Aussies in Nordic football has been a recurring theme over the years and 2023 is no different. Read on to see how Aussies in the Nordic leagues (Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Iceland) fared during the past week!
Two rounds in one week – Rounds 6 and 7 – made for a busy time in the Damallsvenskan!
Aivi Luik‘s BK Häcken came away with two wins, including toppling ladder leaders Hammarby.
Proceedings started with a 2-0 away win over KIF Örebro, before they rose to the challenge of Kyra Cooney-Cross and company, defeating Hammarby 1-0 despite the urgings of the raucous travelling Hammarby supporters. Highlights of the Häcken v Hammarby game can be viewed here.
Häcken employed an effective press and at times bossed possession in this fixture. By inflicting Hammarby’s first loss of the season, Häcken joins them on 18 points at the top of the table, separated only by goal difference.
Luik played every minute of both games. Cooney-Cross also played the full 90 minutes against Häcken, but only played the first half of Hammarby’s 8-0 home win over bottom-placed IFK Kalmar.
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The week wasn’t quite as kind to Chelsie Dawber‘s IFK Norrköping. Ensconced in the top three only two weeks ago, Norrköping followed up last round’s loss to BK Häcken with two further losses. Dawber took the field at the start of the second half during their 2-1 away loss to Piteå IF, then started and played 73 minutes of their subsequent home 2-0 loss against a resurgent FC Rosengård.
Rosengård keeper Teagan Micah did not take part in either this game or her team’s earlier home 2-0 win against Kristianstads DFF as her absence from the squad nears two months. Yet Rosengård had a week to match Häcken’s as far as good performances against strong opposition were concerned, and Rosengård is up to sixth place while Norrköping has dropped to eighth.
Finally, Vittsjö GIK ended the week with successive 1-0 victories against lower-placed opponents. First, they defeated Växjö DFF away without any Aussies on the team sheet, before narrowly overcoming IK Uppsala at home. The two wins take Vittsjö up to 7th place.
Recent outings remain a little on the unconvincing side as they await the return of their full Matildas contingent. In the second game, Charli Grant played the first half and set up the winning goal, while Katrina Gorry picked up a yellow card in her hour on the field as a starter. Clare Polkinghorne remains sidelined for now.
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Results
Ladder
AGF got back to winning ways in dramatic fashion, defeating Aalborg 3-2 at home. Aalborg looked to have earned a share of the spoils after overhauling a two goal deficit, but Sarah Hansen’s 90th minute winner ensured AGF’s fourth victory of the Elitedivisionen relegation playoff stage. AGF lead the table with 12 points, two points ahead of Aalborg and B 93.
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Matilda McNamara and Ally Green were named in the starting side (90 minutes for McNamara, 63 for Green). As can be seen in the below post, these two are clearly enjoying life in Aarhus.
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Round 5 of the Elitedivisionen Championship playoffs was successful on a personal level for Winonah Heatley, with the Queenslander playing a full game for FC Nordsjælland. However, her team lost 2-1 on their travels against Fortuna Hjørring. Nordsjælland remain fourth in the Championship playoff table.
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Just as in Sweden, two rounds of the Toppserien were played this week (Rounds 7 and 8). We reported Brann Kvinner‘s shock Round 7 loss in the previous Aussies in Nordic Football wrap. Their second encounter continued the trend, albeit against more challenging opposition, as they succumbed 2-1 away to third-placed Røa IL Dynamite Girls.
Larissa Crummer entered the game at the 67th minute but there’s no sign as yet of Tameka Yallop being ready to take the field.
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Results
Ladder
Although the 2023 Besta Deild Kvenna competition (rebadged last season from the Úrvalsdeild) kicked off on April 26th, as yet no Aussies have signed up to compete. If the situation changes, the Aussies in Nordic Football wrap will be sure to cover it!
Follow all our coverage of Aussies and Ferns Abroad here, and read more of our Nordic coverage here.
