BRISBANE (Reuters) – Australia captain Sam Kerr will again start on the bench when the co-hosts take on France in the Women’s World Cup quarter-finals on Saturday, indicating she has not yet fully recovered from a calf strain.
Coach Tony Gustavsson said on Friday that Kerr would start her first match of the tournament in the clash against the French at Lang Park if told by team medical staff that she was fit to play 90 minutes.
The striker, Australia’s all-time top goalscorer, played about 20 minutes as a substitute in the last-16 win over Denmark on Monday after missing the first three matches of the campaign with the calf injury.
Gustavsson has stuck with the same starting lineup as he named for the 2-0 win over the Danes with the forward line of Caitlin Foord, Mary Fowler and Hayley Raso.
(Reporting by Nick Mulvenney in Sydney; Editing by William Mallard)
