Matildas Asian Cup Preview with Poletti from The Dubcast

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Foreign.

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Welcome to the Aussie football passport, your one stop pod for Aussie

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men and women footballers who are playing their club careers abroad. I'm your

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host, Alex. But this is a special show. We have got the

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preview for the Matilda's Asian cup campaign coming up

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in very shortly, I should say. And to help

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me out with this show, I have a special guest from Dubcast. I've got Paletti.

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Paletti, how are you? Any day I get to talk football is a good

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day. And with the Asian cup just around the corner,

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you know, I've spent enough time talking about all of the other nations.

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So it'd be nice to, it'd be nice to just hone in on the Matildas

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for a little bit. Yeah, definitely, yeah. So that's what we want to do.

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We want to talk about the Matildas mainly and we'll do a little bit of

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the opposition towards the back end, but let's focus on the

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mighty Matildas and whether they can win this thing. So palette,

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I might get you to start. Just give our listeners a plug for

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the dubcast. Where can they find you and your wonderful work?

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Yep. So the dubcast, you can find us on all the major podcasting

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platforms. You can also find us on YouTube. You know,

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we're putting out, we put out new episodes every, every Wednesday, most weeks during

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the women's season. Off season gets a little bit tricky because of the,

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because of the nature of women's football in this country. There's not always things like,

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there's not always news coming out to talk about, you know, unlike, you know,

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the men's off season where, you know, there's a story or two every week,

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even in the off season. So, you know, we, we do

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try to put out content regularly and during the Asian cup, we are planning on

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doing daily episodes around the tournament. So, you know,

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feel free to, feel free to check us out. We'd be more than happy to,

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you know, have, have all the company that wants to tune in. Myself and

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Burke will be running the show primarily and we'll have guests in throughout the tournament

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as well. Awesome. Yeah, definitely. Go check out Dubcast.

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They do a wonderful job of covering women's football here in Australia and power

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to them, particularly with the Asian cup coming up.

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There's going to be plenty of good content for the show, no doubt.

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So let's get into it. Paletti,

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let's get your thoughts on the squad.

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First of all, were there any glaring omissions or

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players that you wanted to see that weren't picked?

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I mean, there's always players that I want to say that aren't picked. You know,

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that doesn't necessarily mean, you know, they're glaring

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omissions per se. Look, I, I've been on the Sasha Grove bandwagon

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for quite some time, but, you know, she's got a lot of depth to a

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lot of players in front of her to compete with. So I think I,

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at least I hope she'll be, she'll be one of these post tournament players.

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Izzy Gomez, I think, was a little bit stiff to miss out. Joe Montemiri

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did say there was, there was a few women players

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that were, you know, it was, it was hard to leave them out of the

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squad, you know, in his, in his squad announcement press conference.

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So hopefully that's going to give some indications, you know,

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post Asian cup as to, you know, where some of the newer players might,

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might come from. You know, as, as, you know, players retire

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and, you know, you know, and, and whatnot.

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Charlie Grant look obviously injured, you know,

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just, just missing out. I think, you know, another week or two

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before the tournament starts and she's probably there. So it's just, it's just unfortunate

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for her. But yeah, I wouldn't say there's too many, you know, glaring omissions.

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This is probably the best squad on paper that Joe could have

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selected. I was definitely, I was definitely surprised to see

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Alex Chidiak. I think a lot of people were surprised to see Alex Chidiak because

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she's kind of flown under the radar since she left Melbourne Victory went to Colmar.

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But, you know, that's, that's the beauty of the way Joe Montemiro wants to play

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football is, you know, unlike under previous coaches,

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someone like an Alex Shiriak can thrive under

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Montemiro because she's a, she's a player that doesn't necessarily fit

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some traditional systems, I'll say, in terms

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of tactics and formation. But, you know, Joe has

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said that he's very flexible and it's a very fluid formation and, you know,

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you can't really define it by like a, a 433 or a 424 or a

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541 or whatever. Like, it's, it's very fluid. So that gives someone,

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you know, like an Alex Chidiac a very good chance to thrive, probably off

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the bench, I'd say. But I reckon there's like, like there will be a game

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here where she'll probably start. Just don't ask me which one.

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Yeah, yeah, it'll, it'll no doubt depend on the, the Opposition and,

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and potentially the fitness of Mary Fowler, you'd think, right?

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That's an interesting one because I don't think

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they're going to play the same position. I think,

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look, we haven't seen how Joe Montemiro wants to use Mary

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Fowler because obviously she's been injured. I think,

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I think we saw her play her best for the Matilda's

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under Tom Simone in the, in the window just before she got injured at right

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wing in those South Korea games. So I'd like to see Fowler get a chance

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there. You know, maybe like a Razzo Fowler, one, two, start,

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whichever. I'm not fast and let. Let Chidiac do her own thing. I don't,

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I don't necessarily think they're like for like replacements certainly very dynamic players, but I

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don't think like, for like. Yeah, they've probably got different profiles I guess

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and it can almost get a little bit

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confused because Fowlers played a lot centrally

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and I guess Chidiac sort of, that's the role that she's played at

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club level even though they are two different profiles of player.

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So I guess that's probably where the confusion is. But you're right,

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Polity. I think that that right wing role for Fowler is something that she

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could certainly do quite well and, and maybe

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allow them to both play together in, in a very

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fluid sort of attacking front third set up for the Matildas, as he

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said, which is what Joe Montemiro wants to do. So it

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could be. I mean the, the options are endless, aren't they, in that front third

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for, for the Matildas at the moment. Which is fantastic to see. I guess long

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gone are the days of the over reliance on Sam Kerr. Right.

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Yeah. And, and that's, and that's almost been by default

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like because you know, obviously Sam Kerr was out for nearly two years with,

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you know, with those multiple injuries. Look, I,

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I don't. Yeah, it's tough, right? Like she's clearly

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still the best striker available. But I

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want to see, I want to see Holly Mack step up

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throughout this tournament. I want to see, you know,

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I can't even say Michelle Heyman step up because she's done it so often for

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the Matildas. But you know, I want to see her,

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I want to see her shine again in this tournament in whatever role she plays

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and it'll more than likely be an off the bench role deep

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in games. But yeah, I, when Holly Mack

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is given the chance, I want to see her shine and show that she is

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the hair, the heir apparent to the Number nine spot, if that's the way

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Montemiro sees her as well, which I can't imagine he wouldn't.

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Yeah, you'd think so. And actually the perfect segue

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there palette. It's almost as if we planned it. I was going to ask for

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listeners that aren't as familiar with the A League women's and particularly

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Holly Mack and Michelle Heyman. Let's start with Holly

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Mack. First of all, what can we expect from her? What sort of

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player is she and how do you think she'll fit in this

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Matilda's setup for the Asian Cup?

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So Holly Mack, is she,

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she's going to be a replacement for Sam Kerr off the bench. Like there might

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be, there might be a game or two where she starts, but for the most

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part it's, you know, she'll be there as a replacement,

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which, you know, I certainly don't have any sort of,

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you know, problems or qualms or issues with. I think that's,

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I think that's more than, more than fair. She'll take the game on. She'll,

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she'll attack oppositions. A phrase that, you know,

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Burke and I have thrown around quite a bit is that she

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has no self preservation skills because she's just always going into challenges and she's always,

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you know, she's always giving it 110. Right. But like her footballing IQ was great.

