After the match, midfielder Emily Van Egmond conceded that whilst the Matildas may have had the upper hand on Japan, it wasn't enough.

"I think they defended incredibly well again," she said.

"For them to get a late goal and then leave us not much time to equalise was always going to be difficult but I thought the girls worked extremely hard today. I thought we were definitely right in the contest.

"Credit to Japan, they’re a world class team. They managed to come out on top again today."

Van Egmond also went on to reflect that there was some good individual form in the tournament, including Alanna Kennedy.

"A few of our players are real standouts this tournament and I think that sets the bar now going into France," she said.

"It creates a competitive training environment and that's what we want because ultimately we want the best players within that squad pushing each other day in and day out so ultimately we can become the best team we can possibly be."

Steph Catley noted that the Matildas were strong at creating chances but highlighted that their finishing in the front third was not up to par.

"That has been the story of our tournament," Catley said.

"Most of the games we have looked back at, we’ve had over 15 chances at least with the other team only getting four or maximum 6.

"Our aim pretty much to get over 12 opportunities for us and less than six for them.

"We’ve got all of those opportunities and we’re not being clinical, not finishing them so that's never going to win us football games unless you score and convert your chances.

"A good team like Japan is going to come out and score a bomb like that.

"It hurts because it took one amazing shot and that’s what happens when you’re not clinical."

Google Stats

The Matildas were able to dominate possession and Catley reflected that's a positive heading into France.

"That’s massive for us," Catley said.

"That’s something we went into the game wanting, to control possession.

"I think it shows how far we have come as a team in that we’re outplaying a team like Japan where they’re just so focused on keeping the ball and we’re forcing them to turn it over in their back third, which they hate doing.

"They hate trying to play long.

"We did everything that we could do tonight. We stuck to the game plan, we did it perfectly. We just didn’t convert.

"That’s what we’ve got to go away and improve on and going into France having stats like that against a team like Japan, you can take a lot of confidence from it.

The tournament hasn't been one of Australia's best, but there are positives as well as some strong individual performances.

"I think that’s another positive in that we all had probably one of the worst games of our lives against Thailand," Catley said.

"It felt strange for us because last year we had a kind of flawless run and everything felt great. It was a great reality check for us.

"I think we were able to look at it, take what we could from it and move on.

"The way that everyone did that and got around for this game so quickly was a massive positive and something we can really look to in the future if we ever dip again. It’s nice to know we can bounce back so well.

"France now becomes the major focus. I can’t wait."

All Images credit: Rachel Bach