Kerr coy on fitness after making Matildas return

AUSTRALIA’S superstar striker Sam Kerr is keeping her fitness status close to her chest after coming through unscathed in her return from injury for a brief cameo against Denmark.

The Australian skipper got 15 minutes of action in the dying stages of Monday’s 2-0 win which rubber-stamped the Matildas’ passage to the Women’s World Cup quarter finals.

Kerr’s left calf has become the most talked about body part in Australia after she was ruled out on the eve of the Matildas’ tournament opener against Ireland.

Her calf has garnered so much attention that one news organisation sent a helicopter to observe Australia’s penultimate training session on Sunday.

The striker was kept on ice throughout the group stages but got the loudest cheer of the night when she came onto the field at Stadium Australia after a lengthy warm-up.

There was a collective gasp when she slipped on the greasy surface, with coach Tony Gustavsson admitting it made him “very nervous”.

But Kerr shrugged off the tumble and said: “I have terrible groins and just fell over like a normal thing.

“I think it’s just [under] a microscope, because I’ve been injured the last three weeks.”

Kerr wouldn’t be drawn on whether she was fit enough to start in Saturday’s quarter-final, which will pit the Matildas against the winner of Tuesday’s round-of-16 tie between Morocco and France.

“I mean, I have a plan,” she said.

“The physios have a plan, I asked them if I could run after the game and they said no, so I’m sure I’ll just be following their plan like I have the last few weeks.”

Gustavsson didn’t need to bring Kerr on when he did, with Australia already having a 2-0 lead with 10 minutes left on the clock.

But the Swede said after lengthy deliberation it was decided it was best to ease his captain back into game time ahead of potentially longer minutes later in the tournament.

“We had a lot of talks with Sam about when we used here and if she needed minutes to get ready mentally or physically to get ready for the next game,” Gustavsson said.

“That means there’s a risk, and how much are you willing to risk? It’s a tough decision.”

Kerr was rusty but still looked dangerous.

“She didn’t miss a beat, did she?” teammate Emily van Egmond quipped.

The Matildas returned to Brisbane on Tuesday to prepare for their quarter-final.

And with no more questions over whether Kerr would feature this tournament, her teammates can relax.

“We won’t have much of a headache anymore,” Caitlin Foord said.

“I’m pretty tired of it, to be honest.”

Australia will play France in a quarter final match up on Saturday evening.

– GEORGE CLARKE/ AAP