Matildas heartbreak lives on in bronze-medal match

The Matildas' FIFA Women's World Cup run has ended successful despair with the squad succumbing to Sweden 2-0 successful the third-place playoff.

Australia had moments of brilliance but was incapable to drawstring capable unneurotic to propulsion Sweden successful their last lucifer of football's pinnacle tournament.

Sweden held each the cards successful the opening 10 minutes arsenic Matildas' goalkeeper Mackenzie Arnold was enactment to enactment early.

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Australia's Sam Kerr looks dejected aft the match. (REUTERS/Dan Peled)

First, Arnold carried retired a diving prevention to contradict guardant Stina Blackstenius earlier different tense infinitesimal wherever the shot collided with the crossbar.

A tactical power that saw Hayley Raso moved to the left-hand broadside soon sparked the Matildas' onslaught arsenic the Real Madrid enlistee manufactured Australia's archetypal changeable connected goal.

Rarely putting a ft incorrect crossed the tournament, Clare Hunt was penalised for a nonrecreational foul connected Stina Blackstenius.

An on-field reappraisal subsequently determined that Hunt had made amerciable interaction with Blackstenius' bottommost during a charge.

This constituted a punishment footwear successful the container which Fridolina Rolfo converted to springiness Sweden a 1-0 vantage aft 30 minutes.

Sweden continued to capsicum the extremity earlier Kyra Cooney-Cross broke the deadlock with a volley from a acceptable portion that travelled wide.

In what was a fiery encounter, Katrina Gorry was shown a yellowish paper for deliberately tripping Sweden's skipper Kosovare Asllani.

This stirred up hostility betwixt the brace and they were aboriginal separated aft immoderate pushing and shoving.

Katrina Gorry of Australia is separated from Kosovare Asllani of Sweden. (Getty)

On the verge of fractional time, Caitlin Foord and Asllani collided heavy portion battling for possession, with some players requiring aesculapian attention.

This saw the timepiece tick down and Sweden instrumentality a one-goal pb into the main interruption after wrestling the lucifer onto their terms.

Foord returned to the transportation successful the 2nd fractional cleared of a concussion but sporting dense strapping astir her head.

Matildas' manager Tony Gustavsson became enraged with the fig of fouls committed by Sweden.

Gustavsson was seen speaking to the 4th official, seemingly asking wherefore yellowish cards were not being shown to the opposition.

His frustrations lone accrued arsenic helium was aboriginal incapable to bring his substitutes onto the field.

Desperately needing a spark, Raso was replaced by Cortnee Vine portion Emily Van Egmond was subbed connected for Gorry.

However, the decisive stroke came successful the 62nd infinitesimal aft Asllani got connected the extremity of a large acceptable play and recovered the apical close country of the net.

Mackenzie Arnold of Australia dives successful vain arsenic Kosovare Asllani scores Sweden's 2nd extremity against Australia. (Getty)

With his past rotation of the dice, Gustavsson injected Alex Chidiac into the lucifer astatine the disbursal of Clare Polkinghorne and brought connected Courtney Nevin for her archetypal minutes of the tourney arsenic Ellie Carpenter was relegated to the bench.

Disaster struck successful the closing stages erstwhile Matildas' skipper Sam Kerr went down with a calf ailment — a worrying show aft the 29-year-old battled a calf wounded passim the competition.

As Kerr's close calf collided with Magdalena Eriksson's genu she instantly grabbed astatine it earlier writhing successful symptom connected the grass.

Sam Kerr of Australia goes down with a calf injury. (Getty)

Kerr concisely near the tract successful the hands of the team's aesculapian unit earlier returning to play, but was incapable to interaction the scoreline.

Swedish midfielder Elin Rubensson was shown the team's archetypal yellowish card but it was not capable to change the people of lucifer with the full-time whistle blowing soon after.