Matildas v England FIFA World Cup semi-final 2023: Matildas keeper shuts down Pom reporter

Mackenzie Arnold was the hero for Australia at the weekend and she was at it again when she shut down an English journalist’s line of questioning.

Pat Cummins Matildas online art.

Mackenzie Arnold was the hero for Australia at the weekend and the keeper was at it again in her pre-semi-final press conference shutting down an English journalist’s questioning.

Arnold stopped three penalties after missing her own in the quarter-final against France on Saturday night with fans renaming her Australia’s new “minister of defence.”

Talking to the world’s media ahead of tonight’s semi-final clash with old foes England Arnold was, once again, a wall.

Vision from the media gathering went viral for tall the right reasons as Arnold shut down an English reporter’s attempt to stir up the rivalry between the two nations.

“Mackenzie these two countries have a traditional and long rivalry,” he said. “I’m sure there are a lot of England fans back home that would l’ve to see them knock you out of your home tournament. Is the idea of being knocked out by England almost unthinkable to you?”

Stone faced, Arnold replied: “Being knocked out by anyone is unthinkable, I think there’s a lot of English people that would like to see them knock us out but I think there’s more Australians that would love to see England knocked out by us.

“We have so many rivalries with so many different countries, this is just another game for us.”

The rest of the room couldn’t help but chuckle.

“I’m sure there’s lots of England fans back home that would quite enjoy seeing England knock you out of your own tournament” is a sentence QF player of the match Arnold had to endure.

Her response was even better.

pic.twitter.com/53PUmDxnYD

— SHE scores bangers (@SHEscoresbanger) August 15, 2023

CUMMINS BRUTALLY SLEDGES ENGLAND AHEAD OF SEMI

Pat Cummins has some advice for England Lioness goalkeeper Mary Earps.

“Stay on your line.”

Just weeks after the Jonny Bairstow stumping controversy blew up in the Ashes, another flashpoint in the Australia-England rivalry beckons on Wednesday night with the stakes rising even higher for the women’s World Cup semi-final.

When an English journo cheekily asked the Test skipper at a CA sponsorship announcement on Tuesday whether it was time for England to stay in their crease against the Matildas, Cummins’ was only too happy to climb in on the banter.

“Yeah, play by the rules. I agree,” Cummins said, before complimenting the journo on the creativity of linking Earps to Bairstow and the spirit of cricket brouhaha.

“It is in terms of my career (the rivalry between Australia and England is) as strong as I can remember. People go on Instagram and Facebook or WhatsApp and seem to be pestering English or Aussie mates all the time.

“It seems like the banter is at all time high levels that I’ve ever experienced.”

England batsman Jonny Bairstow reacts after being stumped by Alex Carey in a flashpoint of the Ashes series. Picture: Getty

Fellow Test star David Warner took it one step further, tweeting a cheeky sledge at the English team that referenced one of the most contentious calls in the fifth Ashes Test.

“An early good luck to the @TheMatildas Just keep an eye out in case the Poms ask to change the ball (laughing emojis) @TheBarmyArmy”

It’s hard to argue with Cummins that the velocity of sport’s greatest rivalry has gone to another level over recent months, following the Ashes, the Netball World Cup final and now the football World Cup showdown to end all showdowns.

Few can understand as well as Cummins’ what goes on the line for the Matildas on Wednesday night.

A first-ever appearance in a World Cup semi-final is big enough, but for it to be against England adds another layer.

Australia’s players celebrate after their historic penalty shootout win over France. Picture: Getty

Cummins admits that for Australian athletes – winning or losing against England in the big contests is career defining, no matter what the sport.

“Yeah, it does seem to be that way. The big ones like rugby, cricket, league, soccer now, netball, Australia and England seem to be two of the top teams competing at the top level and have that oldest history when it comes to sports,” Cummins said.

“There’s nothing more satisfying as an Aussie than getting one up on your English mates.”

Following the Ashes, Cummins has only just arrived back from a family holiday in Europe to appear at a Cricket Australia sponsorship announcement on Tuesday with digital technology company HCL Tech.

But even in mid-air, Cummins didn’t miss out on the extraordinary tension that was the Matildas’ quarter-final penalty shootout triumph over France.

“I watched it on a flight and fortunately they had it,” Cummins said.

“I was there with my headphones on cheering, cheering on. I was nervous. We were flying somewhere over Europe and I was screaming out.

“About 50 per cent of the people I could see sitting near me were watching it.”

Australia triumphed in front of a home crowd to win the T20 World Cup three years ago. Picture: AAP

Australian women’s cricket captain Alyssa Healy was part of sporting history at the MCG in 2020, when 86,174 fans packed into the MCG for the women’s T20 World Cup final.

That watermark for women’s sports attendance would be beaten if the FIFA World Cup finals were being staged at the MCG, but the slightly smaller 83,500 capacity of Stadium Australia in Sydney will see the cricketers hold onto their record.

But Healy isn’t protective over it and is relishing the explosion of women’s sport across the board.

“I think the competition is awesome. If they break the record then it makes us think about what we’re going to do next. I’d happily hand over that record if it’s going to drive cricket to do something new,” Healy said.

“It’s really cool. I reflect on my golf club at home actually and what it’s done within that. There’s a population there that didn’t really watch a lot of women’s sport when we (Healy and husband Mitchell Starc) first joined the club and I was there on Saturday when the club was (overcome) with the people watching the Matildas game after a round of golf.

“I just look at that and how much it’s grown and continues to drive sport.

“It’s really exciting and the Matildas are definitely the talk of the country at the moment and we’re really proud of that.”

Originally published as Matildas v England FIFA World Cup semi-final 2023: Matildas keeper shuts down Pom reporter