Why Matildas goalie Mackenzie Arnold won’t be worried if knockout game vs Denmark goes to a penalty shootout – despite recent rule change that makes her job harder
- Goalie admits shootouts haven’t favoured Matildas
- Isn’t fazed by rule change that started on July 1
- New guidelines make life more difficult for goalies
If Australia’s Women’s World Cup fate comes down to penalties, goalkeeper Mackenzie Arnold is more than ready to handle the pressure.
And the Matildas custodian insists she won’t be affected by a crackdown on goalkeepers distracting penalty takers.
Arnold starred in a shootout against Thailand in the semi-finals of the 2018 Asian Cup and is confident she can repeat those heroics if required in Monday’s round-of-16 clash with Denmark or later in the tournament.
‘I don’t feel much pressure with penalties, I feel quite comfortable,’ Arnold said.
‘I’ve been involved in a couple of penalty shootouts at a high level with the Asian Cup and thankfully successfully.
‘Historically, we haven’t gone too well in penalties, luck hasn’t usually been on our side with that.
While Arnold has fared well in high-level shootouts at the Asian Cup, she admits they haven’t been good for the Matildas over the years
‘But we’ve been practising and I’ve been talking with my coaches, just getting little things right for penalties. But we try not to … focus on that too much.
‘The pressure at the time, it’s a real build-up. So when it comes, it comes. But I feel quite confident with a penalty shootout.’
Rule tweaks came into play on July 1, underlining that goalkeepers cannot come off their line early and ‘must not behave in a way that unfairly distracts the kicker’.
Those stipulations might affect Argentina’s Emi Martinez or Socceroos stopper Andrew Redmayne, but not Arnold.
‘I have never really come off my line like that, so it hasn’t really affected me too much,’ she said.
‘I have had a couple of conversations with my goalkeeper coach and Tony [Franken] as well just to narrow down little things and what would best suit my ability to cover most of the goal.’
The shot-stopper (pictured during Australia’s 4-0 World Cup win over Canada) isn’t worried about the rule change that prevents goalies from coming off their line in a shootout
Socceroo Andrew Redmayne (pictured at the Dolan Warren Awards in June) famously used some flamboyant antics to get the team into the Men’s World Cup during a shootout with Peru last year – but those tactics are no longer allowed
Arnold has been open about her newfound confidence since starting to use hearing aids, apart from when playing and training.
‘It’s hard for me to say if that has really had an impact on my confidence or my performance,’ she said.
‘I wasn’t too happy with my performance against Nigeria. I didn’t wear my hearing aids that whole day and I was thinking that maybe my brain wasn’t stimulated enough – I’m not sure.
‘A lot of things I do tie back to my hearing now. I do feel a lot more confident within myself when I have them in and I feel like I’m a lot more alert and connected.
‘Whether that has a connection with how I play or not, I’m not too sure, but I would like to think it does.’