Key events
61 mins: Carpenter’s runs have so much energy when she is able to get going but we haven’t seen it enough this match and on the ball at the back she hasn’t look so powerful. Slovenia is making four changes. Australia have a corner, headed away by Slovenia. Kennedy sends it back in with a long ball over the top to Hunt but her volley finds Gielnik offside.
59 mins: Australia strike back quickly once Makovec is off and Sayer slams the ball straight into the goalkeeper from close range and can’t get a foot to the rebound either. Sayer tries to make another switch pass which doesn’t have the distance to reach Gielnik.
57 mins: Sayer loses possession in the attacking third and Slovenia respond aggressively with a counter-attack ending with Prasnikar again getting a shot off which goes straight to Micah. Makovec had come back on but has fallen to the pitch again off the ball and is asking for a change.
55 mins: Makovec has gone down heavily on her knee by the looks of it, she appears to be in a lot of discomfort and is quite upset. She is able to walk off the field though. The pause gives Australia an opportunity to take a breath after a dismal start to the second half. Play resumes and McNamara is fouled.
53 mins: Chance for Slovenia! Oh dear very poor communication between Hunt and Kennedy it seems and Slovenia somehow put the shot from point-blank range straight at Micah. It comes back seconds later and Prasnikar puts it over the crossbar.
51 mins: Slovenia look like they are about to break through the backline again but it’s offsidde. Micah’s clears but Slovenia come rolling back again and Prasnikar has another chance on goal.
49 mins: Slovenia are dictating the opening minutes, pressing high. Makovec shoots from outside the area which forces Micah into a relatively comfortable save.
Second half
47 mins: The second half has started with nearly two minutes of Slovenian Kolbl getting treatment for a head bump. They then have a surge forward and things are under way, clearly they won’t be sitting back just like the first half.
Here is the goal:
Half-time: Australia 1-0 Slovenia
After a Gielnik goal in the first few minutes of that half Slovenia picked up their game, increased the pressure and were able to hold Australia from finding the net again. Sayer and McNamara were fast and promising but lacked confidence at the final hurdle, they really need to back themselves to take those chances to score a bit more. Take a look at someone like Gielnik who knows when to go it alone and when it’s better to look for another option.
45 mins + 2: Chidiac steals possession to the right of the area from a Slovenian throw-in and crosses it low to McNamara who nudges it on to Van Egmond, her whose shot misses wide. At the other end Kolbl has a ping from just inside the area which goes close over the crossbar.
44 mins: Hunt sends her free kick over the top to McNamara but she is without options and Slovenia are able to clear it.
42 mins: Sternad has another chance on goal for Slovenia. From a nice through pass she is able to beat Kennedy and take a shot which goes wide at the near post. Released by Kennedy, Carpenter makes a run up the right for the first time and sends it forward to Gielnik. Gielnik pauses in front of the goalkeeper but can find space to get the ball past her. She tries again with the rebound but shoots it wide.
40 mins: Sayer and McNamara are doing well with possession in the final third but then falling short with their final touches or passes. Conversely when they are on the receiving end they are also just not quite getting there in time, perhaps not quite reading the play well enough.
38 mins: McNamara picks up the ball in midfield and as Australia begin to rush forward you can hear Montemurro with his refrain from the sideline ‘keep the ball, keep the ball’, and in response Australia pause, slow down, take it back before working forward again.
36 mins: Micah is drawn out dangerously and has to rush back to her line while Heatley comes in to save the day. Slovenia are really thwarting them in the midfiel at times.
34 mins: Australia regroup from the back, passing back to Micah and then working forward through Kennedy. Australia lose possession after a throw from Rankin, take it back and then waste it by rushing forward without a plan. Something Montemurro was keen to avoid.
32 mins: McNamara is brought down and Van Egmond lines up for the free kick. It finds a head in the box but the Slovenian goalkeeper picks up the ball easily.
30 mins: Sayer takes the ball into the box and has nothing to offer in the face of three defenders. It’s in stark contrast to how someone like Foord would work that left corner, highlighting Sayer’s inexperience.
28 mins: Gielnik looks strong and comfortable in a way that some like Van Egmond, Carpenter do not. Sayer has another change to release McNamara but again the weighting of the pass isn’t quite right. Their pairing looks so promising though.
26 mins: Montemurro is shouting ‘keep the ball, keep the ball’ from the coaches area on the side. I doubt they have been doing that to the standard he was hoping for so far. Slovenia are using their set pieces well and peppering the crowded box. A couple of quick clearances and nervy ricochets and Australia are out of the woods again.
24 mins: Slovenian free kick taken short and Mcnamara blasts off on the counter-attack. She releases Carpenter whose touch is slightly too heavy but gets another chance and passes it off towards Gielnik, but she can’t get there before the defender. Carpenter should have kept possession then and had another go.
