Australia beat Nigeria 2-0 courtesy of Kyah Simon’s brace, which
gives the Matildas three valuable points in their quest to reach the
Round of 16 at the FIFA Women’s World Cup™.
With warmer
temperatures in Winnipeg than the two teams experienced on Monday, the
opening stages of the Group D contest lacked any real pace or scoring
opportunities. Desire Oparanozie looked dangerous for Nigeria up front
but her final touch was off the mark on a few occasions in the first ten
minutes.
Almost half-an-hour in, Australia captain Lisa De
Vanna made a driving run through the heart of the Nigerian defence
before passing off to Kyah Simon, who lifted the ball over Precious Dede
and into the net to give the Matildas the lead. Nigeria were put on the
back foot after Australia’s opener, and it was nearly 2-0 but Simon’s
first effort was blocked and De Vanna’s volley from the rebound fired
just wide.
The Super Falcons then began to threaten at the other
end, but Australia goalkeeper Lydia Williams stymied Oparanozie at the
edge of the box with a great sliding challenge to take the ball straight
off the No9’s foot. Seconds later, Ngozi Okobi attempted an ambitious
volley from long-range, which drew a gasp from the fans, but her effort
sailed high.
The Matildas doubled their lead with Simon scoring
her second after Samantha Kerr floated in a lofted cross that found her
and Tameka Butt unmarked. Simon was in a better position to put it past
Dede, which she did comfortably. Laura Alleway was denied by the
crossbar in the final minutes, and the Matildas never looked troubled at
the other end of the pitch as they held on to keep the clean sheet
intact for Williams.
Nigeria face a difficult task as they
realistically need victory against USA to progress to the knockout
stages, while an exciting match in prospect awaits the Edmonton crowd,
when the Matildas face Sweden on Tuesday.
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