Matildas striker Sam Kerr is poised to follow Tim Cahill "as an Australian footballer with mass-market appeal," according to Tom Smithies of the Sydney DAILY TELEGRAPH. Kerr has reportedly received a "host of commercial offers amidst the acclaim that the Matildas have garnered for their amazing run of results this year." Kerr's two goals against Brazil on Tuesday in a 3-2 win gave her a tally of seven in four games in '17 for the national team, and she is "widely expected to be one of the leading candidates when the longlist for FIFA World Player of the Year is cut from 10 to three on Friday." The Matildas have become "hot property" -- with Kerr a "bona fide star on the pitch and off it." Football Federation Australia CEO David Gallop said, "Sam has not just been brilliant on the pitch but has shown humility and class off it. Already we are assisting her to deal with the many requests coming her way, including those who want to work with her commercially" (DAILY TELEGRAPH, 9/20).
'WHAM BAM SAM': In Sydney, Patrick Smith wrote there is "still a free seat or two on the Sam Kerr bandwagon." Stay on "long enough" and you will be "doing all those running backflips, too." You "will not be able to stop yourself." That "guarantee comes with the Wham Bam Sam tour." Her love for the game and her country is "infectious." The Matildas "might be Australia's best team of anything and Wham Bam Sam the very best player in the world." The figures that "best show the influence of the Wham Bam Sam show" are the attendances from earlier this month. Australian Football League side GWS Giants, the expansion club which is "backed by millions after millions of AFL dollars," drew 14,865 for its semifinal against West Coast. On the same day, the Matildas attracted 15,089 as they beat Brazil 2-1. Apart from Kerr's instinct for the game, she plays with "a spirit and a zeal that is entrancing." With her "outstanding" record in the U.S., "she is a world star, perhaps the biggest of them all" (THE AUSTRALIAN, 9/21).
