The Young Matildas ended their FIFA U-20 World Cup journey in Costa Rica with a fighting performance against European champions, Spain.
After the game, Hana Lowry and Jessika Nash admitted that they were disappointed to lose the match 3-0, but were incredibly proud of themselves and their teammates.
“Our journey has come to an end tonight, but I’m so proud of the girls,” Lowry said. “We gave our all on the pitch and we left nothing out there. Each and every one of us are proud.”
The game was far from a foregone conclusion. The Young Matildas matched and even dominated Spain for parts of the first half before 19-year-old Inma Gabarro displayed the clinical finishing that has earned her over 60 appearances for Sevilla to put the Australians 2-0 down at half time.
Lowry said that displaying to the world the kind of football that the Young Matildas could play was one of the highlights of the tournament for her.
“I think we played the football that we’ve been working on for the last six months and we really showcased that to the world,” she said. “I’m really proud of how we’ve come together and showcased our football tonight.”
Spain dialled up the pressure in the second half, scoring their third and final goal to complete Gabarro’s hattrick. After her first start of the tournament, Jessika Nash said that the experience of playing the European champions is an important one for the team’s development.
“The group has talked about it from day one,” she said. “The international experience that we’re receiving from this tournament is second to none. We’re going to take so much away from this tournament. We won’t take this experience for granted, and we will build from it.”
MATCH REPORT: Clinical Spain down Young Matildas at U20 Women's World Cup
It was noticeable that despite the score, the Young Matildas continued to put pressure on the Spanish defence right until the final whistle. They were rewarded for their effort with a number of opportunities but unfortunately for the youngsters, none went into the back of the net.
Lowry said that the game was the accumulation of not just two weeks of work, but six months.
“It’s been a long journey,” she said. “I’m proud of our resilience as a group and how we’ve stuck together for the whole six months.”
As an underage tournament, this was the first time that many of these players have travelled overseas to play. It will have been an enormous learning curve for the group and one that they are embracing.
Jessika Nash embraced that spirit of learning with her final remarks.
“We can’t fault our effort,” Nash said. “We stepped off the pitch with nothing left to give. Unfortunately, we end our campaign here, but we aren’t done yet.”