Australian defender Alanna Kennedy will not be taking the pitch in the final Matildas match of the FIFA Womens World Cup, the team has announced.
The 28-year-old, who was instrumental in the team’s early competition wins has exhibited delayed concussion symptoms.
The team announcement was made on the Matildas’ Instagram account early Friday morning. “SQUAD UPDATE,” the caption read. “@alannakennedy will be unavailable for Saturday’s Third Place Playoff against Sweden at Brisbane Stadium after subsequently exhibiting delayed concussion symptoms.”
Alanna was also absent from the Matildas’ 1-3 loss against England on Saturday night. At the time, Football Australia indicated that she was unwell but did not provide further details. She trained with the team later the same week before her concussion symptoms became apparent.
“Heartbroken to be ruled out with a concussion,” Alanna shared to her Instagram stories. “However, I’m excited to be able to support from the sidelines tomorrow and watch the girls create even more history. Stay with us for 1 more Australia.”
“It seems to be one of those tournaments where curveball after curveball is thrown at us,” Gustavsson said following the Matildas’ defeat to England. “The team have been tremendous in being able to adapt to whatever is thrown at us.”
Alanna Kennedy hasn’t been the only player sidelined due to injury this world cup, both Mary Fowler and Aivi Luik have experienced concussion symptoms and were forced to miss matches under the protocol. Captain Sam Kerr injured her calf on the eve of the World Cup and missed the start of the tournament.
“At lunchtime [on Wednesday], we got the notice from the medical team that Alanna was ruled out,” the Matildas’ coach said. “I had to make a last-minute change and we’ve done a lot of those in this tournament and they’ve been really, really good at dealing with it.”
Where to watch Australia VS Sweden
Australia will take on Sweden in the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 third-place match, with the chance to pick up a bronze medal up for grabs when the two sides meet on Saturday, August 19th, at Brisbane Stadium.
The match will be broadcast live and free on Channel 7 and streamed live on 7 Plus in Australia. All games are also available to watch via Optus Sport for the tournament.
Kick-Off will be at 6:00 pm (AEST)
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