Melbourne City sensation Daniela Galic and Central Coast Mariners’ Peta Trimis both scored to lead the Young Matildas to a 2-0 win over hosts Uzbekistan at the AFC Under-20 Women’s World Cup.
Goals from the Liberty A-League duo preserved Australia’s perfect record through two matches in Group A at the AFC Tournament in Uzbekistan.
It now means the Young Matildas are now not only one win away from qualifying for the semi-finals, but they are within touching distance of also qualifying for the FIFA U20 Women’s World Cup in Colombia later this year.
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The Young Matildas will tick off both achievements if they avoid a seven-goal defeat to Chinese Taipei on Saturday.
After overcoming South Korea 2-1 in sub-zero and sub-standard conditions on Sunday, Leah Blayney made three changes to the team as Newcastle Jets midfielder Lara Gooch, Alana Murphy of Melbourne Victory and Sydney FC’s Shay Hollman were drafted into the Young Matildas XI.
The Young Matildas made the breakthrough in the 19th minute, a couple of minutes after Maddie Caspers forced a sublime save from Fotima Bakhriddinov.
Trimis fed Galic, who turned away from three defenders before finding the back of the net.
The same duo combined again five minutes later, though this time Galic fired over the crossbar.
Trimis, who was in the thick of the action, doubled Australia’s lead before half-time.
The 17-year-old slotted the ball into the back of the net, having also struck against South Korea on matchday one.
Australia continued to create plenty of opportunities in the second half, but they were unable to add to their tally.
