Matildas fulfilled his World Cup dream with a penalty shootout win over France.

France’s ghosts of 2019 are gone. The nightmare in Nice four years ago – when Matildas bid farewell to the squad at the last World Cup after a penalty shootout – is a distant memory. Australia’s may call the devil for France itself. with the host nation keeping their World Cup dreams alive for another game after a stunning 20 penalty shootout.

You’d be forgiven for thinking this was the World Cup on a summer’s day in the cool Brisbane city. and even when the sun goes down The heat did not decrease even for a second. As Australia and France battled for a place in the semi-finals for over three hours, the game staggered back and forth. Timed out with a scoreless regulation. As well as 30 minutes of extra time and penalty shoot-outs needed to separate the two sides.

In her first World Cup, substitute Cortnee Vine became Australia’s 10th penalty taker and became a hero for the Matildas as she sent them through to the semi-finals for the first time in team history – and is the first host nation to do so The last four since 2003 in Sydney on Wednesday, they will face England in a 2-1 win over Colombia.

Matildas goalkeeper Mackenzie Arnold has raised the roof in Brisbane. The stadium saved the first penalty from Selma Bacha, Caitlin Foord scored for her, and Australia tangibly ahead for the first time. But it was only short-lived by saving the next one from Steph Catley. The shoot-out drama had just begun.

Arnold made a second save. Kicks her own penalty to the right. Then made a third save – twice, as the first had to be retaken after she left the line too soon. Claire Hunt, another World Cup nominee, knew the goal would win the game. which may not be expected to be called to shoot a penalty thus saving her shot But after France’s Vicki Becho hit the pole, Vine closed the deal in a non-nervous effort.

The heart-stopping historic victory came after 120 minutes of hard-fought football. The French showed their ability to attack quickly and sharply. And the attack was swift down the left flank. The moment France stormed out of the block sent nervousness around the stadium, and there were signs of nervousness on the pitch as well.

French striker Kadi Diato Diani almost took advantage of his nerves early in the game in the seventh minute when she pounced on a pass from Alanna Kennedy but sent the ball over the goal. The support looks shaky and early on. where both sides face each other throughout an increasingly tense and chaotic game.

for most of the remainder of the first half The green and gold crowd humming along with the occasional long ball throw forward. Image on the big screen of Sam. Kerr on the bench and any touch from Mary Fowler, who wore her black gloves though In the afternoon, temperatures rose above 20 degrees Celsius.

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when the light fades The pitch in the stadium was raised by several levels. And so is the power on the field. And it was Fowler who, before half-time, had the best chance to break the dead end. After being kept relatively quiet, Hayley Raso thundered down the right and crossed low past a wily Wendie Renard towards the near post. Goalkeeper Pauline Peyraud-Magnin came out but Emily van Egmond got there first and tapped back to Fowler on the edge of the penalty area.

When Peyraud-Magnin out of her line It seemed to be a definite goal, only for Élisa De Almeida to make a crucial intervention, using her thighs to deflect the ball wide. a few minutes later It was Fowler once again delivering a nice, weighty pass from Catriona Gorry, but this time the goalkeeper had a better sense of the run and was able to prevent Fowler from pulling the trigger.

Kerr once again started on the bench, while Tony Gustafsson opted to stick to the winning XI. But the coach only took 10 minutes of the second half to play his card. The striker replaced Van Egmund with the loudest applause of the night. Kerr’s first action was to catch her boot in the grass and stumble. But this was quickly followed by a blistering run with the ball to the edge of the area before clipping back to Raso, which the kicker forced. Peyraud-Magnin saves, energy changes instantly. But the opportunity has not yet been converted.

Still scoreless with only 10 minutes left in control, disappointment seemed to boil over on the pitch and on the sidelines, slow tackles, shirt ripping offs, coaches furious from behind the white dotted line. Despair reached the centre, sending the game into extra time.

With almost 50,000 seats, things took a strange turn in the first half of extra time when French substitute Becho appeared to take the ball over the goal line unnoticed. create a lot of dissatisfaction with football fans the crowd behind the goal

in the rhythm of the golden shirt The ensuing corner sent the ball into the net behind Kennedy’s head. But the referee ruled that she had been dragged down by Renard. Kennedy’s countenance told the story of how close Australia had come to arranging their camp at that point.

But in the end the penalty Not an own goal Be the judge of this match against England in Wednesday’s semi-final in Sydney. The Matildas hope to reach the heights of Brisbane. And of course now The idea of ​​playing a World Cup final on home soil is turning into a truly tantalizing possibility.