Five things from England's 3-0 win over Australia
Maya Le Tissier and Aggie Beever-Jones seize chance as debutants impress, but injury to Michelle Agyemang tarnishes comfortable victory
England bounced back from defeat to Brazil over the weekend as they beat Australia 3-0 at a sold-out Pride Park on Tuesday night.
With an expectant crowd hanging on their every kick, the European champions dominated Australia from the kick-off. England were then handed a significant advantage in the 18th minute when Alanna Kennedy was sent off for fouling Alessia Russo on the edge of the box and denying an obvious goalscoring opportunity.
From the ensuing free-kick, Aggie Beever-Jones made it 1-0. The Chelsea forward cracked her first effort into the wall but made no mistake on the rebound, thumping a rocket beyond the reach of Mackenzie Arnold.
Lucy Bronze made it 2-0 in the 40th minute with a tidy finish from the middle of the box after an Ella Toone cutback from the touchline. In the aftermath of the goal, a chorus of ‘Happy Birthday’ rang out from the English faithful at Pride Park. Bronze turned 34 on Tuesday.
With almost the very last kick of the match, Georgia Stanway added a third for England from the penalty spot. The goal was the least England deserved from a night on which they attempted 29 shots and dominated from start to finish. However, the foul, awarded via VAR, felt harsh on the Matildas and goalkeeper Arnold who had done their best to limit the damage.
The positive result was marred by an injury to Michelle Agyemang late in the second half. The young forward was stretchered off with what appeared to be a knee injury.
Here are five takeaways from England’s raucous return to winning ways in Derby.
Le Tissier at centre-back
Sarina Wiegman finally gave the people what they wanted and started Maya Le Tissier at centre-back, where she has played for the majority of her club career. The Manchester United captain had previously only started for England in the right-back position, where Wiegman herself has said she feels Le Tissier is best used within this Lionesses team. Her role had created a very loud online discourse that United even chipped in to on social media.
Against Brazil, Wiegman moved Le Tissier to centre-back when Bronze came on as a second-half substitute. Up until that switch, we had never seen her play in that position for the national team.
This time Wiegman opted to play Le Tissier in her favoured role from the off, switching her inside for Jess Carter, who started at right-sided centre-back against Brazil but was on the bench here. Le Tissier even remained in the centre-back pairing when starting right-back Bronze was subbed off at half-time, with Niamh Charles instead slotting in for Bronze in a much more unfamiliar position.
Le Tissier partnered Esme Morgan, and even though the task at hand was very different to what Carter and Morgan had to deal with against Brazil, the pairing felt a lot more balanced and calm. Le Tissier is not only confident and technical on the ball, she is physically dominant, too. Her experience captaining United also makes her a great leader.
Hinds and Kendall make their debuts
Wiegman kept the experimentation going by handing debuts to Taylor Hinds, at left-back, and Lucia Kendall, in central midfield. Crucially, the duo did not look out of place as England took care of Australia with ease.
Across 62 minutes, Hinds – who previously earned a single international cap for Jamaica in 2024 before being called up for England for this October window – was attentive when it came to marshalling Ellie Carpenter on the wing. Twice in the first half Hinds matched Carpenter stride for stride and put in perfectly-timed challenges to kill rare Aussie attacks.
Alongside captain Keira Walsh in the heart of the midfield, Kendall was a refreshing box-to-box presence who vacuumed up loose balls and often made herself available to receive simple passes and keep possession.
The 21-year-old Aston Villa midfielder attempted more shots than any other England player (five), and should have scored on her debut when her close-range header clipped the top of the bar. Kendall played the full 90 minutes and, on this showing, should earn another call-up in November.
Beever-Jones seizes her moment
Having notched just 77 minutes at the Euros this past summer, Beever-Jones herself had admitted that she would have liked to have made a bigger impact, even if she understood the “bigger picture” and her supporting role in the trophy-winning squad.
Well, the 22-year-old did not waste her opportunity on Tuesday night. Her terrific strike to open the scoring will get the headlines, but it was her all-round play that dazzled, offering an intriguing alternative to the traditional winger.
Wiegman deployed Beever-Jones on the left-hand side of England’s attack, but it wasn’t on the flanks where she did her best work. With Russo quick to vacate the central spaces and put in a dogged shift pressing and linking the play, Beever-Jones was a huge threat making well-timed inverted runs into the middle of the box.
Twice she was just a yard short of tucking the ball into the net at the back post, and she headed over from six yards after a cross from Russo. In addition to her goal, Beever-Jones finished the match with 57 touches, four shots, two key passes and two successful dribbles. Unfortunately, she limped off with an injury in the 84th minute.
By no means a like-for-like replacement for Lauren Hemp, Lauren James or Chloe Kelly, instead Beever-Jones offers an interesting hybrid option alongside Russo. And she is now up to seven goals in 13 caps (three starts) for England.
Kennedy shouldn’t be a starter for Matildas
As Kennedy trudged off the pitch and down the tunnel at Pride Park, the quiet ignominy of her red card sunk in. The 30-year-old has been a fantastic servant to her country, but her days in the starting XI for Australia feel numbered.
Head coach Joe Montemurro has opted, for his sins, to put Kennedy back into the Matildas’ midfield. It is a role she predominantly played earlier in her career before being reassigned to centre-back over the last few years with Manchester City.
During her brief stint with Angel City this year in the NWSL, Kennedy toiled as a holding midfielder. She was ill-equipped to deal with the press, turn in tight spaces or provide recovery speed.
The same was true on Tuesday, when her miscontrol under light pressure at the base of midfield was followed by an error of judgment in giving up the foul and reducing her team to 10. With 141 caps for her country, her experience could still be invaluable as Australia prepare to host the 2026 Asia Cup. But Montemurro should be looking to reshape her role in the squad.
Worry for Agyemang
For the second successive game, England’s Euros hero Michelle Agyemang was given the biggest cheer of the night when she came on as a substitute. Worryingly for Wiegman and Brighton, Agyemang was stretchered off in the 80th minute, visibly emotional and in pain. It’s too early to get any clear update on the injury she has sustained.
The young superstar has deserved all the praise and adoration that has come her way since rescuing England in back-to-back games in Switzerland and single-handedly propelling them to another major final. But it’s amazing to see just how much her starring role has resonated with young fans, who are desperate to see the 19-year-old in action. Wiegman’s decisions to introduce her from the bench in successive games have provided huge moments in this homecoming series. As we continue to wonder who will be the next generation of leaders for these Lionesses, one thing is clear: Agyemang is absolutely the new star everyone wants to see.