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She knows, you know, she knows where to be, she knows when to make the

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run, she knows when to pass it off like. And so I can, you know,

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I think this will be a very much a breakout tournament for Holly McNamara and

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should hopefully at least get her on the way to being a household name

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in a, you know, in, in Matilda's circles. I,

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you know, and I just should hopefully encourage people to come watch her at Melbourne

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City while you still can because look, I don't think she's too much

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longer for the dub. As much as I, as much as I'd love to watch

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it for another 12 months, I, I very much think she's gone at the end

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of the season. Yeah. Okay, there you go. And that, that's brilliant. And that,

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that's ultimately, you know, what we want to see, isn't it? We want ladies

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go through the, the A League women's and, and progress to

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the international stage. Much like I guess a lot of the leagues around

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the world, you, you're ultimately aiming to get to, to one of the top European

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leagues and hopefully that, that can certainly be the case for, for Holly Mack.

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Now to the other end of the. The Spectrum to another A league

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women's player, Michelle Heyman, no doubt. Probably her last tournament, I think it's

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fair to say. What sort of role do you think she'll play in this tournament?

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I think it'll very much be a subs role off the bench, maybe start

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a game, you know, you know, in a heavily

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rotated squad. You know that. But it depends on what Joe Montemiro

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wants to do. Right? And I think that's ultimately, I think that's ultimately the answer.

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I think a big part of the reason Michelle Heyman is still

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there is because there's

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been no one else in the last few years that is

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fit and healthy at the moment that sort of, you know, can be that

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back to goal number nine that you, you know, you want that real poacher sort

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of strike that she's done so many times before. And you, you got to remember,

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like Michelle Heyman full completely retired at, you know,

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you know, a few years back and she's come out of retirement both at,

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you know, domestic and international level.

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You know, it's like. So it's, you know, she's, I don't want to say

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borrowed time because that feels like the wrong phrase. But like, you know, she's been

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given this second lease over Matilda's career

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of, you know, an A league women career by coming out of retirement. And you

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know, I just, I'd love to see her,

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I'd love to see her shine here again at this tournament,

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but I think she'll have a very limited role off the bench, which is,

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which is not a problem, you know, as we saw at the World cup,

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you know, much to the chagrin of a lot of

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players and fans and you know,

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everyone is that Gustafsson used a very select amount of players.

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And you know, that's unfortunately,

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you know what, what happens sometimes at tournaments. I think we'll see a little bit

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more here, you know, and I think we'll see Michelle Heyman, you know, get,

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get opportunities at different points. But Joe Montemiro will very much pick

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his spots. Yeah, definitely. It seems

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like Michelle will play that. Yeah,

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I guess that sort of either thrown on in the last five, 10 minutes

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as we're throwing the kitchen sink to try and win a

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game. That's the kind of role I guess I foresee

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her playing. And I think it sounds like you sort of agree there palette.

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So now quickly, one last player from the

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A league women's that is in the squad and again, probably very unlikely

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to get any minutes is Chloe Lincoln. In Goals there.

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Brisbane Royal goalkeeper. What. I guess she's

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probably the next in line for the goalkeeping role. Right. And this is about

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getting her tournament exposure. That's why she's been included

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alongside, of course, the unfortunate injury to Tegan.

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Mike, would you say that's probably fair to say that Chloe Lincoln's next sort

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of that. That fourth. Fourth down the. The pecking order of goalkeepers

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in Australia at the moment? Yeah, she's.

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I'd say, if you're wording it like that, yes.

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This is. This, this is such a.

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This is such a tough thing to. To talk

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about. I have been

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very critical of Chloe Lincoln this season.

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She has not had a good A league women's season. I think, like, there have

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been. There have been several key mistakes that have

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led to Brisbane Raw conceding goals and dropping points in games,

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but she's the one who has caps

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ultimately. And, you know, Sally James, who I argue

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is the next one, who should be the next one off the rank,

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doesn't have any caps. Jada Wyman doesn't have any caps.

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If Jada Wyman goes another tournament without a Matilda's cap,

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just. I might retire. Like,

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it's so annoying,

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you know, as. As someone who was a massive fan of Jada Wyman,

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who, you know, watched her for years at Sydney fc, be one of the best

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goalkeepers in the competition to just have never had a Matilda's

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cap. And I think,

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look, because today, as of the time of recording,

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Mackenzie Arnold did not take training. A Football Australia

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spokesperson said that Arnold was in the gym when.

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When asked that. I did read that. I read that in the Sydney

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Morning Herald article. Yeah, so that was.

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Yeah, so. So doesn't.

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It's. It's unclear, you know, who's gonna. Who's gonna

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start, when they're gonna start, what they're gonna do. I mean, Mackenzie Arnold should be

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the default number one at this point, but it's,

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it's an unknown and, you know, so it's.

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I mean, there is every chance we'll say Chloe Lincoln playing games at this Asian

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cup purely by being forced into

225
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playing games at this Asian Cup. But I definitely. Look, if she

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can, you know, she had, she had a decent game against Adelaide

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last week before the, before the Women's Asian cup break.

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Did concatenate a couple of goals, but made some fantastic saves. And if you were

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ever going to get confidence building back in a loss, that.

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That is certainly, you know, the sort of game you'd. You'd want to have.

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I mean, ideally, you'd want to have that sort of performance in a win.

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But you know, it is what it is at the end of the day.

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So yeah, it's, it's. It's an interesting and ongoing

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situation. So I think that's all I can really say on that, unfortunately. No,

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that's fine. Bloody. I think you've done an outstanding job of sort of

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putting the lay of the land out there. I did.

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I'm not sure if you also saw it, but I saw that Morgan Aquino has

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been drafted in last minute as well. I'm not sure if that's just like a

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training thing or if that there really is a concern there for. For Mackenzie

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Arnold, which I mean to lose the two I guess

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top keepers to injury would be a pretty devastating

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blow. Wouldn't would be. I think it's just

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the fact that she's in Perth, Morgan Aquino. She's, you know,

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international break at the moment. USL is on international break because,

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you know, it is a fee for international window this weekend and

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so she was obviously in town. Presumably she

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would have been one of the players on the shortlist that,

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you know, coaches and federations have to submit ahead

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of international windows and tournaments and stuff like that. So I just imagine

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it's. It's there purely in a train on capacity.

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That being said, you know, like there's every

252
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chance we could wake up tomorrow and Mackenzie Arnold misses Asian cup and

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Morgan Aquino, you know, is the, you know, is that is the keeper coming in

254
00:17:02,470 --> 00:17:05,730
and like, look, you know, touch on wood. That's not going to happen.

255
00:17:06,770 --> 00:17:10,010
Just. Yeah, as I said, it's. It's very much

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00:17:10,510 --> 00:17:14,210
in, you know, a very fluid situation, I think. Yeah,

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00:17:14,450 --> 00:17:18,370
we'll have to wait and see what happens with that one. Let's hope that Mackenzie

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Arnold is okay, but I guess if the opportunity presents itself,

259
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Morgan Aquino is also a pretty handy keeper, pardon the pun. So.

