England foiled Australia's revenge mission as they cruised to a 3-0 friendly win at Pride Park.
A rematch of their 2023 World Cup semi-final - one the Lionesses won in Sydney - things went south again for the Matildas when Alanna Kennedy saw red for pulling Alessia Russo down on the edge of the Australia box; a desperate attempt to prevent a goal after she had been dispossessed.
While the free-kick was originally misfired by Aggie Beever-Jones, she made no mistake at the second time of asking as she rifled England in front, with the hosts then doubling their lead on the brink of half-time through birthday girl Lucy Bronze.
Sarina Wiegman’s side continued to dominate after the break but were dealt a mammoth blow when Euro 2025 hero Michelle Agyemang was stretchered off with a serious injury.
While this put a dampener on what was otherwise a brilliant performance, England ended the game on a high as Georgia Stanway’s stoppage-time penalty capped off the Lionesses’ first win since being crowned European champions in the summer.
Relive all the action from Pride Park below:
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England vs Australia live updates
- England foil Australia's revenge mission as they storm to victory at Pride Park
- 90+7' GOAL! Stanway fires in stoppage-time penalty to cap off win [ENG 3-0 AUS]
- 41' GOAL! Bronze slots home on birthday to cement England's dominance [ENG 2-0 AUS]
- 20' GOAL! Beever-Jones rifles into top corner following free-kick misfire [ENG 1-0 AUS]
- 18' RED CARD! Kennedy sent off for pulling Russo down on edge of box [ENG 0-0 AUS]
Report: Lucy Bronze nets birthday goal as England foil Australia revenge mission
22:30
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Will Castle
England returned to winning ways in the second game of their homecoming tour with a 3-0 victory over 10-player Australia at a sold-out Pride Park.
Australia were out for revenge following their World Cup semi-final loss to the Lionesses a couple of years ago but England cruised to a win and a first clean sheet in six.
England were looking to bounce back from their defeat to Brazil just three days ago and they did it in commanding style against the Matildas, who played the majority of the contest without Alanna Kennedy after her red card.
Sarina Wiegman’s side have been accused of starting slowly recently but they could not be faulted this time in a first half dominated purely by the two-time European champions with goals from Aggie Beever-Jones and Lucy Bronze, on her 34th birthday.
A celebratory evening was rather marred as striker Michelle Agyemang was taken off the field on a stretcher after she went down clutching her knee before Georgia Stanway rounded off victory with a late penalty.
Lionesses hero Michelle Agyemang stretchered off after horror injury against Australia
22:15
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Will Castle
Lionesses hero Michelle Agyemang was left in tears as she was stretchered off with a suspected serious injury against Australia.
The 19-year-old, who earned national adulation for her super-sub role in England’s Euro 2025 triumph this summer, came on in the second half of the Lionesses’ 3-0 international friendly win over the Matildas on Tuesday night.
However, she would be withdrawn from the contest just 18 minutes after her introduction after going down clutching her knee, with the Arsenal loanee appearing in excruciating pain.
After minutes of being tended to by England medics, she left the field on a stretcher to a standing ovation inside Pride Park.
Lucia Kendall steals show on debut
22:00
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Will Castle
Lucia Kendall was an absolute star on her Lionesses debut and while she didn’t grab a much-deserved goal, she got the acclaim of her manager.
“I think she did really well,” Wiegman said. “She has impressed me and my staff since the start of the competition with Aston Villa, and she did also really well in the training sessions. You see she almost scored that goal. She picks up really good positions, but she reads the game really well.
"She understands things and that just comes with her and she keeps things really simple but that's not always easy. She has impressed us too, and that's why she deserved a start today.
"She's very young but very powerful, and she's strong too, but she also makes spaces for other people."
Reflecting on her first England outing, Kendall said: "It was amazing, to be honest. Felt at home, the girls were so easy to play with. You've got world-class players on that pitch, so it was easy to fit in.
“When I was a little girl you couldn't even dream of that to be able to go out there to a sell-out crowd. Playing with a team that had just gone and won back-to-back Euros, it was really special."
