Angry bookmaker refunds punters' Matildas bets after team kept Sam Kerr's World Cup injury a secret
An Australian bookmaker has promised to refund all losing bets on the Matildas' World Cup win over Ireland due to the secrecy surrounding the injury to superstar Sam Kerr.
The striker - regarded by many as the best female footballer in the world - was scratched from the team just before kickoff on Thursday night in news that blindsided fans and punters.
It later emerged that the team had known about her calf complaint since the injury occurred at training on Wednesday morning.
Bet Right CEO Anthony Waller explained that the losing bets placed before the information became public will be refunded because the prices they offered were based on the incorrect assumption that Kerr would be playing.
The Matildas knew Kerr was in trouble when she was injured on Wednesday morning but kept the news under wraps until shortly before kickoff against Ireland on Thursday night
That had a big effect on the prices offered on bets for the World Cup clash, according to bookmaker Bet Right - which is now refunding all losing wagers on match made before the bombshell news became public (stock image)
'Up until 6.45pm AEST, members of the public all over the world were betting into multiple markets under the impression that Sam Kerr would take the field,' Waller said.
Bet Right stressed that the team, Kerr and coach Tony Gustavsson had not 'done anything wrong' by keeping the bombshell injury under wraps in order to avoid giving Ireland any help with their tactics for the game.
“However, these events are characteristically a question of balance and fairness,' Waller said.
'How do we balance gamesmanship, strategy and the psychological warfare that takes place in elite sport with the release of information material to the efficiency of betting markets that the public bets into?'
Kerr cut a dejected figure on the sideline on Thursday night as she watched her Matildas teammates get up 1-0 thanks to a Steph Catley penalty
The agency believes the information about Kerr affected prices on all betting markets on the game by an average of 16 per cent.
In addition to affecting bets on the outcome of the game and the margin of victory, Waller noted that prices on the likelihood of all other players scoring against Ireland were hit by Kerr's withdrawal.
On Friday, the superstar insisted her World Cup is not over despite the injury ruling her out until the Matildas' final group-stage match against Canada on July 31 at the earliest.
The tight turnaround, and the notoriously unpredictable and slow-healing nature of calf injuries, has the nation holding its collective breath.
On arrival in Brisbane on Friday, Kerr was asked whether her World Cup was over.
The superstar striker's injury will keep her out until the July 31 match against Canada at the earliest - but she's confident her World Cup campaign isn't over
'Definitely not,' she told Channel 10.
Kerr was then asked whether she would be seen at the Canada game.
'Of course, I'll be there,' she said.
Whether that will be in a playing capacity remains unclear.
If Australia make the round of 16, they would have a break until August 7, a far more favourable timeline than featuring in the final group match - giving Kerr more than two-and-a-half weeks to recover.
Potentially helping matters is that Nigeria and Canada drew 0-0 on Friday, putting Australia clear on top of Group B with three points.
