With the 2018 Tournament of Nations kicking off next week, midfielder Kyah Simon and defender Clare Polkinghorne look to defend Australia’s title as reigning champs.
2017 year was legendary for the Westfield Matildas, who put their names on the map and proved they’ve become a women’s soccer powerhouse. To claim the title in last year’s inaugural Tournament of Nations, the Matildas earned their first-ever win over the United States, as well as demolishing both Japan and Brazil with multiple goals.
“We had a fairly good year last year in terms of Matildas results and the games…we played at a high quality and some of the best tournament football that we’ve played in a long time,” Polkinghorne explained. “It’s always nice to win tournaments and we’re going there to hopefully do the same thing again.
Polkinghorne was part of the 2017 Matildas squad that claimed victory while Simon was recovering from a shoulder procedure she underwent in March of 2017. Now, a healthy Kyah Simon is eager to join in on the tournament and play for Australia.
“Obviously after missing out on the tournament last year because of the double shoulder recovery that I had,” Kyah said. “I’m really excited for it and it’s really exciting to get back in with the team and yeah pick up where we left off.”
This tournament marks Simon’s return, and although she was not part of the inaugural squad for this tournament in 2017, she’s ready to bring home a second title and represent her country once again.
“It’s going to be a very competitive tournament. Everyone’s pretty much in season or a lot of players in this league,” Simon said. So it will be a really interesting tournament, but I’m just really excited to get back in the green and gold and kicking it with the girls.”
Polkinghorne is eager to return to the Tournament of Nations, as it’s not often they get to play three teams from the top ten during the year. She noted that this prepares them well for next summer’s Women’s World Cup in France.
"Obviously we’ve got to defend our title. It’s going to be really tough and we’re just looking forward to a lot of good games,” Polkinghorne said.
