Sporting rivalry between England and Australia unmatchable
They’re two countries with shared values and an entwined history, and that’s why any fixture, in any sport, between Australia and England just matters.
Earlier this summer we saw how the Ashes, with its peaks and troughs, captured both nations – even prompting some banter between Rishi Sunak and Anthony Albanese – as both the men’s and women’s series were drawn on these shores.
Travel 11 hours to Cape Town for the next instalment of the feud, where England toppled Australia in the Netball World Cup group stages only to lose to their rivals in the final earlier this month.
And today, where England were the villains of Sydney, the Lionesses came out on top and waltzed past the Matildas.
Friendly hatred
It’s a rivalry rooted in colonialism, sport and friendly competition. A rivalry built on success in sporting arenas across so many disciplines.
England’s 3-0 rugby union whitewash of the Wallabies in 2016 under Eddie Jones, who now leads his native Australia and could knock out his old team in this year’s Rugby World Cup, Anna Meares against Victoria Pendleton; the Melbourne Cup versus the Derby; the two nations are inseparable.
Their political closeness, friendly cross-border populations and cultural likeness only heightens the desire to beat one another.
And the drama, too: England’s new-old Ashes ball last month versus Australia’s sandpaper gate legacy, being pipped to an Olympic medal here or there, and the desire to just beat each other.
Some rivalries are vicious, others are repellant. But in England’s cross-sport feud with Australia there is only good will and friendly hatred.
And the Matildas and Lionesses have only added another chapter to the chronicle of sporting history between the two. Long may it continue.