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All right, cool. Well, look, I think we've covered

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off that part. I think in summary,

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the depth in this side is quite strong, isn't it?

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It's crazy. I mean, I guess going to your point before about

264
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Tony Gustafsson and playing a very few,

265
00:17:47,630 --> 00:17:50,830
a very small amount of the players that he selected for that

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World Cup. I don't think that Montemuro has that issue really,

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does he? The quality in this side is just. Is just.

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It's come on quite a lot and I guess for you palette,

269
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you're not. Wouldn't be as surprised by that considering that,

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you know, you're watching the A League women's week in week out but for

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our fans, I guess that maybe aren't.

272
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Doesn't have I guess as intimate a knowledge of

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the A League women. Is that I guess a true reflection

274
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of the quality of the league and I

275
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guess the young players that are coming through the league and I guess where it's

276
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going, going in, in the next sort of couple of years? Yeah,

277
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look, I mean, you know, as you know, to reiterate as Joe

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said, there were some players to play, you know, here in the A League women

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who were very hard, a very hard done by to miss out.

280
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Including one who's currently not eligible for Australia even though she should be,

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00:18:48,660 --> 00:18:52,020
at least in my opinion. I, you know, as soon as FIFA decide that

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Kayla Morrison is eligible to play for the Matildas, I, I'm, you know,

283
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I'm sure that Joe will be putting her into the squad.

284
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But I can say yeah, I can see, as you said, there's a

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00:19:03,890 --> 00:19:06,590
lot of depth in this squad. I can see there being a lot of rotation

286
00:19:07,090 --> 00:19:10,190
throughout this tournament. Joe will pick his spots to, to rotate. He's not going to

287
00:19:10,690 --> 00:19:14,590
rotate for the sake of rotating it. Everything that he does will be tactical.

288
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And yeah, like I said, I, I think,

289
00:19:19,950 --> 00:19:23,610
look, the future is very, very bright. You know, as,

290
00:19:24,110 --> 00:19:26,330
as you said, I watch a lot of the A League women. I know Joe

291
00:19:26,830 --> 00:19:30,530
Montemuro watches the A League women every week. Every time

292
00:19:31,030 --> 00:19:34,250
that we've got our, we've got our photographer for Round Ball Australia down

293
00:19:34,750 --> 00:19:38,170
in Melbourne or one of our photographers and you know they're

294
00:19:38,670 --> 00:19:41,930
at A League women games, I always check said as soon as I, as soon

295
00:19:42,430 --> 00:19:45,170
as I get the album come through, I'm checking to see right what's Joe wearing

296
00:19:45,670 --> 00:19:48,250
this week? Who is he talking to? Who is he like? Because there's always a

297
00:19:48,750 --> 00:19:52,280
Joe once a mirror photo in there if he's at games. So I know

298
00:19:52,780 --> 00:19:56,720
Joe is very well aware of what the future is coming, coming through the the

299
00:19:57,220 --> 00:20:00,360
A leagues and I imagine he's going to have. He's going

300
00:20:00,860 --> 00:20:04,640
to be spoiled for choice after the Asian cup as we build towards the

301
00:20:05,140 --> 00:20:09,000
Women's World cup pending qualification. For those who aren't aware this

302
00:20:09,320 --> 00:20:13,320
tournament does double as World cup qualification, it will be the last time that

303
00:20:13,820 --> 00:20:17,250
the Asian cup doubles as World cup qualification in the women's

304
00:20:17,750 --> 00:20:21,930
game. For the, for the next cycle there will be dedicated World cup qualifying.

305
00:20:22,810 --> 00:20:26,210
So you know that that's an improvement and a sign that the game in Asia

306
00:20:26,710 --> 00:20:29,930
is growing or the women's game in Asia is growing. I hope that answered your

307
00:20:30,430 --> 00:20:33,690
question. Yeah, it Does. Yeah. Thank you. Bloody. And thank you also for that,

308
00:20:34,010 --> 00:20:38,410
that gem as well, that the World

309
00:20:38,910 --> 00:20:42,050
cup qualification is doubling up here in the. Or,

310
00:20:42,550 --> 00:20:45,050
I've got that around the wrong way. The Asian cup is doubling up as World

311
00:20:45,550 --> 00:20:49,430
cup qualification. So. Yes. And it. Everyone that gets through to

312
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the quarterfinals, if I'm correct, the top four

313
00:20:53,730 --> 00:20:58,110
go through. Is that right? Yeah. Okay, so make it through to the quarterfinals.

314
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You're guaranteed for qualifying if you make

315
00:21:02,410 --> 00:21:05,630
the. Said if you win your quarterfinal matchup, you're automatically through to the

316
00:21:06,130 --> 00:21:08,870
Women's World Cup. If you lose your quarterfinal matchup,

317
00:21:09,510 --> 00:21:12,950
those four teams will be playing two playoff games on

318
00:21:13,450 --> 00:21:16,810
the Gold coast, which will be on the 19th of March.

319
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The winners of those two games will go through to the World

320
00:21:21,950 --> 00:21:25,450
Cup. The losers of those two games will go into

321
00:21:25,950 --> 00:21:29,450
the interconfederation playoffs ahead of the World cup

322
00:21:29,950 --> 00:21:33,050
for, you know, another chance to,

323
00:21:33,130 --> 00:21:36,570
to make the, to make the tournament. So top eight will

324
00:21:37,070 --> 00:21:40,900
at least make qualifying, you know, top four

325
00:21:41,060 --> 00:21:44,820
automatics, which goes down to, you know, top six, quote unquote,

326
00:21:45,060 --> 00:21:48,620
when you playoff game, you're in. And then, yeah,

327
00:21:49,120 --> 00:21:52,580
there's two more second chance, third chance spots,

328
00:21:54,020 --> 00:21:57,420
you know, so. And it's something that's sort of gone under

329
00:21:57,920 --> 00:22:00,980
the radar and you know, talking with a, talking with a couple of people about

330
00:22:01,480 --> 00:22:04,980
this, you know, the fact that, you know that that fact has gone under the

331
00:22:05,480 --> 00:22:09,450
radar, that there's still like, there's not as many people talking about it and it

332
00:22:09,950 --> 00:22:13,490
took us 50 minutes into our Asian cup preview on the dubcast to actually bring

333
00:22:13,990 --> 00:22:16,970
that fact up. So like, like that, like we're people who talk about this on

334
00:22:17,470 --> 00:22:20,810
a regular basis and, you know, it took us almost an hour

335
00:22:21,310 --> 00:22:23,970
to bring that up. So like that, that should give you an indication of just

336
00:22:24,470 --> 00:22:27,010
how far down the radar that, you know, that little factoid is gone.

