Neither rain nor more rain could prevent play today when the Westfield Matildas drew 2-2 with DPR Korea in the first of two friendlies scheduled as part of their Asian Cup preparation.
Days' worth of record rainfall, which was at times torrential throughout the warm up and match, meant that the pitch was more than a little slippery and the players soaked before they'd even set foot on it. The rest of us, not used to seeing so much rain in Queensland, were starting to wonder if we'd need to build an ark.
Ranked fifth in the world and first in Asia, Korea would be a solid test leading into the Asian Cup, which handily doubles as a 2011 Women's World Cup Qualifier. So, while it was a friendly, the Matildas were aware that it was an indication of how they'd fare when sheep stations were on the line.
But while I huddled up in the stands cursing myself for not wearing more layers and bringing a cushion to ward off the butt-numbing concrete cold, the Matildas held their own against the Koreans.
All I could think was: what a long way Australian football has come.
It was a friendly, the playing combinations were relatively new, and the conditions were incredibly trying, but the Matildas looked the goods. And in the moments when they didn't, they showed characteristic determination to win back the ball and score.
The Matildas, who'd been training on the Gold Coast for the previous week after their clean sweep of friendlies against the lower-ranked New Zealand, dominated the opening minutes of play. But the technically-gifted Koreans found their feet shortly thereafter, and punished them for a momentary lapse in concentration with a goal.
The Matildas missed a number of goal scoring chances in the following minutes, with on-target shots delivered straight to the keeper. Goalkeeper Lydia Williams had a scare right on half time when she did enough to tip a shot onto the crossbar, then fell backwards and knocked her head against the upright. But she played on in the second half and the Matildas' patience and build ups paid off, with Katie Gill heading in a beautifully weighted long-range Lauren Colthorpe pass to equalise.
The Matildas took the lead when Lisa de Vanna ran onto and poached a loose pass and slotted the ball low and to the right, but the Koreans cancelled it out when they took advantage of the Matildas' slowness to organise themselves defensively against a throw in.
Regardless of the score, what was clear about the match was that the Matildas are on track. And that's without even their strongest combinations, as National coach Tom Sermanni rested some of the more experienced Matildas—Sarah Walsh, Heather Garriock, Melissa Barbieri, and Leena Khamis to name a few.
The only dampener of the match came not from the weather but from the fact that Servet Uzunlar, who'd received her first Matildas call up, appeared to injure her knee late in the second half. Here's hoping the injury isn't too serious and she makes a speedy, in-time-for-the-Asian-Cup recovery.
The second Matildas v DPR Korea friendly, which is open to the public and which is likely to play out in similarly slippery conditions, kicks off at 3pm at Ballymore on Saturday, March 6. Ticket holders from tonight's Socceroos match against Indonesia will be given free entry.
