It’s exciting, it’s fun. It’s nice to see new faces and just get a different vibe of camp.
“We came away with the win, so it’s looking positive,” she added.
Heyman, who played up top alongside Emily Gielnik in the last game, said she was happy with their performance although there is room for improvement.
“It was fun. I think we can definitely work on a few things together, get used to each other – I think we’ve only had one training session, so it always makes life a little bit difficult,” she added.
“But the positive is, we [the team] still scored goals. We still made runs in behind. We tried to create chances, and it’s especially quite challenging when it comes against teams who sit in the deep block.
“Another learning experience, and hopefully we can turn things around for the next game, and come out firing and continue to score more goals.”
Winger Sharn Freier said that the two friendlies provided good preparation for the AFC Asian Cup 2026, where Australia may well face Taiwan.
“Most teams like that, they sit in a [low] block. So for us to practice and work on that, see how we can break them down and do that, it’s really important for our preparation, said Freier, who scored the second goal in the last friendly.
