Katie McCabe's performance for Ireland in defeat to Australia at the World Cup has come in for some criticism Down Under.
"Irish captain and enforcer Katie McCabe has become Australian public enemy number one after clattering into a number of Matildas players during Ireland’s 1-0 loss to Australia in their World Cup opener at Stadium Australia," reads an article on News.com.au.
"McCabe, who is known for her aggressive play for Arsenal in the Women’s Super League, took out Hayley Raso with a borderline reckless studs-up challenge that had Australian fans livid."
“It’s really going to boost your level of confidence in your back line when your goalkeeper is doing that.”
Mackenzie Arnold was a brick wall for Australia 🧱
And @schwarzer_mark and @Bubs_11 have nothing but praise for Matildas’ shot-stopper.#FIFAWWC #OptusSport pic.twitter.com/7OfZzEZuCa
— Optus Sport (@OptusSport) July 20, 2023
The Matildas won the game 1-0 thanks to a penalty which The Australian's Will Swanton called "fortuitous".
"A bit of pot luck," he wrote.
"The Australians moved back to the pack without their captain. The 1-0 win over Ireland was hard-fought and unconvincing against a rough and tough side that feared no-one once Kerr was consigned to sucking on her water bottle in the dugout."
Also in the Australian, the game was described as "a night that will live long in Australian sporting folklore", and it was added that "The World Cup rookies had a strong game plan to park the bus, but they must have forgotten that Australians are used to dealing with dodgy public transport."
20 July 2023; Kyra Cooney-Cross of Australia is tackled by Katie McCabe of Republic of Ireland during the FIFA Women's World Cup 2023 Group B match between Australia and Republic of Ireland at Stadium Australia in Sydney, Australia. Photo by Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile
Former Premier League goalkeeper and Australia international Mark Schwarzer said on Optus Sports that he felt it wasn't one of the better performances he's seen from the Matildas.
"I feel like Ireland had a lot to do with that," former Australia international Melissa Barbieri said in response.
"They did play some really compact football, defended really well in their defensive half. So, it did make it a lot harder than we expected for the Matildas."
Prior to Thursday's game, Australia were rocked by the news that their star player Sam Kerr would be unavailable for at least the opening two matches due to a calf injury.
"The Matildas showed great courage against Ireland to not only cope with Kerr’s absence, but also overcome what would have been an emotional time in camp after the captain suffered the injury just a day before the game," said ex-Australia international Robbie Slater.
1.97 million tuned in to watch the game on Australia's Channel 7. That is far more than the 1.46 million who watched the Matildas take on Sweden at the Tokyo Olympics. At the time, that was a record for women's sports in Australia.