337
00:22:27,490 --> 00:22:30,610
Yeah, that. Yeah, exactly right. And I mean, it's,

338
00:22:31,010 --> 00:22:34,050
it's such a unique thing, isn't it? And it's,

339
00:22:34,690 --> 00:22:37,730
it's great to see that the Asian Confederation is now,

340
00:22:38,230 --> 00:22:41,710
I guess, you know, expanding the program if

341
00:22:42,210 --> 00:22:45,430
you like, or actually giving the World cup

342
00:22:45,930 --> 00:22:49,590
qualification process its own unique platform

343
00:22:50,390 --> 00:22:54,630
rather than bundling it in with another tournament. And you

344
00:22:55,130 --> 00:22:59,390
know, I guess we, you know, another issue is the prize money. But let's,

345
00:22:59,890 --> 00:23:04,390
let's not go there because they're still a bit dinosaur

346
00:23:04,890 --> 00:23:07,750
like there. It's the Asian Confederation, let's,

347
00:23:07,910 --> 00:23:11,890
let's put it that way. So baby steps. It seems to be with them,

348
00:23:12,390 --> 00:23:15,850
unfortunately. But yes, and,

349
00:23:16,350 --> 00:23:19,810
and also, look, it adds a couple of extra games to the tournament, doesn't it?

350
00:23:20,310 --> 00:23:24,090
It gives those teams that don't progress through to

351
00:23:24,590 --> 00:23:27,970
the court of, to the semi finals, I should say another

352
00:23:28,470 --> 00:23:31,850
chance at a competitive game to, to try and I guess add

353
00:23:32,350 --> 00:23:35,410
to or get through to the World cup which of course is the,

354
00:23:35,810 --> 00:23:39,050
the holy grail of football, isn't it?

355
00:23:39,550 --> 00:23:42,890
So it does. I mean some would argue it's the

356
00:23:43,390 --> 00:23:46,530
Olympics but you know, in terms of, particularly in the women's game, some might

357
00:23:47,030 --> 00:23:49,730
argue it's the Olympics but you know, it's the World cup, it's the Olympics.

358
00:23:51,490 --> 00:23:54,970
Look I, it's an extra game, you know, certain certainly

359
00:23:55,470 --> 00:23:58,970
helps but it also, it also changes the

360
00:23:59,470 --> 00:24:03,170
complexion of the group stage because obviously top two

361
00:24:03,670 --> 00:24:07,490
from each group go through but then you've got two third place, the two best

362
00:24:07,990 --> 00:24:11,330
third place finishes that will go through. So it creates that extra jeopardy for you

363
00:24:11,830 --> 00:24:14,810
know, those last two spots, you know, which means,

364
00:24:15,050 --> 00:24:18,730
you know, hopefully, you know, more excitement on match day threes

365
00:24:19,610 --> 00:24:23,570
particularly as you know the tournament starts to you know,

366
00:24:24,070 --> 00:24:26,690
hit towards the pointy end of the group stage. So you know, that's, that,

367
00:24:27,190 --> 00:24:30,570
that can't be discounted as well. Yeah, so that, that final match

368
00:24:31,070 --> 00:24:34,370
day of the group stages will be one to watch out for, won't it?

369
00:24:34,870 --> 00:24:37,650
There'll be lots of, as you said, lots of jeopardy. There'll be lots, there'll be

370
00:24:38,150 --> 00:24:41,290
places on the line and qualification and all

371
00:24:41,790 --> 00:24:44,690
of that, that great stuff that, that we've seen in, in past,

372
00:24:45,170 --> 00:24:48,810
I guess international tournaments that, that have a

373
00:24:49,310 --> 00:24:52,490
setup where I guess that that progression to the next stage is

374
00:24:52,990 --> 00:24:56,450
all based on that, that last match day which is, which is fantastic

375
00:24:56,950 --> 00:24:59,750
and it's exactly what we want. We want competitive games,

376
00:25:00,250 --> 00:25:02,710
we want to see some good quality football and I'm sure we're going to get

377
00:25:02,790 --> 00:25:06,670
both of those all right. Now speaking of opposition,

378
00:25:07,170 --> 00:25:10,470
let's do a quick analysis of the opposition.

379
00:25:10,870 --> 00:25:15,150
I guess. Paletti, who do you think is the biggest threat in the Matildas

380
00:25:15,650 --> 00:25:19,110
group? I mean the obvious answer is South

381
00:25:19,610 --> 00:25:23,310
Korea. So that is the obvious answer. That's not to say

382
00:25:23,810 --> 00:25:27,430
the Philippines and Iran should be taken lightly. And I certainly think,

383
00:25:30,490 --> 00:25:34,010
you know, just despite what happened in Olympic qualifying a couple of

384
00:25:34,510 --> 00:25:38,170
years ago, the Philippines could present a banana skin challenge

385
00:25:39,210 --> 00:25:42,450
for the, for the Matildas and

386
00:25:42,950 --> 00:25:47,690
so could Iran to be fair. Like, like there's like by

387
00:25:48,190 --> 00:25:51,290
virtue of being the host nation, the Matildas are supposed to have an easy,

388
00:25:51,370 --> 00:25:54,580
you know, supposed to have the easiest group. But you know,

389
00:25:55,080 --> 00:25:57,740
this is actually a somewhat difficult group.

390
00:25:58,860 --> 00:26:01,940
Like look, you know, all it's all it's going to take

391
00:26:02,440 --> 00:26:05,100
is one slip up and you know, suddenly,

392
00:26:06,780 --> 00:26:09,619
I mean, to be fair, that might also make for easier tournament progression which we'll

393
00:26:10,119 --> 00:26:13,340
get into a little bit later. But you know, it's certainly not as

394
00:26:13,840 --> 00:26:17,820
breeze through get, you know, three wins from three, you know, make the quarters

395
00:26:18,320 --> 00:26:21,370
and you know, walt your way through to the semis

396
00:26:21,770 --> 00:26:24,890
likely against Japan. We'll touch on that a little bit later.

397
00:26:26,010 --> 00:26:29,450
You know, so yeah, on paper it's,

398
00:26:29,950 --> 00:26:33,610
it's South Korea, but the Philippines and Iran could certainly present their own challenges.

399
00:26:35,770 --> 00:26:38,490
Yeah, that's so true. And palette,

400
00:26:39,210 --> 00:26:42,690
particularly Philippines, I guess there's a bit of inside knowledge there,

401
00:26:43,190 --> 00:26:47,290
isn't there? Of course we've got the Philippines coach there who has

402
00:26:47,790 --> 00:26:51,250
coached in the A League women's at Western United. Then you've got the

403
00:26:51,750 --> 00:26:54,670
likes of Angie Beard and I think there's a couple others who have come through

404
00:26:55,170 --> 00:26:58,190
the A League women's system. So I mean they're going to be right up for

405
00:26:58,690 --> 00:27:02,590
it and they've got the, the knowledge of, of how some

406
00:27:03,090 --> 00:27:05,670
of our girls play and, and the way that they want to play.

407
00:27:06,070 --> 00:27:09,990
Do you think that that adds a little bit extra to particularly this,

408
00:27:10,490 --> 00:27:11,990
this opening game against the Philippines?

409
00:27:14,870 --> 00:27:18,190
Look it, like I said, we saw this game in Olympic

410
00:27:18,690 --> 00:27:22,020
qualifying, you know, two, two and a bit years ago and

411
00:27:22,520 --> 00:27:24,220
you know, it was an 8 nil victory for the Matildas.