22 mins: Slovenia are applying pressure well in midfield, forcing turnovers and then catching Australia’s defenders looking a bit stuck.
Nice switch from Gielnik to Sayer on the edge of the area, who takes a touch and fires off a shot which again goes high.
20 mins: Micah is called upon again as Slovenia show some impressive moves up front. A pass over the top finds Kramzar’s feet in the area but is cleared by Chidiac only to be sent back in straight at Micah.
18 mins: Beautiful run through the middle from Sayer and pass forward to McNamara who cuts it back to her again, but Sayer can’t control the touch and sends the ball sailing high over the crossbar. Maybe should have held on to it herself and gone all the way then.
16 mins: A cross from Kolbl ends up being a shot on target and Micah is forced into a slow-motion save. Nearly a Torpey-esque goal there.
14 mins: Australia turn over the ball around halfway and Kramzar breaks through, she tried to slot it through to Sternad but she can’t get there.
12 mins: Kramzar challenges the Australian defence but wastes her last touch. they are going to need to keep a close eye on her. Slovenia have their fourth corner.
10 mins: The Matildas often look a bit frenzied at the start of a new international window, and the start of this friendly has been no different.
8 mins: Hunt clears a second corner and Slovenia regain possession in their defensive half before pushing forward with more confidence. Kennedy clears that foray over the sideline.
6 mins: A nicely taken Slovenian corner is punched away by Micah. A bit nervy at the back it seems.
4 mins: A disappointing start for Slovenia. Australia were able to build patiently to that goal with minimal pressure from their opposition. Just before the goal there was another change from a Sayer cross that was deflected off a defender just past the far post.
Goal! Australia 1-0 Slovenia (Gielnik ‘3)
Emily Gielnik opens the scoring in the first two minutes. A corner comes in from Van Egmond on the right and lands right in the middle of the six-yard box where it gets jammed under a couple of defenders before Gielnik is able to hack it out and into the back of the net. Not neat but still counts.
Peeeeep!
Kick-off is upon us. Let the football begin.
HBF Park in Perth is not looking particularly full at this point, certainly in contrast to the crowd sizes the Matildas have played in front of over the last couple years.
My colleague Joey Lynch has pointed out a bit of shared history for the two coaches tonight, at South Melbourne FC.
Best of luck to both Joe Montemurro and Sasa Kolman tonight in Perth as the Matildas take on Slovenia.
Both coaches have a strong connection to our club. Joe served as Senior Assistant Coach, U20 Championship-winning Coach, and Technical Director, while Sasa played a key role in… pic.twitter.com/rMbeN0r2xI
— South Melbourne FC (@smfc) June 26, 2025
Chidiac had a quick post-warm-up chat with Paramount, she says she didn’t really have benchmarks for herself coming back into the squad.
I wanted to come in as myself as much as possible. Coming off a strong season with Victory, I want to implement that with the team and take any opportunity I can get.
[Slovenia] are a brave team on an attack and counter-attack side, but we will definitely bring it to them.
For Australia, Alex Chidiac and Emily Gielnik are straight back into the starting XI, and Montemurro has given Teagan Micah her 7th start in a row in goal despite Mackenzie Arnold being back from injury.
Here’s the rest of the squad:
Slovenia line-up
Slovenia XI: Zala Mersnik; Lana Golob, Sara Agrez, Kaja Korosec, Dominika Conc, Lara Prasnikar, Spela Kolbl, Sara Makovec, Kaja Erzen, Zara Kramzar, Maja Sternad
(Pending nicely designed graphic tweet…)
Australia line-up
Australia XI:
Montemurro is speaking now before the game, saying he has “demanded” a few things of his players including keeping the ball more and being more proactive with the ball, and not going forwards “needlessly” but preparing for it better.
Now on to the coach. After 10 months of delay and speculation, the worst kept rumour in Australian football was confirmed at the start of June. Joe Montemurro is now tasked with reviving the Matildas mania spawned by the 2023 Women’s World Cup and developing his mixed squad of veterans and newbies into a side strong enough to be contenders for the Asian Cup title in under a year’s time.
In the second game of that series Amy Sayer was the star, scoring twice in just her second game back for the national team after her ACL injury.
It’s only been a few weeks since the Matildas last played on home soil – in the friendly series against Argentina. I think it is worth revisiting the spectacular debut of Kahli Johnson:
Preamble
Jo Khan
G’day and welcome to our live coverage of the Matildas’ friendly match against Slovenia in Perth. This match kicks off a four-game spell for the Matildas in Western Australia over the next few weeks, in a particularly long international window. It couldn’t come at a better time for the newly appointed coach, Joe Montemurro, to get to know his squad and start preparation for the 2026 Women’s Asian Cup and beyond.
Kick-off at HBF Park is in just under an hour, where it is a cool 15C.
Feel free to share any questions or comments with me, Jo Khan, via email.
Can the Montemurro era start with a bang? Let’s find out!
