Arnold leads Australia to first World Cup semis

It was a game of chess for 120 minutes. Herve Renard in white, shirt unbuttoned down to his chest. Tony Gustavsson in black, baseball cap fixed firmly to his scalp.

The two coaches attempted to coax and cajole the pieces on the board to their liking, the momentum exchanging furiously in a tight match of fine margins played at a breathtaking pace.

But, by this point in knockout football, a coach's job is largely done. It's up to the players on the pitch to take the control and responsibility themselves.

And in the end, one piece needed to step up to make the difference as the match went to penalties and extended far beyond what anyone's nerves could handle.

Enter Mackenzie Arnold, who stepped forward as the Matildas' queen on the chessboard, her goalkeeping heroics sealing a first-ever World Cup semifinal for Australian football.

"We always know she's going to come up big for us"

"One word for Mackenzie: MVP," Emily van Egmond told DW as she searched for words to express what she had witnessed.

"She was immense for us. We always know she's going to come up big for us in those moments. She's unbelievable at penalties, and she's had an amazing tournament so far."

The shootout was tense, with every single French on-field player taking a penalty as it went 10 rounds. Arnold herself had a chance to seal victory with Australia's fifth, after the hosts' goalkeeper had saved Eve Perisset's effort, but it cannoned back off the post.

Lesser humans would have crumbled after such a setback. But Arnold steeled herself and saved Kenza Dali's penalty twice - after it had to be retaken because the Australian goalkeeper had stepped off her line too early - to give the decisive momentum swing back to her teammates.

"That was such a rollercoaster of emotions, but I'm just glad I could do my job and get the girls over the line," Arnold said. "To see how the team rallied around me when I missed the penalty, I'm just so happy to be part of this team and so proud to be Australian."

When Vicki Becho hit the post for France, forward Cortnee Vine stepped forward to seal the victory with the 20th spotkick of the match.

"That was wild," Vine said. "I wasn't expecting it to get to 10," she added. "In that moment, you just have to look inwards and back yourself. And Mackenzie, she had a cracking game, she made some major saves for us, and her whole tournament has been amazing."

Another electric atmosphere

The Welcome to Country set the tone. The traditional welcome from Aboriginal elders has opened every match in Australia, but this one felt extra special in front of a near 50,000-strong crowd.

Uncle Shannon Ruska sent a spine-tingling version of Banjo Paterson's "Waltzing Matilda" around the Suncorp Stadium, singing in his Aboriginal language as the crowd joined in for the English chorus.

If the players weren't already pumped by the noise and support, that rendition must have truly given their endorphin levels a hit.

Both sides had their chances. Mary Fowler saw a number of efforts blocked or saved and Vine went agonisingly close at the back post. France's Eugenie Le Sommer, Maëlle Lakrar and Becho all saw efforts tipped away by Mackenzie.

"It was a bit of a blur," Steph Catley told DW. "We were really fighting. The game really did swing in momentum a lot. There were times when we were dominant, there were times they were dominant.

"Both teams pressed really well. But I thought we fought really well, and Macka came up big and made massive saves."

France thought they'd won it in the 100th minute, after Alanna Kennedy headed into her own net from a corner, but the referee spotted a foul from Wendie Renard in the buildup and the goal was chalked off.

Penalties was the only way to separate these two sides, and the Matildas managed to find the strength and belief to get over the line, with a raucous crowd behind them.

"That was insane. There were a couple of moments in the dying minutes of extra time, they were just so loud," Vine added.

"It was so hard to think," she explained. "But it was unreal, and the Australian public have been so supportive and so loud. And I hope they continue to be loud."

Australia's next 'moment'

Gustavsson has spoken a lot about "moments" during this tournament: Steph Catley's penalty against Ireland, the bounceback against Canada after the capitulation against Nigeria. Caitlin Foord harassing Denmark into submission.

The Matildas are on a roll, so much so that Gustavsson's hands must be red, raw and sore. When he wasn't feverishly applauding his team's play across the match he was popping double thumbs-ups like a goofy dad from the 1990s.

And the first player he embraced at the final whistle, after first sinking to the floor and taking a moment to himself, was Arnold.

"I'm overwhelmed," Arnold said. "I haven't really processed exactly what's happened. Australia has been our 12th man in this tournament. We really needed them in this game, and they turned up for us tonight."

With the team just two wins away from lifting the World Cup, Catley added: "I can tell you right now that every single player on our team wants this, 100%, without a shadow of a doubt. So we'll keep fighting, keep being there for each other, keep showing up."

On a historic night for Australian football, Arnold stood tallest when both sides were searching for a defining moment. There is now true belief running through the Matildas as they prepare for a semifinal showdown against England in Sydney.

Edited by Kalika Mehta