Women's World Cup: Australia Survives Group of Death After Draw Against Sweden

Austrlalia escaped the “group of death” after a stalemate against Sweden giving them a second round matchup with Brazil in the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup Canada.

Australia, also known as the Matildas, shared early goals in a 1-1 draw that sent Sweden waiting to see if they will also move up to the second stage.

Matildas coach Alen Stajcic said he was very proud of the team’s effort.

“It was a tough game, probably wasn’t a pretty game to watch but we did enough in the end and the group has just performed so well. Certainly, it gives you so much belief and knowledge that you know you can compete against the best,” Stajcic said via The Sydney Morning Herald.

Team captain Lisa De Vanna slotted a critical goal in the fifth minute against Swede goalkeeper Hedwig Lindahl, giving the Matildas an edge in escaping the group of death, which features United States, Australia, Nigeria, and Sweden.

However, Australia’s early chance of moving up to the round of 16 was threatened just 10 minutes later when Sofia Jakobsson netted an equalizer to boost Sweden’s chances of getting second place in Group D.

Sweden came close to several occasions, but could not capitalize against an Australian squad that had the better of them.

With a scoreless second half, the Matildas survived a desperate Sweden team to face the Marta-led Brazil in the next round.

Maltida’s Sam Kerr and Caitlin Foord had an aggressive second period with several dangerous offensives that could have put them in the driver’s seat, but the 1-1 draw is more than enough for them to advance.

Sweden only has three points in the group standing and will have to wait if they are in the top four of third-place teams to move in the round of 16.