AUSTRALIA have been dealt a devastating blow with skipper Sam Kerr to miss their first two World Cup games due to injury.
The Matildas hotshot hurt her calf in training before the tournament co-host’s showpiece opener against the Republic of Ireland kicking off at 11:00am UK time.
And the injury means that Kerr, who is Australia’s all-time record goalscorer, will miss her team’s Group B clash with Nigeria next Thursday.
The Matildas’ duel with Vera Pauw’s side at Stadium Australia in Sydney comes hours after New Zealand stunned Norway in Auckland.
The Football Ferns subjected their opponents to a surprise 1-0 defeat in Group A at Eden Park in the first game of this summer’s tournament.
Hannah Wilkinson netted the only goal of the game with Tottenham’s Ria Percival missing a penalty for the Kiwis.
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The match took place hours after a shooting that occurred just TWO miles away from Eden Park, the national stadium of tournament co-hosts New Zealand.
The incident, which happened in the early hours of this morning, left two people and a gunman dead.
Players from both nations paid tribute to victims of the shooting with a minute’s silence on the pitch ahead of the game.
Taking to Instagram on her injury, Kerr wrote: “Unfortunately I sustained a calf injury yesterday in training.
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“I wanted to share this with everyone so there is no distraction from us doing what we came here to achieve.
“Of course I would have loved to have been out there tonight but I can’t wait to be a part of this amazing journey which starts now.”
A statement from team Australia’s Twitter page added: “Sam Kerr is unavailable tonight after she picked up a calf injury at training on matchday minus-one.
“Sam will be unavailable for the next two matches with the Matildas medical team to re-assess her following our second group-stage match.”
Kerr, 29, scored 29 goals in 38 appearances for Chelsea last season, including 12 as the Blues retained the Women’s Super League ahead of Manchester United.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
