They were very close to England who sit behind Germany and the World No.1 Team, the USA. The ranking followed victory at the Tournament of Nations in August 2017 where Australia beat the USA (1-0) on home soil and Japan and Brazil (6-1). The Matildas followed the tournament with a series of wins here in Australia, over Brazil and China.

The squad included a number of Brisbane and Queensland players, including Clare Polkinghorne (co-captain), Hayley Raso and Katrina Gorry from Brisbane and fellow Queenslanders, Mackenzie Arnold (Gold Coast) and Elise Kellond-Knight (Southport).

The Matildas have only been called the Matildas since 1995. Before that they were the Female Socceroos (we think it was a rubbish name too).

On the 6th of November 2019 the Matildas signed a collective bargaining agreement bringing them pay parity with their male counterparts the Socceroos. "Showing them the money: why the Matildas' pay deal is a triumph for all" and "Matildas’ equal pay deal is part of a global shift recognising value of women in sport" do a good job of contextualising the significance of this detail and long road to pay parity for the Matildas.