Sarina Wiegman's post-match thoughts
21:45
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Will Castle
"Of course, we wanted to dominate the game and early in the game, a player was sent off for them and they go down to 10,” Wiegman told ITV4.
“We had a lesson the other day on how to do it against 10, so we wanted to keep up the pace of the game, create chances and harm them.
“I think we were OK on the ball but we can do better, especially in the final third, be tighter on the ball, be aligned a little more, make better decisions, then we could've scored a little bit more. Overall, we were solid when we didn't have the ball, I thought."
Wiegman also said she wishes Australia didn’t go down to 10 so early, as she wanted to use the friendly for her team to be properly tested.
A near-perfect night for England
21:30
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Will Castle
Tonight was so nearly perfect for England as they scored three and kept a clean sheet to get back to winning ways.
But unfortunately, the serious injury suffered by Michelle Agyemang will hang heavy on everyone’s minds. Let’s hope it’s not as serious as it looked.
Sarina Wiegman was unable to provide any update, but said it was “horrible” to see and that it “didn’t look good”.
Beever-Jones, meanwhile, was gutted to see her teammate leave the field like that.
“It is never nice when anyone comes off a stretcher, let alone a teammate. I don’t know what she has done but will be praying she will be OK,” she said.
Aggie Beever-Jones provides injury update
21:14
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Will Castle
“I am OK,” she said. “I didn’t want to come off. It was good they were already down to 10 so it did not impact the game too much.
“It is a friendly so sometimes you have to see the bigger picture. Just got to wrap up and get some recovery.”
England foil Australia's revenge mission to get back to winning ways
21:07
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Will Castle
FULL-TIME! England 3-0 Australia
21:00
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Will Castle
England foiled Australia's revenge mission as they cruised to a 3-0 friendly win at Pride Park.
A rematch of their 2023 World Cup semi-final - one the Lionesses won in Sydney - things went south again for the Matildas when Alanna Kennedy saw red for pulling Alessia Russo down on the edge of the Australia box; a desperate attempt to prevent a goal after she had been dispossessed.
While the free-kick was originally misfired by Aggie Beever-Jones, she made no mistake at the second time of asking as she rifled England in front, with the hosts then doubling their lead on the brink of half-time through birthday girl Lucy Bronze.
Sarina Wiegman’s side continued to dominate after the break but were dealt a mammoth blow when Euro 2025 hero Michelle Agyemang was stretchered off with a serious injury.
While this put a dampener on what was otherwise a brilliant performance, England ended the game on a high as Georgia Stanway’s stoppage-time penalty put the icing on the cake.
FULL-TIME! England 3-0 Australia
20:56
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Will Castle
And with that comes the full-time whistle! England are back to winning ways.
GOAL! England 3-0 Australia (Stanway, 90+7')
20:56
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Will Castle
Stanway steps up... and sends the keeper the wrong way! England have their third!
PENALTY! England 2-0 Australia
20:55
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Will Castle
90+6 mins: That’s come out of nowhere! No England shirt called for a penalty, but after being called over to the monitor by VAR, the referee has given the hosts a chance for a third.
A late challenge on Kearns is the reason for the spot-kick, by the way. Even though the ball had already gone. The Aussies will think that’s harsh.
England 2-0 Australia
20:53
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Will Castle
90+5 mins: Charles looks to spark a third goal for England as she drives beyond the challenge before firing a ball into the area, but it’s cut out and cleared.
England 2-0 Australia
20:50
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Will Castle
90+2 mins: Foord is booked for leaving the field on the wrong side of the pitch during her substitution. She’s replaced by Siemsen, while Rankin comes on for Cooney-Cross.
England 2-0 Australia
20:48
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Will Castle
90+1 mins: Six minutes added on by the fourth official. There could’ve been a whole lot more given the stoppage brought by Agyemang’s injury.
England 2-0 Australia
20:46
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Will Castle
88 mins: Australia are finally able to commit more bodies forward now that the England’s numerical advantage is no more.
