A small detail has revealed how much Matildas striker Mary Fowler has grown in confidence since the FIFA Women’s World Cup. The 20-year-old Manchester City star stole the spotlight during the World Cup as she stepped up in the absence of injured skipper Sam Kerr.
During the World Cup, she admitted to former Socceroos goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer that she wore the gloves because of nerves. ‘I haven’t told anyone yet what it’s a bit silly,’ she said at the time.
Then in the Olympic qualifying match against the Philippines at Optus Stadium in Perth on Saturday, she took just 15 minutes to get on the scoresheet as part of the Aussies’ 8-0 victory. There was one key difference between the Mary Fowler from the World Cup and the one in Perth, though: this time around, she was not wearing gloves.
It is a major sign that the Cairns product who is heavily rumoured to be secretly dating NRL star Nathan Cleary is becoming more sure of herself on the field. As Fowler celebrated her goal with captain Sam Kerr, there was a telling difference between how she took the field versus the Philippines and how she presented for World Cup matches
‘But I honestly, just wear gloves because I get really fidgety. Usually I train with a ring on, but if it’s cold, I wear gloves, and I can’t wear a ring in a match, so I usually wear gloves.’ Instead of the gloves, Fowler was seen wearing a hair band on her left hand as she played against the Philippines.
Her gloves were a big source of speculation among fans during the World Cup as they tried to decipher why she wore them, with many guessing she did so for good luck or as part of a superstition.
Now Fowler’s confidence and form is likely to be rewarded, with Matildas coach Tony Gustavsson ready to unleash her in a starting role against Taiwan in the final qualifying match of the round.
Despite the fact lowly Taiwan are likely to be easy fodder for the Matildas, Gustavsson – who described Mary Fowler as ‘mind-blowingly good’ following her stunning cameo against Iran is unlikely to rest players.
He says he’s eager to reward in-form players with a starting spot, and also better prepare them on how to handle a hectic schedule like the one they will face if they qualify for the Paris Olympics next year. Australia need to win a two-legged play-off against a yet-to-be-decided Asian Confederation team in order to qualify for the Olympics.
Gustavsson said , ‘I said it straight away in the circle that they should be extremely proud about the performance but also that they need to be extremely professional when it comes to recovery, because this is also a rehearsal,’.
‘If you want to go all the way to the Olympics, this is how tight the games will be in an Olympics. Only 48 hours to recover and then another game comes up. ‘So we need to be extremely professional.’
