Women’s Asian Cup 2026: Hayley Raso’s falconed, Mary Fowler and Amy Sayer sparkle — Matildas vs Iran quick hits

Hayley Raso cops an unfortunate double hit as Mary Fowler and Amy Sayer sparkle from the start on the Gold Coast.

Here are the quick hits from Matildas vs Iran at the Women’s Asian Cup.

1. Team Melli sings the national anthem

Before Iran’s tournament opener against South Korea on Monday, the Iranian players stayed silent during the country’s national anthem.

With the conflict in the Middle East having so recently erupted, this was widely seen as an act of defiance against the Islamic Republic regime.

Ahead of its match against the Matildas, Team Melli, standing in pouring rain on the Gold Coast, sang and saluted as Mehr-e Khavaran blared from the stadium speakers.

Earlier, around 100 protesters had gathered outside Gold Coast Stadium, protesting against the Islamic Republic regime and celebrating the killing of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

For the latest on the war in the Middle East, follow our live blog, while we have more background about the situation for the players here.

2. Sayer, Fowler make the difference

Entering the game from the bench, Amy Sayer and Mary Fowler breathed much-needed life into the Matildas’ attack in their first match.

And their efforts against the Philippines were rewarded on the Gold Coast, with both players named in the Australian starting XI against Iran.

The pair saw a lot of the ball in the early exchanges, with Fowler playing wide on the left and Sayer linking the midfield to attack.

It only took eight minutes for Sayer to repay Montemurro’s faith in quite remarkable fashion, finding the back of the net from wide on the right.

It was almost certainly meant as a cross, but it was a spectacular way to begin the scoring nonetheless.

Less than 20 minutes later, and Fowler was on the scoresheet as well.

It was a goal more suited to the conditions at a very wet Gold Coast Stadium, with Fowler getting on the end of a Caitlin Foord long ball after the goalkeeper mishandled.

The graceful attacker slid in the Queensland mud, poking home a goal in her first international start in over 300 days.

3. Raso takes a hit to the face … twice

It was a nightmare cameo for Hayley Raso on the Gold Coast.

Entering the field as a second-half substitute after losing her place in the starting XI, Raso was typically tenacious to begin, but it wasn’t long before disaster struck.

Raso was in all sorts after a clearance clattered into her face from close range, leaving the winger strewn on the turf for a significant period.

After passing a concussion test, Raso was able to continue — albeit with a rather red face.

However, not long after, Raso was down again — holding her face once more — hit with a second stray clearance.

This time, she was clattered from a more side on angle, it looked even more painful and the forward wasn’t able to finish the game.

The unfortunate double-hit puts Raso’s involvement in Sunday’s blockbuster clash with South Korea in serious doubt.

4. Who needs 11 on the field? Iran does

There are some basics you need before a match starts or the second half begins.

You need the team talk, and know your tactics. You need to run out together — particularly if it’s been a tough first half and you’re 3-0 down.

Oh yes — it’s usually beneficial if you have all 11 players on the field. For Iran, this wasn’t the way things went ahead of the second half.

The Matildas were ready, the fans were ready, the referee was ready … and Team Melli had 10 players on the ground.

You could see people doing a quick head count, but someone was missing. Turns out it was striker Mona Hamoudi.

After a delay of about three or four minutes, she ran out of the tunnel and onto the pitch.

Cue some gentle response from the fans, which became a little more pointed when Hamoudi knelt down and started tying her shoelaces.

5. Star trio come off, but Matildas still trail South Korea

When Alanna Kennedy headed home Australia’s fourth after 58 minutes, the home side was 4-0 up and in cruise control.

Joe Montemurro swung into action, taking off the starting front three — Caitlin Foord, Sam Kerr and Mary Fowler — for Hayley Raso, Remy Siemsen and Holly McNamara.

The introduced attacking trio were unable to influence the game like their starting teammates, failing to increase Australia’s advantage even further.

This means South Korea’s goal difference is one better than Australia’s, which means that the Matildas will have to win their final game on Sunday in order to top the group and get a better draw in the quarterfinals.

It could prove quite important as the tournament continues.