Westfield Matildas feeling the love at home

With the highly-anticipated matches against Brazil almost here, the Westfield Matildas are reveling in their soaring popularity.

After their victory at the Tournament of Nations, Saturday’s first international against Brazil at Pepper Stadium is sold out, with Tuesday’s second match at McDonald Jones Stadium heading the same way.

DREAMS COME TRUE

“It’s really exciting to sell out stadiums – that’s not something I thought would ever happen,” admitted Seattle-based Australian goalkeeper Lydia Williams.

“Playing overseas a lot and playing in tournaments, you get that special feeling when you walk out in a crowded stadium.

“But to have it on home soil is something I don’t think any of us ever dreamed of, or have been a part of before,” she said.

INTO THE SPOTLIGHT

Team-mate Claire Polkinghorne is still pinching herself at how far the team has come.

“I guess you always hope it’ll come around,” said the 96-cap Brisbane Roar defender.

“I’ve been in the team for a number of years now and seen it grow from humble beginnings to being in the spotlight with people interested and wanting to come and watch us play and the kids knowing who the Matildas are, which is awesome.

“To have a sold-out stadium with Aussie fans is going to be pretty special.

“While there will be an element of focus, there will also be an element of appreciation of where we’ve come from and what lies ahead for us,” she said.

IT’LL BE EMOTIONAL

And Williams expects Saturday’s historic clash to be extremely special for the Westfield Matildas. 

“It’s definitely going to be emotional and it’s definitely going to be a high,” she said.

“The crowd will be our twelfth man for sure and it’ll be nice to be on the front foot of that for once, so it’s going to be quite exciting.”

Tickets remain on sale for Tuesday's match at McDonald Jones Stadium here