Carpenter gets into the box down the right before pulling it back to Gorry, who does have a reputation for long-range shooting but curls high and wide of the target on this occasion.
Has this late Australia flurry come too late?
England 2-0 Australia
20:42
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Will Castle
83 mins: This game will finish 10v10.
England’s five substitutions have all been used up, meaning nobody can replace the injured Beever-Jones.
No point risking her for the remainder of the friendly.
England 2-0 Australia
20:40
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Will Castle
81 mins: Kelly was meant to be coming on for Beever-Jones, but instead it’s Agyemang she replaces.
Beever-Jones’ injury hasn’t got any better and she’s now gone down.
England 2-0 Australia
20:37
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Will Castle
79 mins: A concerned Lucy Bronze watches on from the sidelines as Agyemang is stretchered off, receiving a standing over as she leaves the field.
Let’s hope this isn’t a long-term issue for one of the country’s brightest footballing talents.
England 2-0 Australia
20:36
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Will Castle
78 mins: Agyemang, with her head in her hands, is still down.
The stretcher is out.
England 2-0 Australia
20:33
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Will Castle
76 mins: Agyemang has gone down and looks in a lot of pain.
The physios have been rushed over after what looked like a bad landing. After such a positive night for the Lionesses, this is a sight nobody wanted to see.
England 2-0 Australia
20:32
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Will Castle
74 mins: SAVE! Arnold is called into action again to deny Beever-Jones, who immediately signals to the bench that she needs to come off.
She picked up a knock a few minutes earlier and has been moving funny since.
England 2-0 Australia
20:30
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Will Castle
73 mins: SAVE! Georgia Stanway lets fly from the edge of the box after Beth Mead went on a dancing run, but Arnold is equal to it.
England 2-0 Australia
20:29
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Will Castle
72 mins: Mead and Agyemang link up again but the Arsenal loanee can’t get ahold of it, with the ball once more running through to Arnold.
Agyemang will be a popular goalscorer if she nets tonight.
England 2-0 Australia
20:28
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Will Castle
70 mins: Australia’s turn to make some changes.
Sam Kerr’s number goes up and receives a warm ovation as she jogs off, replaced by Wheeler. Chelsea fans will be delighted to see that she’s come through this unscathed.
Sayer and Catley also make way, with Grant and Raso coming on in their place.
England 2-0 Australia
20:27
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Will Castle
69 mins: Once again, debutant Kendall is knocking at the door for England - what’s she got to do for a goal?
She leaps to meet a dinked cross but her header cannons off an Australian defender and goes out for a corner.
England 2-0 Australia
20:25
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Will Castle
67 mins: Mead spots Agyemang makes a darting run into the box and curls one in for the forward, but she tries to chest it down, her touch is too heavy and runs through to Arnold.
Every time Arnold collects the ball, she’s immediately looking around to try and get Australia up the other end.
She hasn’t given up hope of a comeback.
England 2-0 Australia
20:19
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Will Castle
62 mins: Quadruple substitution for England.
Missy Bo Kearns, Georgia Stanway, Michelle Agyemang and Alex Greenwood enter the fray.
Kiera Walsh, Ella Toone, Alessia Russo and Taylor Hinds make way.
England 2-0 Australia
20:17
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Will Castle
59 mins: OFF THE BAR! Kendall is there at the back post hoping for a goal on her debut, but her header takes a nick off an Australia skull and comes off the bar.
Sarina Wiegman is furious that hasn’t been given as a corner.
England 2-0 Australia
20:13
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Will Castle
55 mins: Floated delivery is awkward for Sayer, whose misjudged header goes backwards rather than forwards.
Luckily for her, it flies over the bar rather than under it.
England 2-0 Australia
20:12
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Will Castle
54 mins: Toone has come off of a heavy challenge limping and is wincing as she looks to the bench.
Looks like she’ll be able to walk it off but let’s see.
In better news for Wiegman, England have a free-kick on the top-right corner of the box after a foul from Foord.
