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.<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
Her calf has garnered so much attention that one news organisation sent a helicopter to observe Australia’s penultimate training session on Sunday.<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
There was a collective gasp when she slipped on the greasy surface, with coach Tony Gustavsson admitting it made him “very nervous”.<\/p>\n
But Kerr shrugged off the tumble and said: “I have terrible groins and just fell over like a normal thing.<\/p>\n
“I think it’s just [under] a microscope, because I’ve been injured the last three weeks.”<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
“I mean, I have a plan,” she said.<\/p>\n
“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.”<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
“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.<\/p>\n
“That means there’s a risk, and how much are you willing to risk? It’s a tough decision.”<\/p>\n
Kerr was rusty but still looked dangerous.<\/p>\n
“She didn’t miss a beat, did she?” teammate Emily van Egmond quipped.<\/p>\n
The Matildas returned to Brisbane on Tuesday to prepare for their quarter-final.<\/p>\n
And with no more questions over whether Kerr would feature this tournament, her teammates can relax.<\/p>\n
“We won’t have much of a headache anymore,” Caitlin Foord said.<\/p>\n
“I’m pretty tired of it, to be honest.”<\/p>\n
Australia will play France in a quarter final match up on Saturday evening.<\/p>\n