Key Points
- The Matildas lost by two goals to England in their semi-final match.
- Australia will play Sweden on Saturday for third place.
- The Matildas coach said England had a better night.
, but the Matildas still have more to achieve.
The Australian team will play Sweden on Saturday night to vie for third place in the tournament.
Matildas captain Sam Kerr made her return to the starting 11 in their semi-final on Wednesday night and scored an outstanding solo goal to bring the game to 1-1 early in the second half.
It wasn't enough though, with England scoring two more goals.
Kerr had started on the bench in the past two games after missing the early stages of the World Cup due to injury.
"All I can think about is disappointment right now," Kerr told reporters when asked about her long-range strike.
"I think that's kind of the only thing that's keeping me smiling right now, is the way that we've inspired the nation, everyone's got behind us.
"The tournament's been amazing, every single team, player, person that's visited has said how beautiful our country is.
"So I think for us, it's been hopefully life-changing for women's football in Australia."
Kerr had a number of chances late in the game to draw Australia level but the Matildas skipper was unable to convert, blasting one over the bar and having another cleared off the line.
Coach Tony Gustavsson said Kerr was beating herself up for her failure to get the Matildas back into the game.
Gustavsson conceded that England "had a better night" than his team.
"We had a chance for 2-2 and a couple of minutes later it was 3-1. It was one of those games, unfortunately," he told reporters after the game.
"You have to understand that you sometimes play against a team that have a better night, and I think England had a better night than us."
The Matildas have already come further than any other Australian team, male or female, in a football World Cup.
In 2006, the Socceroos broke a 32-year drought to . They made it to the Round of 16 that year and had a similar level of success
During their 2023 World Cup journey the Matildas have won over new fans and broke records for audience numbers tuning in to watch their games.
Their previous game saw the biggest television audience for a sporting event in almost two decades and interest in Wednesday night's game was similarly high.
Katrina Gorry may not have been able to celebrate a win but the match did mark her 100th for the Matildas and it also came on her daughter Harper's second birthday.
Sweden, who lost by one goal to Spain in their previous game will meet the Matildas in Brisbane to decide third place.
The champion will be determined on Sunday, when Spain and England play at Stadium Australia in Sydney.