England 2-0 Australia
20:10
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Will Castle
52 mins: The Matildas break forward after a Charles-Russo combination comes to nothing. It carries a threat as Kerr slips into the left channel, but her low cross is blocked.
Better from the Aussies.
England 2-0 Australia
20:07
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Will Castle
50 mins: It’s been a positive start to the second half by Australia, who have ticked it about nicely during the early stages.
But it’s the Lionesses who look like threatening as they break down the right through Russo, who has her opponent for pace, before pulling it back to Beever-Jones in the area.
Australia eventually deal with it and clear.
England 2-0 Australia
20:05
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Will Castle
46 mins: One change to note from half-time - and it’s the birthday girl that’s made way.
Bronze is replaced by Charles in defence. All about minute management for the 34-year-old, who recently returned from injury.
BACK UNDERWAY! England 2-0 Australia
20:03
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Will Castle
And we’re off again at Pride Park!
HALF-TIME! England 2-0 Australia
19:56
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Will Castle
It’s not been a bad birthday for Lucy Bronze so far - with a goal and an assist, she’s been the star of the show!
HALF-TIME! England 2-0 Australia
19:53
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Will Castle
HALF-TIME! England 2-0 Australia
19:51
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Will Castle
The Matildas’ revenge mission has been so far foiled by the Lionesses who lead Australia by two goals at half-time.
Things went south when Alanna Kennedy saw red for pulling Alessia Russo down on the edge of the Australia box - a desperate attempt to prevent a goal after she had been dispossessed.
From the free-kick, Aggie Beever-Jones rifled England in front, continuing to dominate before birthday girl Lucy Bronze cemented their lead.
This is feeling far more straightforward than it was in Sydney two years ago.
HALF-TIME! England 2-0 Australia
19:47
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Will Castle
The attack of the half sees Walsh force a fine save out of Arnold - and there’s the whistle!
England 2-0 Australia
19:47
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Will Castle
45 mins: There are white shirts queueing up at the back post as a straight ball is lofted into the box, but it goes beyond Kendall at the back post and out.
One minute added on.
GOAL! England 2-0 Australia (Bronze, 41')
19:41
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Will Castle
It was coming!
A wonderful through ball for Toone is pulled back to Bronze, who on her 34th birthday slots past Arnold to make it two for England.
Nothing short of what the hosts deserve. They’ve been utterly dominant so far.
England 1-0 Australia
19:41
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Will Castle
39 mins: CLOSE! Up the other end, England threaten again as Bronze fizzes an effort just wide of the war post.
Another dangerous delivery then causes a moment of panic at the back for Australia, with the defender needing to deny a Russo tap in while also making sure she doesn’t knock into her own net.
She concedes a corner, and England remain in the Australia half.
England 1-0 Australia
19:38
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Will Castle
37 mins: After about five minutes of England pressure in the Australia half, the visitors break.
It’s the first time tonight they’re able to get a good few bodies in the opposition box, but they don’t do enough with the ball, nor do they do it quickly enough.
The attack fizzles out at the feet of Kerr on the edge of the six-yard box.
England 1-0 Australia
19:34
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Will Castle
33 mins: England are pressing for that second.
A lofted ball into the box is knocked back for Toone, who fires goalwards but can’t hit the target.
That’s 12 shots so far for England, compared to Australia’s two.
England 1-0 Australia
19:29
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Will Castle
28 mins: SAVE! That’s what Sam Kerr can do!
It’s great work by Carpenter to find her Chelsea teammate in the box, who despite the tight angle goes for a curling effort, trying to sneak the ball in at the near post.
Hampton is alive to it and makes a smart stop.
England 1-0 Australia
19:28
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Will Castle
27 mins: Kendall saw her name in lights there!
The debutant receives the ball on the edge of the area and lets fly, but it’s straight down the throat of Arnold.
England 1-0 Australia
19:27
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Will Castle
24 mins: CHANCE! England don’t look like they’re going to stop at one.
Mead and Russo link up in the box, with the latter having time to steady herself and shoot.
However, she’s unable to beat Arnold, only forcing the Aussie stopper to make a routine stop.
