A group of Aussie football fans have been filmed celebrating the Matildas’ nail-biting win over France during an airline flight – except for one passenger who preferred to watch The Lord of the Rings instead.
The footage shows the travellers erupting into cheers and applause as Cortnee Vine got the Aussies through to their first ever World Cup semifinal as they won the longest penalty shootout in the tournament’s history.
Their sudden reaction shocks the stewardess as she walks down the aisle – but one passenger remains completely oblivious as they watch one of the final scenes in The Return of the King while everyone else in the cabin lets loose.
Football fans had a field day over the footage, with many having a laugh at the fantasy film fan for standing apart from the rest of the passengers.
‘UnAustralian, deny them entry. To be seen on next episode of Border Security,’ one tweeted.
‘C’mon dude! They’ve destroyed the ring. Surely you can switch over to the penalty shootout,’ wrote another, with a third simply saying, ‘Kiwi located’.
Can you spot the odd one out? While the rest of the cabin erupted into cheers and applause, one passenger was glued to the fantasy film The Return of the King
The gripping victory over Les Bleues had fans glued to their screens right across the country and looks set to be a TV ratings juggernaut if the Matildas’ previous World Cup matches are anything to go by.
Their round-of-16 match against Denmark was watched by more than 3.5million people – the biggest audience for any TV show this year, out-rating the AFL and even the NRL’s mid-season showpiece, the State of Origin series.
The Matildas have steadily drawn more attention the deeper they go into the tournament, building from 1.5million viewers for their loss to Nigeria, to 2.5million for their group-stage win over Canada before the victory over the Danes.
On Saturday night they produced what must be the most dramatic football match ever played in Australia, winning through to their first ever World Cup semifinal after emerging victorious from the longest penalty shootout in the tournament’s history.
Goalkeeper Mackenzie Arnold was the player of the match, and rightly so.
Cortnee Vine (second from right) is swamped by her ecstatic teammates after scoring the penalty that put the Matildas through to the World Cup semifinals for the first time
Goalkeeper Mackenzie Arnold (left) hugs Sam Kerr after playing a starring role in the history-making win
She produced great saves throughout regulation and extra time, and kept stopping shots during the nail-biting end to the game.
The 29-year-old latched onto France’s first shot of the shootout, then overcame two setbacks to keep her team in the game.
First she missed a shot of her own, which would have given the Matildas the win had it found the net.
Then she kept her composure after stopping another penalty, only for France to be given another attempt because she was ruled to have come off her line.
Arnold stayed calm and stopped that shot, too.
When France’s Vicki Becho hit the post with the scores locked at 6-6, Cortnee Vine stepped up to take the most important kick of her life.
Showing no hint of nerves, she slotted it into the bottom corner to kick off incredible scenes in Brisbane.
‘I just knew where I was going to put my pen,’ she said after the match.
‘In those moments you just need to be confident in what you’ve practised and in that moment I feel like Macca [Arnold] did the job before I had to.
‘She’s the one that saved it and I just had to put it away.’
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