We’ve seen clutch wins from recent tournaments, bringing with them increased media coverage and unprecedented fan engagement, along with pivotal moments from earlier in the Matildas' World Cup history, no less important in growing the team's popularity and success.

Here are five of the very best.

5. Kerr’s four-goal haul secures the Matildas a place in the Round of 16

The equation was simple for the Matildas in the last group match of the 2019 World Cup.

Win big and they go through to the next round, also avoiding an unwanted clash with France or Germany in the Round of 16.

The opponent was Jamaica – lowly ranked but with some dangerous players and a lot of spirit. The Matildas' best chance of achieving their objective still seemed to rely on captain Sam Kerr finding her best form.

Nerves were settled early with two pinpoint headers from Kerr in the first half. She was delivering exactly what the team and the fans had wanted all tournament.

The Aussies were in control and dominating the game, but with a healthy goal difference needed to ensure their safe progression, there was work still to be done.

A momentary lapse early in the second half allowed the Jamaicans to pounce, with a slicing through ball finding Havana Solaun who rounded Lydia Williams and pegged one back. The Matildas were looking rattled and likely to concede an equalizer.

Kerr came to the rescue, showing poachers instinct during a goal-line scramble to thump her hat-trick goal home after a deflected cross from Hayley Raso. She wasn’t done yet, and through sheer determination struck a fourth time in the closing stages, showing no mercy from close range after an unfortunate mistake from the Jamaican goalkeeper.

The Matildas were winners 4-1, scraping into the top 2 of Group C only thanks to that last desperate goal from Kerr.

The game might have been shaky from a team perspective but it was a masterclass from Australia’s best football player – single-handedly dragging her team into a stronger position in the tournament.

Becoming the first Australian of any gender to score a hat-trick (let alone four goals) in a World Cup is a tremendous achievement that will take some beating.

4. Cheryl Salisbury’s late equaliser sends the Matildas to World Cup knockout phase for the first time

Competing at their fourth World Cup 2007, the Matildas had never reached the knockout phase of the competition before.

The group stage started successfully with a win over Ghana 4-1, and a draw with former winners Norway 1-1. Going into the final group match against Canada, the Matildas needed at least a draw to progress to the quarterfinals for the first time.

Down 2-1 late in the game after a goal to Canada’s Christine Sinclair, it was Lisa De Vanna who made a crucial run down the left flank in the 92nd minute.

With defenders drawn to De Vanna, marauding central defender Cheryl Salisbury found space in the box to tuck home an equalizing goal and send the Matildas through.

While the Matildas lost their quarterfinal in a close game to Brazil, their achievement was significant due to the boost it provided to women’s football in Australia.

The new national competition the W-League was born the following year, bringing with it a stronger pathway to elite football for women and girls all over the country.

3. Second consecutive knockout round appearance thanks to a dramatic stoppage-time victory over Norway

After progressing from the group stage for the first time in 2007, the Matildas were desperate to do it again in Germany, 2011. However, their last group match against Norway was a knockout game in itself, as the winner would progress from Group D.

The Matildas found themselves 1-0 down in the 56th minute after a goal to Norway star Elise Thorsnes, but they didn’t stay down for long. Only one minute after going behind, Lisa De Vanna found Kyah Simon with a pinpoint pass in the box and she coolly finished under extreme pressure.

The match was hanging in the balance, with chances for both teams to win it in the dying minutes.

A stoppage-time corner for Australia was cleared wide; only for defender Kim Carroll to curl it back in for one last attempt. Her cross found the head of Simon, who was again clinical with her finishing, sealing the win for the Matildas and relegating Norway to third place in the group.

Australia was gaining a worldwide reputation for participating in close, entertaining matches and this continued that trend. Simon also became the first Indigenous Australian to score at a World Cup.

2. Australia wins in the knockout rounds for the first time as Kyah Simon’s late winner sinks Brazil

On a rainy day in Moncton, Canada, the Matildas faced off against Brazil in the quarterfinals of the 2015 World Cup. The Brazilians were the more fancied team, with their stars Marta and Christiane in full flight.

The Matildas disciplined play in the first half caused frustration in the Brazilians and they resorted to long shots easily dealt with by keeper Lydia Williams.  

The game (and the heavens) opened up in the second half with The Matildas best chances coming on the fast break – the speed of Lisa De Vanna and Caitlin Foord causing problems.  

In the 80th minute, De Vanna found herself one on one with the Brazilian goalkeeper after a long run down the right. Her shot to the bottom left corner was parried into the path of on-rushing Kyah Simon, who calmly volleyed home into the right side netting.

Simon had only been on the pitch for 15 minutes when her composure and impeccable timing put the Matildas in front.

The result was the first time an Australian national team (men or women) had won a knockout stage game in the World Cup and continued a great rivalry with Brazil which continues today.

1. Matildas come from 2-0 down to defeat Brazil in the ‘Miracle of Montpellier’

After a shock loss to Italy in the first group match of France 2019, the Matildas were under significant pressure going into their next game against Brazil.

Questions were being asked – had the team been over-hyped? Had the dramatic coaching changes only months prior to the tournament negatively affected the squad?

The Matildas had significant periods of dominance in the first half, but were unable to capitalize and found themselves 2-0 down after a penalty from Marta and a header from Christiane.

Australian fans watching around the world would have been forgiven for fearing the worst, however, Caitlin Foord gave them a glimmer of hope right before half time. A flick-on at the near post from Chloe Logarzo found Foord sliding in on the goal line, who scored her first-ever World Cup goal to get the Matildas back in the game.

A goal from Logarzo in the 57th minute drew the Matildas level, with her long-range drive finding the bottom corner after two defenders and the goalkeeper were deceived by Sam Kerr’s forward run. Aussie fans dared to believe.

Less than 10 minutes later and Sam Kerr again played a part in a pivotal moment. After worrying the Brazilian defenders all day with her clever movement, Kerr found herself between two markers as a speculative diagonal ball from Emily Van Egmond was played in. Nervous defender Monica could only head back into her own goal with the goalkeeper no chance. 

The Aussies celebrated - but the flag was up! Kerr had been ruled offside. An excruciatingly long VAR delay followed, with the goal finally awarded and the Matildas taking a 3-2 lead. Nerves of steel in the last period of the game gave the girls the victory, not least from 18-year-old Matildas debutant Karly Roestbakken who was subbed on in the 94th minute. 

It was an incredible and gutsy win that brought the Matildas World Cup campaign back from the brink. Australia were the first team to score against Brazil in the group stage in four World Cups, and only the second team in women’s World Cup history to come from 2-0 down to win.

Kerr’s “suck on that one” post-game message to the team’s critics was a reflection on the pressure the team had absorbed and their desire to prove the doubters wrong.

The game will live long in the memory of every Matildas fan, whether they watched in the stands in Montpellier or in their living rooms back in Australia in the middle of the night.