412
00:27:25,900 --> 00:27:29,580
I don't think it, I don't think, you know,

413
00:27:30,080 --> 00:27:33,620
history or otherwise, it does a ton, I think. I,

414
00:27:34,120 --> 00:27:37,540
I think, I think the Philippines have changed the way they've played a little

415
00:27:38,040 --> 00:27:40,260
bit. I know the Matildas are going to change the plot the way they play

416
00:27:40,760 --> 00:27:43,860
a little bit. They're set up tactically and formationally on the Joe Montemura as we

417
00:27:44,360 --> 00:27:47,580
touched on, very fluid, very, you know,

418
00:27:47,660 --> 00:27:51,420
non like, like no set system per se. Like, like he'll have

419
00:27:51,920 --> 00:27:54,580
things that he wants to do but you know, there's really no traditional way to

420
00:27:55,080 --> 00:27:59,020
describe it as, as he said last week in press conference.

421
00:27:59,820 --> 00:28:03,260
So no, I don't, I don't think it's necessarily an advantage or a disadvantage.

422
00:28:03,420 --> 00:28:07,740
I think it's just going to be the Philippines coming out to play because

423
00:28:08,240 --> 00:28:11,710
they want to make sure that they can, you know, try to, you know,

424
00:28:12,210 --> 00:28:15,350
maybe Snake there was the best third place team in the group. You know,

425
00:28:15,850 --> 00:28:19,390
match day two, they could very easily take it to South Korea and cause an

426
00:28:19,890 --> 00:28:23,470
upset or a draw and suddenly that changes the whole dynamic

427
00:28:23,970 --> 00:28:26,990
of match day three. So, you know, the Philippines will be up for it.

428
00:28:27,490 --> 00:28:31,430
I just don't think there's necessarily an advantage or a disadvantage.

429
00:28:32,390 --> 00:28:36,190
I will say I am so disappointed that Serena Bolden

430
00:28:36,690 --> 00:28:38,630
has been unable to recover from her ACL injury in time.

431
00:28:43,430 --> 00:28:47,590
I did an interview with, you know, Serena a few years ago. Wonderful person,

432
00:28:47,670 --> 00:28:51,110
lovely human being, great footballer

433
00:28:51,610 --> 00:28:54,750
like, she lit up the A League women while she was here. I was just

434
00:28:55,250 --> 00:28:57,510
so disappointed she's not going to get a chance to play here for the Philippines.

435
00:28:58,790 --> 00:29:01,950
Yeah, it's an absolute shame, isn't it, when you

436
00:29:02,450 --> 00:29:05,630
know, a tournament gets robbed of, you know, quite potentially

437
00:29:06,130 --> 00:29:09,750
one of its best players and you know, to know that she's

438
00:29:10,250 --> 00:29:14,570
such a wonderful human as well, it's. It makes it doubly sad I

439
00:29:15,070 --> 00:29:18,650
guess, in that situation. So, all our best to Serena.

440
00:29:19,150 --> 00:29:23,610
Hopefully she's not too far off from getting back on the pitch and I

441
00:29:24,110 --> 00:29:27,410
guess getting back to, I guess that opposition analysis.

442
00:29:28,690 --> 00:29:32,250
Japan, they're the, are they the

443
00:29:32,750 --> 00:29:36,050
favorites outside of Matilda's in your mind polity,

444
00:29:36,860 --> 00:29:40,620
they're the favorite period. It's Japan, then Australia,

445
00:29:41,260 --> 00:29:44,860
then some crazy

446
00:29:45,360 --> 00:29:48,740
mix of China, North Korea, South Korea and then there's everyone else.

447
00:29:49,240 --> 00:29:52,780
Like it is clearly Japan one. There's a gap. Australia too,

448
00:29:53,260 --> 00:29:55,580
there's a gap. Here's everyone else,

449
00:29:56,460 --> 00:29:59,500
then another gap and then here's the rest. Like, like that is,

450
00:30:00,000 --> 00:30:03,260
that is just the reality of how far ahead Japan are in

451
00:30:03,760 --> 00:30:07,200
the afc, that if

452
00:30:07,700 --> 00:30:10,360
the Matilda's top their group and Japan tops their group like they are on a

453
00:30:10,860 --> 00:30:15,080
collision course of the semi finals. And look,

454
00:30:15,960 --> 00:30:19,640
Australia has never lost to Japan in

455
00:30:20,140 --> 00:30:23,240
a semifinal match at the, at the Women's Asian Cup.

456
00:30:23,800 --> 00:30:27,320
They've lost in every other time they played group stage, you know,

457
00:30:27,820 --> 00:30:30,180
final, but they've never lost in a semifinal.

458
00:30:31,770 --> 00:30:35,970
But, and I've said this so many times, it genuinely

459
00:30:36,470 --> 00:30:40,290
feels like it's beginning to lose meaning. But when I look at, you know,

460
00:30:40,790 --> 00:30:44,290
the potential Australia vs Japan

461
00:30:44,790 --> 00:30:48,250
matchup in the semifinals, I absolutely cannot

462
00:30:48,750 --> 00:30:52,410
get that Shiva Leafs cup game out of my head where Japan were

463
00:30:52,910 --> 00:30:57,350
just on the throttle for 90 minutes, a four nil romping on

464
00:30:57,850 --> 00:31:00,870
neutral territory in the United States during, during that, you know,

465
00:31:01,370 --> 00:31:05,230
during that game. And I don't know if you

466
00:31:05,730 --> 00:31:09,790
know, a screaming crowd of, you know, 70 plus thousand Australians

467
00:31:10,290 --> 00:31:14,310
here in Australia will make

468
00:31:14,810 --> 00:31:18,230
that much of a difference because I think the gap is just so,

469
00:31:18,730 --> 00:31:22,870
so massive. And yeah, like, like you

470
00:31:23,370 --> 00:31:25,950
talk to someone like Aaliyah Blaney, who's now an assistant coach with Japan,

471
00:31:26,780 --> 00:31:29,940
was Previously the under 20s coach, you know,

472
00:31:30,440 --> 00:31:33,740
here in Australia, you know, for, for the, for the

473
00:31:34,240 --> 00:31:37,340
young Matildas and her philosophy was always,

474
00:31:37,900 --> 00:31:41,100
how do we catch Japan? How do we set up a

475
00:31:41,600 --> 00:31:43,780
team? How do we build a team so that we can keep up with Japan,

476
00:31:44,280 --> 00:31:47,420
so that we can grow towards closing the gap with Japan?

477
00:31:49,740 --> 00:31:52,950
And, you know, she was able to, she was

478
00:31:53,450 --> 00:31:56,870
able to try and do that and then eventually, you know, she ended up getting

479
00:31:57,370 --> 00:32:00,590
offered an opportunity when Niels Nelson took the role.

480
00:32:01,090 --> 00:32:04,230
And, you know, she, she absolutely, you know, leapt to that opportunity. And I don't

481
00:32:04,730 --> 00:32:07,709
blame her, to be honest. Like, she's, you know, she's the sort of coach that's

482
00:32:08,209 --> 00:32:11,310
going to make Japan stronger, you know, help, you know, help build

483
00:32:11,810 --> 00:32:15,110
that program top to bottom. Not that it needs building is the wrong term to

484
00:32:15,610 --> 00:32:18,320
use, but help strengthen that program from, from top to bottom.

