Melbourne City head coach Michael Matricciani has eased concerns of a potential injury to star forward Holly McNamara after the CommBank Matildas winger hobbled off the pitch during City’s AFC Women’s Champions League win over Taichung Blue Whale on Sunday afternoon.
City beat Blue Whale 3-0 at Melbourne Rectangular Stadium in the quarter-final of the continental tournament; McNamara was at the heart of the comfortable City win, scoring one goal and forcing a Taichung own goal with a venomous cross.
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McNamara’s second-half goal came from the penalty spot – a spot kick the City winger won herself – to put City 3-0 ahead. Just minutes later, McNamara was substituted but not before a collision with Blue Whale forward Maho Tanaka in midfield.
The 22-year-old, who has suffered three anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries, attempted to carry on before going to ground holding her right knee.
But after getting to her feet and to the bench unassisted, City head coach Matricciani confirmed his star winger was “fine” after the collision and that her substitution was pre-planned.
“She was fine,” Matricciani said post-game. “She just (had) a collision. We’re planning on taking her off around that 60-minute (mark) anyway.
“Obviously we got the penalty, and I felt like we were in some decent control, so we wanted to rest her for Wednesday, and she got the pen, she got the goal, so she was happy, and now we recover.”
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After recovering from her third ACL injury, McNamara made her CommBank Matildas comeback in February, coming off the bench against Japan at the SheBelieves Cup in what was her first international appearance in 1,119 days.
McNamara’s City form since returning from the SheBelieves Cup has been outstanding and with Matildas interim head coach Tom Sermanni set to announce his next international squad for April’s two-game friendly series against South Korea, the City winger will hope to earn a spot among the playing group and continue her international return.
Sunday’s Women’s Champions League quarter-final win over Blue Whale kicked off an important week for both McNamara and City. On Wednesday, the club’s Ninja A-League campaign resumes with a midweek battle against Brisbane Roar. Then, the current league leaders and Premiership favourites head to New Zealand for a clash with Wellington Phoenix, prior to the April international break.
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But after the 3-0 win over Blue Whale, Matricciani was eager to emphasise that, although their focus would quickly turn to the busy week ahead, the club would take a moment on Sunday evening to appreciate the significance of their achievement in Asian competition, with their place in the semi-finals assured.
“We are very proud,” Matricciani said.
“We knew coming into today was going to be a difficult match. We needed to have 100% focus and to get the job done in a real professional manner. I felt the girls did an excellent job. And, yeah, very pleased to be through to the next round and get into a semi-final.”