GOAL! England 1-0 Australia (Beever-Jones, 20')
19:21
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Will Castle
That one will stand!
It was a poor free-kick initially from Beever-Jones, firing low into the wall - but after Bronze put it back on a plate for her outside the box, she wasn’t going to make the same mistake twice.
The Chelsea forward rifles into the top corner and within a couple minutes, things have gone cataclysmically wrong for Australia.
RED CARD! England 0-0 Australia
19:21
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Will Castle
18 mins: Australia are down to 10!
It’s a howler from Kennedy, who loses the ball under pressure from Russo and with the Arsenal forward bearing down on the box, tugs her down in a desperate attempt to prevent a goal.
It’s an unnecessary foul and just like against Brazil, the Lionesses already have the numerical advantage.
NO GOAL! England 0-0 Australia
19:15
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Will Castle
14 mins: Beever-Jones this time has the ball in the net - but the flag goes up!
It was disciplined defending by the Australian back-line, who held their line well.
We do have VAR tonight, which confirms the decision.
It remains goalless for now, but it does feel like an England goal is coming!
England 0-0 Australia
19:14
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Will Castle
13 mins: Beever-Jones looks to turn provider this time as England patiently work it down the left, before the Chelsea forward fires a cross into the box.
It’s blocked but England are in total control at the moment.
England 0-0 Australia
19:08
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Will Castle
8 mins: CHANCE! Another early opportunity for Beever-Jones, who latches onto a dinked cross but once again can’t get the contact right, seeing her header bounce wide of the post.
England 0-0 Australia
19:07
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Will Castle
6 mins: Australia’s turn to put the pressure on England’s keeper, and it was a heart-in-mouth moment for those inside Pride Park as Hampton was closed down on her goalline.
The Lionesses stopper does really well to stay composed and fire a low pass through black shirts to a teammate.
England 0-0 Australia
19:06
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Will Castle
4 mins: CHANCE! Wonderful delivery to the back post for Beever-Jones, but she can’t get a strong enough contact on the ball to divert it goalwards.
England 0-0 Australia
19:05
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Will Castle
3 mins: Early intensity from England, who when out of possession are bringing the high press right to the Australian back-line and keeper.
They rob a forward-running Hunt in the attacking final third, with Toone able to run into space and shoot. Her effort is blocked.
KICK-OFF! England 0-0 Australia
19:02
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Will Castle
We are underway!
The teams are out
18:58
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Will Castle
The two sets of players walk past the piece of fabled silverware as they take to the pitch, with the Lionesses welcomed back to Derby by jubilant sold-out crowd.
Time for the anthems...
Lauren Hemp brings out the Euros trophy
18:56
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Will Castle
Before Pride Park is graced with the two teams, Lauren Hemp brings out the prize the Lionesses worked so hard to win in the summer: the Euros trophy!
Closing in on kick-off
18:52
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Will Castle
We are less than 10 minutes away from kick-off at a sold-out Pride Park.
Can the Lionesses shake off the feeling of defeat and perform like European champions? Or will it be sweet revenge for the Matildas?
We’ll have all the action, up next!
Capacity crowd in Derby
18:48
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Will Castle
Hannah Hampton returns while Sarina Wiegman hands out two senior debuts
18:46
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Will Castle
Hannah Hampton is back in between the sticks for this evening’s clash, returning from an elbow injury to replace Khiara Keating.
Lucia Kendall and Taylor Hinds are handed senior debuts, while Aggie Beever-Jones - England’s top scorer for the year - starts in attack.
Sam Kerr back and raring to go
18:45
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Will Castle
Sam Kerr, 32, is already the all-time leading Australian international scorer, breaking the previous record of 50 goals by Tim Cahill back in 2022.
The Chelsea striker made her international debut back in 2009, aged just 15 and returned for her country in Saturday’s win over Wales after 725 days out.
She endured 20 months out with an ACL rupture and would love to be back on the scoresheet tonight.
Pre-match preparations at Pride Park
18:40
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Will Castle