485
00:32:19,360 --> 00:32:22,360
And, you know, and I think that's just, it's so unfortunate that, you know,

486
00:32:22,860 --> 00:32:26,880
one of our brightest coaches, particularly one of our, you know,

487
00:32:27,380 --> 00:32:30,640
one of the few female coaches, you know,

488
00:32:31,040 --> 00:32:34,720
you know, they're going at such a top level, is helping our main

489
00:32:35,220 --> 00:32:38,480
opposition in Asia. So, you know,

490
00:32:38,560 --> 00:32:41,280
it, look, Japan's a threat. It will be the threat.

491
00:32:42,160 --> 00:32:45,310
Which is why, you know, I suggested, and I'm

492
00:32:45,810 --> 00:32:48,350
certainly not the only one to have made the suggestion that maybe finishing second in

493
00:32:48,850 --> 00:32:50,830
the group might not be the worst thing. It might mean more travel, but it

494
00:32:51,330 --> 00:32:54,830
might mean, but it would mean that unless there's a slip up in group B,

495
00:32:55,950 --> 00:32:58,950
knock or B in group C, that, you know,

496
00:32:59,450 --> 00:33:01,630
you avoid Japan until the final,

497
00:33:02,750 --> 00:33:04,350
assuming you win all the way through.

498
00:33:05,710 --> 00:33:08,830
So, look, I'm sure Joe Montemiro will just want to win.

499
00:33:10,180 --> 00:33:13,220
You know, it's not certain. He doesn't strike me as the sort of coach that's

500
00:33:13,720 --> 00:33:16,500
going to play games and, you know, try to manipulate because once you start,

501
00:33:16,580 --> 00:33:19,420
you know, once you start trying to manipulate things and you're playing with danger,

502
00:33:19,920 --> 00:33:23,660
you just, you're asking for trouble. You know, if it happens naturally, so be

503
00:33:24,160 --> 00:33:27,700
it. But you don't try to manipulate, you know,

504
00:33:27,860 --> 00:33:31,540
you know, things like that outside of,

505
00:33:31,780 --> 00:33:35,620
outside of Japan. Look, North Korea are very much an unknown

506
00:33:37,320 --> 00:33:41,200
because no one knows hardly anything about North Korea.

507
00:33:41,700 --> 00:33:44,520
Like, I know Sam Lewis has written a couple of articles in the last couple

508
00:33:45,020 --> 00:33:48,560
of years. One for the Guardian in the last few weeks, one for the ABC

509
00:33:49,060 --> 00:33:52,680
a couple of years ago. They're under 17 and they're under

510
00:33:53,180 --> 00:33:56,840
20. Squads have been ripping it up there, you know, at the, at the Junior

511
00:33:57,340 --> 00:34:01,120
Asian Cups here and then the World Cups as well. So, like, their junior stocks

512
00:34:01,620 --> 00:34:04,890
are absolutely skyrocketing. We just don't know how that's going to translate to

513
00:34:05,390 --> 00:34:08,970
senior, you know, to the senior side because, yeah,

514
00:34:09,050 --> 00:34:12,650
they lost 21 to Japan on aggregate

515
00:34:13,150 --> 00:34:15,290
in, you know, the final stages of the Olympic qualifiers.

516
00:34:16,810 --> 00:34:20,010
And this is their first major tournament since

517
00:34:20,490 --> 00:34:23,290
2010. Not 2010, 2011,

518
00:34:25,050 --> 00:34:29,560
where after five of their players got suspended after,

519
00:34:29,640 --> 00:34:33,200
you know, positive drug tests and then,

520
00:34:33,700 --> 00:34:38,160
yeah, they didn't. They were banned from 2015 Women's

521
00:34:38,660 --> 00:34:42,520
World Cup. Didn't qualify for either the 2018 or Asian couple of 2019

522
00:34:43,400 --> 00:34:47,080
Women's World cup, and then sort of withdrew from

523
00:34:47,580 --> 00:34:50,320
global football over Covid. And they've only just started to come back in the last

524
00:34:50,820 --> 00:34:54,520
couple of years after. After Covid happened. So no one knows what to expect down

525
00:34:55,020 --> 00:34:58,270
in North Korea. China sort of on the downturn a

526
00:34:58,770 --> 00:35:02,030
little bit, but, you know, they've got Ante Milicic as

527
00:35:02,530 --> 00:35:06,230
coach, so, you know, he'll, you know, he's trying to get them back

528
00:35:06,730 --> 00:35:09,390
on the up. And then South Korea, look,

529
00:35:11,790 --> 00:35:15,390
you know, the last time they played him at Zelda's, two wins

530
00:35:15,630 --> 00:35:19,310
here in Australia. It's not that South Korea are a

531
00:35:19,810 --> 00:35:23,550
bad nation, it's just. I think the gap is starting

532
00:35:24,050 --> 00:35:27,590
to grow, but, you know, just go just a little bit.

533
00:35:28,090 --> 00:35:31,310
And so I think it's not that they're not a threat because they're certainly dangerous

534
00:35:31,810 --> 00:35:35,310
on their day. 2022 Women's

535
00:35:35,810 --> 00:35:39,070
Asian cup for anyone who. Who remembers that. Yeah,

536
00:35:39,570 --> 00:35:43,230
you know, unfortunately. So, yeah, so, yeah, like, you know,

537
00:35:43,730 --> 00:35:45,710
it's. It's five teams that are realistically,

538
00:35:47,270 --> 00:35:50,750
you know, in contention to. To win this tournament or, you know, go deep

539
00:35:51,250 --> 00:35:54,230
into the tournament. That being said, you know,

540
00:35:54,730 --> 00:35:58,630
upsets happen in tournament football. Yeah, that's so

541
00:35:59,130 --> 00:36:02,710
true, isn't it? And. And someone like a South Korea or North Korea for

542
00:36:03,210 --> 00:36:06,630
that matter, just with their. Well, North Korea with their unknown factor in South

543
00:36:07,130 --> 00:36:09,910
Korea, as you said, turning up on the day and just playing,

544
00:36:10,470 --> 00:36:14,030
you know, getting that result. The two sides that are quite capable of

545
00:36:14,530 --> 00:36:17,860
it, China as well, you know, they've always had such a strong

546
00:36:18,360 --> 00:36:21,620
program, but yeah, as you said, they're on the decline, but,

547
00:36:22,120 --> 00:36:24,980
you know, a wounded dog, so to speak,

548
00:36:25,940 --> 00:36:29,500
they could attack. So it'll be interesting to

549
00:36:30,000 --> 00:36:33,260
see how it all plays out. And with that in mind, polity,

550
00:36:33,760 --> 00:36:37,380
I'm going to get you to get your crystal ball out. And I'd like to

551
00:36:37,880 --> 00:36:41,220
ask you what a pass mark is for the Matildas

552
00:36:41,720 --> 00:36:45,510
in this tournament. My pass mark or football? Australia's pass

553
00:36:46,010 --> 00:36:49,430
mark. Oh, let. I. I want your pass

554
00:36:49,930 --> 00:36:54,110
mark, Clay, please. I think make the semifinals

555
00:36:54,590 --> 00:36:58,110
and then Have a competitive showing against Japan.

