5. Don’t panic!

A loss to World No. 4 France and a draw against World No. 3 England may not have been the desired outcomes of these two friendly games for Stajcic, the team, or the fans. But it is important to keep in mind three things:

First, the Matildas were missing several core players in Williams, Kennedy, Raso, Van Egmond, Gorry, and Kerr. As such, a number of fringe players, including Gielnik, Crummer, and Luik, saw significant minutes on the park. This was, of course, one of the purposes of these friendlies, to get a clearer picture of what a final World Cup squad could look like. It’s not perfect yet.

Second, as has been mentioned, several players came into these games carrying injuries or are returning after long-term layoffs, which could have affected their performances in various ways.

And third, both the English and French sides are in the middle of their main club seasons; their players already match fit and in a competitive mindset. By contrast, many Matildas are in the downturn from their respective competitions at home and abroad, some not having played for several weeks.

Despite the setbacks, Australia walks away from these games against two powerhouses of women’s international football with a loss and a draw. While these games raised a number of questions, we must keep perspective and have faith that within the next eight months, many of those questions will be answered.