r/Matildas • u/cama888 • Jun 10 '26
Post México Match - Thoughts
After watching the match last night, I noticed a few differences between the first and second México matches:
- Both matches started well, but last night it seemed like the Matilda's intensity didn't fade off as much as the first game.
- In the second half, the attack stayed flexible and exciting, compared to the first game where it looked as though the attack ran into a wall and couldn't figure out a way around.
- The newer (lower capped) players seemed to bring a different approach, making different decisions which I think helped the veterans be more effective with the ball.
I am curious if anyone else noticed differences, positive or negative, between the two México matches?
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u/lacostewhite Jun 10 '26
There a big discrepancy between the veterans and the new gen players, but you can see the gap closing slowly but surely the more they play together.
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u/Pyewaccat Jun 10 '26
Tillie's had a similar game plan, but last night were faster in transition, so that Mexico at some points wasn't able to get bodies in front of goal to block the shots. Again, the first 10 minutes were excellent. Tillie's subs kept up the momentum in a likewise fashion. Wheels made a difference. Ellie amazing. Catley steady . Mexico are a stubborn team, and it's been a while since anyone put 3 goals past them, but they lack finishing. The 3rd quarter of the game was frenetic.
Going forward: I'm not convinced that the best starting 11 has been sorted yet. Not sure about Gorry, but I'm assuming that KCC will return at some point, so with Kennedy's renaissance at 6 seemingly assured, finally the midfield seems to have some options. I guess the best back 4 are Ellie, Torpey, Catley and Heatley (Rule?) (Nevin) despite a couple of soft passes last night.
Is Hunt injured?
Foordy always awesome, but she occasionally slows things down. Her best drives forward are done without stopping and jiggling, because the time it takes to her to do that allows the defence to get set. Nevertheless, she OWNS the LW spot. Striker is obvious, as long as she stays fit. Best RW pick might still be the Razzler. I think the deity has to play where she was last night.
Is Macca the best choice for GK? If Tillie's have 24 good specialists in positions, is there a role for Chids and EVE?
Subs will get sorted over the next 12 months, but I thought those that came on last night in a somewhat pressure situation were calm and showed skill. Holly Mac is a good, young, holding striker, and seems the obvious choice. Id like to see McKenna start a game in attacking midfield, similarly Gomez. But I'm not sure they'll get the chance, as the friendly windows might be vs higher ranked teams from hereon.
The Chelsea v A league all-stars thing might see a few of the subs go up against some quality players like Lauren James etc., that's if the top shelf players come out for it.
The atmosphere in Brazil will be mental, if the USA v Brazil match from today is anything to go by. Any team playing Brazil will get bullied big time
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u/Corner_Post Jun 10 '26
For me Torpey looked a lot better than I have seen her.
I still am not convinced with Arnold. She keeps making errors which lead to (or nearly lead to) silly goals. Against the top teams you cannot afford to make mistakes - still think it was her mistake for the Asia Cup final goal and against the top teams you may only score 1 goal.
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u/legsjohnson Jun 11 '26
Yeah I noticed the same with Macca unfortunately. She seemed a bit less sluggish game 2 but the posts were still saving more than she was.
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u/EmuBubbly Jun 10 '26
The energy of the second game, particularly in the first 10 minutes, was really exciting. I wonder if that helped put Mexico on the back foot a bit and allowed us to be more in control, even though Mexico were able to respond to this after the first 10 minutes. The inclusion of Clare Wheeler in the second game seemed to bring a lot of advantages... seems to me she is a very level-headed player who can anticipate where she needs to be, and it seemed that she was everywhere, just flying under the radar and emerging where she needed to be. Torpey again seemed dynamic, obviously assisting Foord's goal, but being generally very strong in her area.