Six forty-five arrived early this morning. Half asleep, we packed our gear for the day, threw on our tracksuits, inhaled a quick brekkie, and assembled in the hotel conference room for our team meeting. Krazz talked strategy, while Sars inspired the lot of us by recommending that we climb those girls damn backs and be the first to the ball.

As I boarded the bus for the ride to Marrickville after some much needed coffee, I got to thinking about the feeling you have before a big game.

For us, this first match was probably the most important game of footy we’d ever played. True to our typical pre-game symptoms, we had the usual knots in our stomachs and the overwhelming urge to use the loo constantly. However, our emotions were intensified by our fatigue from traveling, the excitement of playing in the country where the sport actually originated, and the apprehension that these Australian women were going to stomp all over us on the ground. I witnessed our pre-game rituals, the things that prepare us to tackle a player twice our size or take a speccy over a tower of a player. Footies spun in hands, i-pods jammed our personal motivating pieces of music, quiet meditation silenced the outside world, and conversation about strategy, positions, and Sex and the City brought anticipation and laughter.

The majority of us have never played on a field with 18, so the sight of a field that huge was a bit startling at first. After watching a junior’s match, we slipped on our striped red, white and blue socks, tied our boots, and huddled up for a quick warm-up. Still missing the McHale sisters, the Freedom took the field for the first time in Australia and battled valiantly for four 20-minute quarters (also the longest game we’ve ever played).

Though the New South Wales' ruck had the height advantage, the Freedom came out of the square with the ball 80% of the time. Denielle Beilfuss had the first kick under the Australian sun, while Nikki Peoples booted the second from her first ever half forward flank position. Courtney Church didn’t let being a “small” stand in her way, and came out hard setting the tone for the physically grueling match that would ensue in the next 80 minutes.

Despite the scoreless first quarter for the US, we held Sydney to just 4 behinds. The second quarter was evenly matched with both teams kicking one goal and 3 behinds. Denielle was superb at gathering the ball off the ground in the pack and getting it off her boot to the forward line. Jenny Sarbacker seized her fair share of marks out of the Sydney sky and Monica Robbins defended the Freedom’s backline with bombs to the boundary lines. Judith Stein fought intensely at full forward to reward the tireless efforts of the Freedom middle, but was robbed with 3 behinds for the day. Siobhan McHale, who arrived minutes into the first quarter, kicked the first US goal and Kelli Modica followed suit with the second. The Freedom fell further behind the Sydney ladies in the 3rd quarter, but managed to regain momentum in the last quarter for a nearly even score. In the end, we fell short of victory, but left the field with our heads held high. No doubt, the New South Wales women and spectators were surprised that Americans could actually hold their own on the oval.

USA 0.1 1.2 1.6 2.6 (18)

Sydney 0.4 1.3 3.8 4.9 (33)

Goal Kickers

Freedom: S. McHale 1, Modica 1

Sydney: J. Gillett, K Woodlands 2, B Day 1

Best on Ground:

Freedom: Denielle Beilfuss, Courtney Church, Jenny Sarbacker, Kelli Modica, Monica Robbins

Sydney: Kate Woodlands, Una McKay

We managed to get some great press with a full spread in The Sun Herald. Check out the interview and coverage of the game.

Photo and contribution courtesy of Lisa Roper and WorldFootyNews.com.

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