Matildas beat Zambia 6-5 in wild Olympic group match

The Matildas secured their first Olympic victory against Zambia in perhaps one of the wildest football matches I have ever seen.

Both Australia and Zambia lost their opening group games to Germany and the United States respectively, so it really was a make-or-break game for everyone involved. But nothing could have prepared the fans for the absolute Olympic hell that unfolded at 3am this morning.

While many have downgraded Zambia (ranked 64th in the world), it is worth noting that the national team employs two of the most expensive footballers in the world. Rachel Kundananji And Barbara Banda — the first and second most expensive respectively — so this was never going to be an easy race.

The match opened with Banda proving her worth with a stunning goal in the opening 40 seconds – the first of 11 goals in the match.

Interestingly, only 110 tickets were sold for the match, despite ticket prices ranging from just $40-$120. Reports out of Nice suggest that there is little advertising for the football matches, but I can only assume that those who didn’t buy tickets will regret it when they hear about the Oscar-worthy performance that took place.

While it was a far cry from the world-class football we saw at last year’s FIFA Women’s World Cup in Australia, with poor defensive efforts from both teams, it was a goal-fest that fans couldn’t look away from. It was like watching a car crash, it was messy and painful, but you didn’t even want to blink for fear of missing a goal or three.

Australia failed to take the lead in the first half, but the second half was a different story.

Canberra United star player Michelle Heyman proved exactly why she deserves to be in this team within a minute of coming onto the pitch, after backheeling the ball towards goal. It was eventually ruled an own goal by Zambia — but Heyman can take all the credit for it.

But even though she technically didn’t get the bragging rights for the 59th-minute goal, she still put her name on the scoreboard with a stunning goal in the 90th minute to put Australia ahead for the first time in this match and ultimately win the game for us.

Heyman was 36 years old and retired from her national team duties this time last year. Now she feels like an indispensable ingredient in a Matildas team. You really, REALLY love seeing that.

Fans on X (formerly Twitter) enjoyed it and experienced an emotional rollercoaster ride together with the players.

The Matildas now complete their group stage with a match against women’s football giants the USA, led by the former Chelsea coach Emma Hay (yay) — at 3am on August 1st.

You can watch the Matildas match and the rest of the Olympic Games at Channel 9 And 9Now.

Image: Getty