556
00:36:58,510 --> 00:37:02,070
Should Japan be the opponent that you run into in the

557
00:37:02,570 --> 00:37:05,670
semifinals? Which, as we've just ran through all the permutations, seems like the

558
00:37:06,170 --> 00:37:09,870
most likely scenario, so that's my pass mark, is make the semifinals and have a

559
00:37:10,370 --> 00:37:12,950
competitive showing against Japan. If you win and you go through to the final,

560
00:37:13,110 --> 00:37:16,790
fantastic. You know, you're going with house money

561
00:37:17,290 --> 00:37:18,630
from there as far as I'm concerned, because I,

562
00:37:19,130 --> 00:37:23,150
I'll. We'll get into this in a little bit, in a little

563
00:37:23,650 --> 00:37:26,670
bit of a moment. But I. Look, I don't think I've hidden where I think

564
00:37:27,170 --> 00:37:30,710
this tournament's going. No, no, I think, I think you've.

565
00:37:31,270 --> 00:37:34,270
Yeah, I think you've made it clear that it's, you know,

566
00:37:34,770 --> 00:37:38,110
Japan's to lose. Maybe we can, if, if we can put it that

567
00:37:38,610 --> 00:37:42,420
way. Okay, yeah, brilliant. But in my heart, I want

568
00:37:42,920 --> 00:37:46,500
the Matildas to win the tournament. My head says Japan's going to run away with

569
00:37:47,000 --> 00:37:50,580
this. It's not even going to be close. Yeah, right. Okay. There you go.

570
00:37:51,080 --> 00:37:54,620
Yeah. I mean, there's, there's, you know, it depends who you talk to, doesn't it?

571
00:37:55,120 --> 00:37:58,580
There's a lot of optimism for the Matildas, obviously, and I guess that that

572
00:37:59,080 --> 00:38:02,260
might be the Matilda's bias and potentially having the blinkers on.

573
00:38:02,760 --> 00:38:07,160
But then there's the reality that just how good Japan is and the

574
00:38:07,660 --> 00:38:11,640
amount of players they got in the wsl, I guess maybe is a small reflection

575
00:38:12,140 --> 00:38:15,280
of that. And the fact that their junior teams are just so strong and

576
00:38:15,780 --> 00:38:19,040
it's just a production line that seems to just keep on going

577
00:38:19,520 --> 00:38:22,880
in tune with the fact that the Japanese Federation invest

578
00:38:23,520 --> 00:38:26,880
so much into the youth development as well. So it's

579
00:38:27,360 --> 00:38:31,080
one of those things. And this is the end result when your national team

580
00:38:31,580 --> 00:38:34,680
is just so bloody brilliant to watch, aren't they? That's.

581
00:38:35,180 --> 00:38:38,360
I, I guess that's. That's where it is with. With Japan.

582
00:38:38,840 --> 00:38:41,640
Now going back to that crystal ball polity,

583
00:38:42,280 --> 00:38:45,480
who's your starting side for the game against the

584
00:38:45,980 --> 00:38:50,920
Philippines? Whatever's going to work legitimately.

585
00:38:51,420 --> 00:38:54,120
I don't, I don't know what Joe Montemiro wants to do.

586
00:38:55,160 --> 00:38:58,600
I know what, I don't even know what I would do. Right. Because I think,

587
00:38:59,650 --> 00:39:01,890
I think you've got to play the game here.

588
00:39:02,930 --> 00:39:06,850
Of like. Do you.

589
00:39:08,130 --> 00:39:11,250
Do you look at the rest in the first game? Do you maybe look at

590
00:39:11,750 --> 00:39:13,970
it for the game against Iran? Do you maybe look at it for a quarterfinal,

591
00:39:14,470 --> 00:39:18,290
depending on the opponent? You know, I think there's so many different permutations

592
00:39:18,790 --> 00:39:22,570
at play that I legitimately could not

593
00:39:23,070 --> 00:39:26,530
tell you. I know, I know this is a fun thing to do. Everyone makes

594
00:39:27,030 --> 00:39:30,790
predictions and stuff like that. But legitimately, my answer

595
00:39:31,290 --> 00:39:34,390
is just whatever is going to work. And that's going to be, you know,

596
00:39:34,890 --> 00:39:37,070
the same answer for every game. Whatever is going to work.

597
00:39:39,310 --> 00:39:42,390
I wish I could give you something more solid. To be fair,

598
00:39:42,890 --> 00:39:46,230
I probably should be able to, but I just, I think, you know,

599
00:39:46,730 --> 00:39:50,150
you don't know who's carrying niggles, who's, you know,

600
00:39:50,650 --> 00:39:54,270
who's sort of lacking fitness, lacking game time. Like Kyra Cooney

601
00:39:54,770 --> 00:39:56,970
crosses minutes have been limited at Arsenal this season.

602
00:39:57,450 --> 00:40:01,170
Ideally she's, you know, you're starting, you know, you know,

603
00:40:01,670 --> 00:40:05,370
one of your starting players, like, ideally it's Cooney cross. Gori is the two

604
00:40:05,870 --> 00:40:08,490
eights in midfield and Claire Wheeler is the six.

605
00:40:09,210 --> 00:40:11,490
There you say, I'm actually, you know, I'm starting to give you a little bit

606
00:40:11,990 --> 00:40:15,570
of a lineup now. Like, that's sort of like, you know, what I would do.

607
00:40:16,070 --> 00:40:18,370
But we don't, you know, you don't know what Cooney crosses minutes are like,

608
00:40:18,870 --> 00:40:22,050
you know, is, is Fowler going to start? Is she not like,

609
00:40:22,550 --> 00:40:26,110
she started for Manchester City last week? Does Joe starter on Sunday?

610
00:40:26,190 --> 00:40:29,750
I, I don't know. I, I don't know the answers to those questions.

611
00:40:30,250 --> 00:40:33,070
And so, like, what's the goalkeeping situation? Is, you know,

612
00:40:33,230 --> 00:40:36,950
was it simply just Macca choosing to do a gym session today or

613
00:40:37,450 --> 00:40:40,269
was it, you know, is there something else going on? Like, I don't,

614
00:40:40,990 --> 00:40:44,790
I don't know. There's so many different variables. Does Steph Kelly play center back?

615
00:40:45,290 --> 00:40:47,830
Does she play left back? You know, what does that do? Is it, you know,

616
00:40:48,330 --> 00:40:51,030
a back four of Catley on the left, Carpenter on the right? Like, there you

617
00:40:51,530 --> 00:40:54,310
go. I'll tell you, Carpenter's starting it right back. Yeah, there we go.

618
00:40:55,590 --> 00:40:59,190
We can agree on that. Curse your striker, Caitlin Forger,

619
00:40:59,690 --> 00:41:02,550
left wing. Yeah, I've given you my midfield three.

620
00:41:03,050 --> 00:41:06,550
So you let me monologue and you let me talk myself into

621
00:41:07,050 --> 00:41:09,350
giving into answering your question. You're very smart. I like that.

