Halfway between last year’s World Cup and the 2026 Asian Cup – the two home tournaments that will define this Matildas era – Thursday’s 3-1 defeat to Brazil in Brisbane was a feisty tussle between two football teams, and Australia’s past versus its future.
That was bound to happen on the return to the scene of the Matildas’ greatest triumph, just 15 months ago. Thursday was an invitation for reflection, a measuring of progress. And, as captain Steph Catley indicated afterwards, glimpsing back to the euphoria of that World Cup shootout victory over France remains alluring.
