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Speaker 1: I tell you what, if you've been watching the Women's

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Speaker 1: World Cup, it's been pretty phenomenal stuff in the Matilda's

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Speaker 1: captain Sam Kerr, well, she's declared herself fit to return

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Speaker 1: from injury for Australia's huge Women's World Cup match against

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Speaker 1: Canada tonight. Their coach is still well, not revealing too

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Speaker 1: much detail at this point in time as to whether

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Speaker 1: she's going to take to the field, but joining me

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Speaker 1: on the line right now is football and t CEO

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Speaker 1: brucetled good morning to you.

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Speaker 2: Bruce, good morning, how are you?

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Speaker 1: I am wonderful and am very pumped up to watch

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Speaker 1: the soccer tonight.

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Speaker 2: Thank you. I think most of the country is mate.

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Speaker 2: It is a once in a lifetime opportunity for us

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Speaker 2: to go further, so well every confidence will do it.

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Speaker 2: But we've had an issuing run up to this game,

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Speaker 2: that's for sure.

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Speaker 1: It's been really interesting, hasn't it.

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Speaker 2: You know?

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Speaker 1: In terms of the injuries, unfortunately two of those players

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Speaker 1: both declared can cust I think it was towards the

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Speaker 1: end of last week and then Sam Kerr with the

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Speaker 1: calf injury. Bruce, any idea how we're looking at this point?

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Speaker 2: Look your introduction was perfect. I mean Sam has declared

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Speaker 2: us off fit. The coach is playing nine games as

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Speaker 2: he has done since he's been appointed. He'll give nothing away. Look,

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Speaker 2: I think what she'll definitely be on the bench, that's

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Speaker 2: for sure. That'll be a fillip for everybody in the

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Speaker 2: team and certainly for the crowd at at the game.

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Speaker 2: Because in Sydney on a Thursday night against Nigeria and

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Speaker 2: the loss, what still stunning was the support from the

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Speaker 2: crowd from the get go to the end.

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Speaker 1: It was massive.

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Speaker 2: I'm sure they'll have that again in Melbourne. So that's

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Speaker 2: that's number one. Number two. If he does bring her wrong,

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Speaker 2: I'd say it would be when we need something desperate. Otherwise,

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Speaker 2: if we're going to have that already tied up, we'll

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Speaker 2: push on with her without her actually even taking the field.

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Speaker 2: But I'm sure she'll be stripped ready to go and

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Speaker 2: sitting on that bench and then the warm up as well,

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Speaker 2: we'll give everyone exciting Monday night in Melbourne.

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Speaker 1: Bruce, what do you reckon the go is with the

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Speaker 1: coach not being very very you know, straightforward with the

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Speaker 1: info about whether she's going to take to the field

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Speaker 1: or not.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, Well it's you know, when you've got thirty two

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Speaker 2: teams and thirty two coaches both here in New Zealand,

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Speaker 2: it's a really interesting time to see how they approach

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Speaker 2: the media and how contrasting their ways are. Some are

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Speaker 2: quite directed now the guy the coaches, the coach of

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Speaker 2: the Philippines is the ex coach of the Matilda's is

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Speaker 2: very director reporters because in this very as I said,

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Speaker 2: keeps cards close to his chest, has always done that.

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Speaker 2: I think it's about building a sort of I guess

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Speaker 2: tension within the team as well as well as those

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Speaker 2: on the outside. But in the end, I think this

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Speaker 2: is out of your town. It'll be up to the

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Speaker 2: medical staff and there are some good ones too. I

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Speaker 2: think it's doctor Bandy who will be doing the main

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Speaker 2: decision from their scientists that for scientists to support the girls.

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Speaker 2: But yeah, he's always been interesting in the way he

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Speaker 2: deals with the media and he does sell the story

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Speaker 2: of positivity, which sometimes he would admit some of the errors. Example,

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Speaker 2: Alex who's a great player, really supported by so many

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Speaker 2: people in Australian football and so on, he gets five

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Speaker 2: minutes on the Nigerian games. He needs to start or

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Speaker 2: be out there a lot earlier, Alex Chittiac, she's a talent.

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Speaker 1: Now tell me in terms of tonight's game against Canada,

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Speaker 1: how tough do you reckon it's going to be for

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Speaker 1: the Matildas.

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Speaker 2: Really tough. I mean, if you look at the we're

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Speaker 2: tenth at the moment, the nine teams behind us, so

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Speaker 2: are just the stellar countries that were, you know, probably

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Speaker 2: five to seven years ago behind us. So the rest

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Speaker 2: of the world has picked up and these thirty two

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Speaker 2: teams of all anyone can win on any night. And

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Speaker 2: we've seen some amazing football. And as I said before

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Speaker 2: the tournament came, we have some of the best athletes

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Speaker 2: on the planet here and it's still been fantastic to watch.

