Far and wide: Where the Matildas started their journeys to World Cup glory
By Billie Eder
Garry Dye first met Cortnee Vine in 2010 when he was the coach of the under-12s team at Peninsula Power FC in Redcliffe in Brisbane.
Back then Vine was a 12-year-old with a big smile and wicked speed. Today, she’s known as the Australian whose penalty kick propelled the Matildas into their first World Cup semi-final.
Cortnee Vine with under-12s coach Garry Dye (left) and senior men’s coach Terry Kirkham (right) at a presentation day in 2010.
“She came along, and she was tall and gangly and fast. Very quick, but had very little ball skills,” Dye said.
“But by the time we were a couple of games in we sorted that out, and then she became a real strike weapon for us.”
A lot has happened since those days, but Dye remembers coaching Vine like it was yesterday.
Cortnee Vine takes the decisive penalty for Australia during the quarter-final.Credit: Getty
“She’s always had that speed, always got a smile on her face and was always very quick to pick up on things she was taught and coached,” Dye said.
“She always played against the boys. Some of the girls sides we had at the club were low division, and all the boys sides that we had were all high divisions, and she was one of four girls in my side. When she was in the under-12s side her skills really picked up.
“She gave as good as what she got. The boys used to knock her down and she’d knock them down.
“Once she learnt how to control the ball and got that left foot working as well, she really blossomed as a player.”
Peninsula Power has produced a number of Australian representatives, including Kate McShea and Larissa Crummer and, as a state, Queensland is a hotspot for football talent, with 10 of the Matildas squad members hailing from there.
Mary Fowler is the Matildas’ northernmost talent, having spent her junior years playing for Leichhardt FC in Cairns, while Sam Kerr is the only Matilda who played her junior football in Western Australia.
Ellie Carpenter and Clare Hunt spent their younger years on country pitches in the central tablelands of NSW – Carpenter for Cowra and District JSC, and Hunt for Grenfell Junior Soccer Club. The pair played together for a Western NSW development team when they were kids. They’re among eight of the Australian players who have their football foundations in NSW.
Matildas defenders Clare Hunt and Ellie Carpenter with the Australian women’s national team and as kids playing in central west NSW.Credit: Getty, Supplied
But regardless of where the Matildas squad come from, and how many minutes they’ve spent on the pitch, Australia has rallied behind their team.
If Vine gets the chance to take to the field on Wednesday night, she’ll have Peninsula Power behind her, and they’ll be cheering her on from the clubhouse where she learnt it all.
Sports news, results and expert commentary. Sign up for our Sport newsletter.