Kerr scored her 75th goal for Australia. It couldn’t have been easier
Ian Chadband
Sam Kerr’s 75th international goal may have been the softest he ever scored as he sent his Matildas to a surprisingly scrappy and controversial 2-0 victory over Kenya in the FIFA Series final in Nairobi.
In front of 20,000 excited fans at Nyayo Stadium, goals in each half from captain Kerr and midfielder Clare Wheeler proved enough for Australia to complete their breakthrough tour with victory at Thursday morning AEST.
But Joe Montemurro’s side came away believing they had missed Caitlin Foord’s third goal; This goal was disallowed for some reason, surprising everyone in the stadium except the referee.
However, the Kenyan hosts showed Kerr’s team, the reigning Asian Cup finalists, that the world of women’s football was on their heels; The 128th-placed team proved their match in the first half against the 15th-placed Matildas, losing just one point in the first half due to a terrible goalkeeping error.
Rather, Kenya had their best chance before disaster struck for the home side in the 25th minute when Jamilla Rankin’s corner found Kerr unmarked in the penalty area.
Kerr slightly missed her shot and couldn’t believe it when the ball sailed through goalkeeper Lillian Awuor’s fingers. The Kenyan shot-stopper was so clumsy that he ended up pacing angrily.
Kenya responded well though and twice came close to equalizing before the break; The first was Shalyne Opisa’s thrilling run and shot which brought a stunning save from Mackenzie Arnold and then Fasila Adhiambo charged down the right wing and fired a shot onto the post.
Kerr and Foord combined twice for the Matildas’ chances to settle early in the second half; Foord picked out Wheeler, who broke through the Kenyan defense and used neat footwork to get past several defenders and score in the 54th minute.
The Matildas swore they had grabbed a third an hour later when Amy Sayer’s cross evaded Kerr and found Foord, who appeared to fire a powerful shot from a tight angle at the far post.
Complete confusion reigned as the referee hurried to erase the goal with chalk, apparently believing that the goal was not in goal. The Matildas and manager Joe Montemurro protested and striker Foord was shown a yellow card for their continued argument.
This meant the Matildas were still not home and dry as Winonah Heatley had to make a terrific tackle to rob Kenyan sub Elizabeth Mideva as she was about to shoot on goal.
It was a landmark afternoon for Alanna Kennedy, who became the fifth Matilda to make 150 appearances and was named captain for the day. The 31-year-old joins teammate Emily van Egmond, Clare Polkinghorne, Cheryl Salisbury and Lisa De Vanna in the elite club.
AAP
