World Cup fever has well and truly taken a hold of Echuca-Moama, and the twin towns will have an opportunity to will Australia to the final when the Matildas face England in Wednesday night’s semi-final.
The Matildas bundled France out of the competition in a thrilling penalty shoot-out in last Saturday evening’s quarter-final in Brisbane, with Cortnee Vine’s final conversion securing her nation its first-ever semi-final at a World Cup.
Scenes of jubilation erupted around Australia at Vine’s winning strike, and if all goes to plan, Echuca will hopefully be the site of similar celebrations along the banks of the Murray River.
The Port of Echuca looks poised to become a sea of green and gold with a live site set to be operated at the Echuca Port Park, located on the grass between the wharf and Discovery Centre with a big screen to be hauled in to broadcast the game.
Campaspe Port Enterprise CEO Mark Francis said Saturday night’s thriller sparked the move to get a live site-up and running, predicting a big crowd for the event.
“It’s a good thing to activate and something a bit different,” Francis said.
“The reaction so far could see hundreds come down, it’s going to be exciting.”
The Matildas’ magical run has inspired the region’s aspiring young soccer players, with Border Raiders FC president Pat Hicks noting there has been a marked uptick in local interest.
“Obviously it’s generated a lot of interest in the sport and the national team,” Hicks said.
“We’ve had lots of questions about the rules of the game; there’s certainly a fever going on.
“The girls have enjoyed watching the Matildas play; they’ve come together a few times to watch it.”
Australia and England kick off from 8pm on Wednesday, August 16 with the winner set to face either Spain or Sweden at Stadium Australia in Sydney this Sunday at 8pm.