Tongue slip in children Matilda on Midfielder Kyra Cooney-Cross has a world questioning the danger of the star captain Sam Kerr injured his left calfon the eve of their second group game against Nigeria.
Cooney-Cross told reporters Monday Kerr he had torn his calf, an injury worse than strain, earlier Australia won 1-0 against Ireland to open their FIFA Women’s World Cup campaign on home soil.
“It’s unfortunate that Sam tore his calf before the game, but I think we’re just looking at Nigeria,” Cooney-Cross said on Monday.
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“Sam is doing his best to get back as quickly as possible and that’s important.”
The use of the word “torn” sparked panic across the country, with fears that Kerr’s injury was being played down by the Matildas.
But Australian football was quick to correct the young midfielder, issuing a statement denying the claims.
The statement did not confirm when Kerr would return
The slip-up is still a cause for concern, given Kerr’s importance to the Matildas attack, with speculation swirling as to whether the skipper will pull up the boots again in this tournament.
Kerr was still on the sidelines during Monday’s session in Brisbane, seen with a bandage wrapped around his calf.
However, teammate Katrina Gorry said the Matildas would continue to be absent from their practice.
“We don’t see it as damaging to the team,” Gorry said.
“We’ve got some amazing players across the board, so for us we want to look at the players we have.
“We know that Sammy is always around us, he always supports us. It gives us a little fire in our belly to keep going out there, working hard, and in the last minutes of the game I put him that extra effort.
“We want him at the end of this campaign, as long as he stays on his mind then we will stay and we will take him.”
The Matildas face Nigeria at Suncorp Stadium on Thursday night
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