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Speaker 2: The improvement has been stellar, and you know, the commitment

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Speaker 2: from crowds and the understanding from crowds, and every time

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Speaker 2: I go to a game, I love seeing so many kids,

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Speaker 2: you know, girls and boys, parents. It's not much about drinking.

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Speaker 2: It's not like going to see a state of origin

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Speaker 2: or something like that. It's just a fantastic family day.

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Speaker 2: So right across both countries, we've had tons of people

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Speaker 2: coming out and you know, the chance for us to

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Speaker 2: go further is really important. New Zealand's got knocked out

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Speaker 2: as a home host nation, so you know, you don't

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Speaker 2: want that's taste in your mouth. So this is a

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Speaker 2: big one against the state. Sorry events a country that's

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Speaker 2: got better and better, and they've got a superstar of

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Speaker 2: their own. She's forty years old, she's the captain. She

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Speaker 2: came on for ten minutes the other day, sorry, ten

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Speaker 2: minutes in the game the other day and around me

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Speaker 2: Canada mid Island. So she's key and we'll see if

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Speaker 2: she signed because she picked up an injury as well.

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Speaker 2: So they're a good team, well coached. I like their coach.

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Speaker 2: She's a great coach, ex player and done a great

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Speaker 2: job with that clubs with that team.

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Speaker 1: How wonderful now, Bruce, tell me in terms of soccer

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Speaker 1: here in the Northern Territory, when you've got something like

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Speaker 1: the fief for World Cup underway and you're seeing women

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Speaker 1: playing at this level, what does it mean for our

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Speaker 1: youngsters coming up through the ranks here in the territory.

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Speaker 2: It's fantastic. I mean, you can't be what you can't see.

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Speaker 2: I mean, we hear that a lot, but it's so

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Speaker 2: true in the women's game. You know, we have seen

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Speaker 2: an increase in but not only in participation, but interested

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Speaker 2: in being, coaching and administration, which is exactly the legacies

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Speaker 2: we're trying to achieve out of the World Cup. In

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Speaker 2: any sport, would do that just to make sure that

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Speaker 2: when you get this once time opportunity to have the

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Speaker 2: world's attention on you, that you make sure that everything

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Speaker 2: is in the best possible shape post the World Cup.

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Speaker 2: And that's what we're all aiming for. But I can't

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Speaker 2: stress enough every time you go to a game, there's

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Speaker 2: fifty fifty forty five, thirty five thousand, and it's just

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Speaker 2: made up with so many young kids, boys and girls.

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Speaker 2: It's just great to see boys running around wanting to

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Speaker 2: with Sam Kerr or Mary Fowler or stuff like that.

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Speaker 2: So it's just wonderful, really wonderful. And you know, I

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Speaker 2: must tell you too. After the soccer Who's great success

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Speaker 2: in Qatar, we had so many young boys joined in

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Speaker 2: Northern territory that they actually spread our gap between the

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Speaker 2: you know, the number of boys and girls playing so

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Speaker 2: actually went backwards a little because so many young little

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Speaker 2: fellows wanted to play. So we're happy we can bridge

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Speaker 2: that gap back with the girls and the indications are

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Speaker 2: that that's what's going to happen. The interest is really high.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, I reckon we will. I've got a daughter that

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Speaker 1: plays soccer on Monday nights, you know here in Darwin,

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Speaker 1: and my son plays as well. I've got two soccer

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Speaker 1: mad kids, and I'm sure lots of other parents around

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Speaker 1: the territory do as well. But I think it's really

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Speaker 1: wonderful actually on a Monday night seeing the girls playing

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Speaker 1: and you know you said it before, you can't be,

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Speaker 1: you can't see. But what I've loved as well is

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Speaker 1: that you do have little boys that are also watching

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Speaker 1: the Matildas and going, oh, I want to be like

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Speaker 1: sam Ka. Everybody is actually watching. All of those youngsters

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Speaker 1: are watching and are really immensely proud of our Australian team.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, it's fantastic when the next generation coming through just

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Speaker 2: doesn't differentiate between women and men, football players, women and men,

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Speaker 2: you know, rugby league players, rugby union players. It's just

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Speaker 2: fantastic eventually the twenty years so I just play sport.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, it is really wonderful to watch the soccer and

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Speaker 1: see the Matilda's going so well. I hope that they

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Speaker 1: have a win tonight, I really do. I hope that

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Speaker 1: they come out on top against Canada and we'll wait

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Speaker 1: and see. Everybody just waiting to see if Sam Kerr

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Speaker 1: takes to the field. Let's hope so