622
00:41:11,990 --> 00:41:14,310
I just think there's so many variables that, you know,

623
00:41:14,710 --> 00:41:17,710
that's probably the best I can give you. Yeah,

624
00:41:18,210 --> 00:41:21,470
that's fair. And it's, look, we can work with that. We can work with that.

625
00:41:21,970 --> 00:41:25,670
So, you know, then it's potentially, if Catley goes center back or left

626
00:41:26,170 --> 00:41:30,950
back, let's say she goes left back, is it Claire Hunt or Winnie

627
00:41:31,450 --> 00:41:35,310
Heatley or Alana Kennedy as your back two

628
00:41:35,390 --> 00:41:39,390
as your center back? It could be Any, any combination of those three, couldn't it

629
00:41:39,890 --> 00:41:42,760
really? I, I'd. I'd go Hunt and Hateley hunting.

630
00:41:43,640 --> 00:41:47,520
If you're going Steph Kelly at left back, it's Hunt and Hateley Carpenter

631
00:41:48,020 --> 00:41:51,200
on the right. If you're going Catley at center

632
00:41:51,700 --> 00:41:55,400
back. Yeah,

633
00:41:55,560 --> 00:41:58,760
that's when it gets, doesn't it? I'd put Caitlin Torpy.

634
00:41:59,320 --> 00:42:02,520
Yep. Yeah, yeah,

635
00:42:02,600 --> 00:42:04,520
I put. I'd put Caitlin Torpy.

636
00:42:06,600 --> 00:42:09,730
There you go. And let's say Razzo's going to start

637
00:42:10,230 --> 00:42:13,770
it right wing. There you go. I've given you my

638
00:42:14,270 --> 00:42:17,450
starting outfield. And whoever's in goal is going to be. Whoever's in goals.

639
00:42:17,530 --> 00:42:21,490
Well, yeah, I mean, it depends on the fitness of Macaronald. So we've,

640
00:42:21,990 --> 00:42:24,570
we've covered ourselves there. I think Pauletti. I think we've done a great job there.

641
00:42:25,070 --> 00:42:28,770
Let's. Let's be honest, you did the heavy lifting, though. I just, I,

642
00:42:29,270 --> 00:42:32,410
I let you get there. Yeah. Let me monologue you.

643
00:42:32,910 --> 00:42:36,880
Let me just get everything out and into the ether and I somehow made sense

644
00:42:37,380 --> 00:42:40,560
of it. Yeah, that's right. That's right. That's what it's all about. That's what it's

645
00:42:41,060 --> 00:42:44,840
all about. All right, well. And I think you've covered off who wins the

646
00:42:45,340 --> 00:42:48,840
Asian Cup. So that, That's Head is Japan, heart is

647
00:42:49,340 --> 00:42:52,320
Matilda's. Right? Yep, yep. That's. Yeah,

648
00:42:53,840 --> 00:42:57,200
no more. I'd love to be more decisive and optimistic,

649
00:42:57,700 --> 00:43:00,480
I really would. But look,

650
00:43:00,980 --> 00:43:04,580
that's. That's completely fair. You're being realistic. We can't

651
00:43:05,080 --> 00:43:08,980
all be living in wonderland. I guess we have to be realistic sometimes,

652
00:43:09,480 --> 00:43:12,580
so. All right, look, I think that's a good note to end it on.

653
00:43:13,080 --> 00:43:16,260
I'll get you to plug Dubcast again once more for me there.

654
00:43:16,760 --> 00:43:19,660
Palette. Yep. So dropping our Asian cup preview on Friday morning,

655
00:43:20,380 --> 00:43:23,220
I've actually got to jump straight off this and start editing it. So that'll be

656
00:43:23,720 --> 00:43:26,620
fun. So dropping that, dropping that at some point on Friday morning.

657
00:43:28,380 --> 00:43:31,250
It'll be. Will be. Then follow that up with,

658
00:43:31,490 --> 00:43:35,490
you know, with. With a review of the Matilda's

659
00:43:35,570 --> 00:43:38,370
opening game against the Philippines. And then, as I said, we're hoping to do daily

660
00:43:38,870 --> 00:43:42,210
content throughout. Throughout the entirety of the Asian Cup.

661
00:43:42,530 --> 00:43:45,930
I have a spreadsheet, it's all listed out with, you know, everything going

662
00:43:46,430 --> 00:43:49,330
on. It's just whether we actually get around to doing it or not. So that's

663
00:43:49,830 --> 00:43:52,810
the plans. We're gonna, we're gonna have some fun content dropping throughout the tournament as

664
00:43:53,310 --> 00:43:56,210
well. Some point before the opening game. I've Got a.

665
00:43:56,460 --> 00:43:58,620
I've got a short that's going to go up on the YouTube channel and,

666
00:43:59,120 --> 00:44:02,900
you know, across the. Across the social pages with a bunch of fun facts about

667
00:44:03,400 --> 00:44:07,100
the Asian cup. And I hope that, you know, add a couple of those throughout

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the tournament. In fact, I'll give you a little bit of teaser so you.

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So, you know, sort of what to. What to expect from this.

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There are 23 teams that have competed, you know, in the history of the Women's

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Asian Cup. Bangladesh will be the 23rd nation making their

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debut at this tournament. There are two nations, Kazakhstan and New

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00:44:27,410 --> 00:44:30,310
Zealand will be unable to add to their tally by virtue of being part of

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UEFA and the ofc, respectively. So, you know, those are the sorts of

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fun facts you can expect, you know, so. So keep

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an eye on that throughout the tournament as well. Hoping to have a couple of

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those. And then once the Asian cup is over, the double cast doesn't stop because

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we'll be back to our regularly scheduled A league Women's weekly reviews and discussions

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about everything that's going on impacting Australian women's football. So,

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you know, we're here for the rest of the season and then episodes will

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00:44:57,910 --> 00:45:00,810
be. Be a little bit more infrequent throughout the off season, but we're going to

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have plenty of content. So if, if you can drop us a subscribe on

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00:45:05,750 --> 00:45:09,330
YouTube or follow us on whatever podcasting platform you're on, if you enjoy our content,

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00:45:09,830 --> 00:45:13,290
that'd be greatly appreciated because, you know, once you hit

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00:45:13,790 --> 00:45:17,010
certain milestones, you know, that leads to monetization of content, which means we can invest

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00:45:17,510 --> 00:45:20,890
in. Into growing content more, particularly during the off season when there's not as

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00:45:21,390 --> 00:45:25,610
much of it to go around. Yeah, exactly. And keep Paletti

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00:45:26,110 --> 00:45:29,890
and Burke doing the wonderful work that they're doing. Because it's great to have a

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podcast dedicated solely to women's football here in Australia.

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It needs as much coverage as it can possibly.

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So make sure you get out there and support Burke

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00:45:41,470 --> 00:45:45,210
and Palette and the Dubcast crew. All right, well, that is it

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for this special Matilda's Asian cup preview show.

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I hope you've enjoyed it. Make sure you get around us and Dubcast on

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00:45:53,890 --> 00:45:56,690
whatever social media or platform,

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podcast platform. I should say that you're listening to this on.

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00:46:00,770 --> 00:46:03,330
Thank you very much for your time, Paladi. Really appreciate it.

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All the best. And go the Matildas. Yep, no worries. Thank you so much for

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having me.