CommBank Matildas interim head coach Tom Sermanni admits the return of Melbourne City star Holly McNamara was one of the only positives to come out of their bruising 4-0 loss to Japan in their SheBelieves Cup opener.
McNamara returned to the Green and Gold after 1,119 days away from the international set-up having now fully recovered after suffering a third ACL injury but the Matildas were swept aside by Asian rivals Japan on Friday (AEDT).
“It was fantastic,” said Sermanni when asked about the return of the Melbourne City star who came on in the second-half.
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“You know, she’s had three ACL’s, so she’s just come back from the third one, and she’s done a huge amount of rehab and preparation to come back.
“It was really good to see her out there and lively and that will be a big asset to us going forward.
“So it’s really good, probably the main good bit of the day.”
CommBank Matildas interim head coach Tom Sermanni on the return of Holly McNamara
Named on the subs bench alongside a plethora of Ninja A-League players, McNamara watched on as the Matildas found themselves a goal down after just six minutes at the Shell Energy Stadium in Houston as Mina Tanaka’s clever flick found the bottom corner.
Tanaka then bagged her and Japan’s second in the 32nd minute, capitalising on a defensive mix-up between Clare Hunt and Alana Kennedy to slot the ball beyond the advancing Mackenzie Arnold to cap off a disappointing first-half for Australia.
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Hoping for a change in the second-half, Japan continued to exert their dominance after the break and put the game to bed in the 52nd minute; Maika Hamano slotting the ball home from close range after the Matildas backline were pulled out of position by some excellent Japanese build-up play.
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Sermanni then rang the changes, making a quadruple change in the 64th minute which saw McNamara come on in place of Caitlin Foord while fellow Ninja A-League star Daniela Galic also entered the fray.
Sadly for the Matildas though the changes did little to swing the momentum back in their favour as central defender Moeka Minami made it 4-0 in the 75th minute, beating Arnold to a lofted cross into the box to flick home their fourth.
Newcastle Jets defender Natasha Prior was introduced to the game late on to gain valuable minutes ahead of what could be a much-changed side ahead of their second SheBelieves Cup fixture against USA on Monday morning.
