The team was called in to help after the train tragedy in Mount Maunganui.

‘In a lot of these cases you’re chasing shadows, but here there’s a genuine lead.’

The nation's eyes will be on the Matildas when they take on England in the semi-final after a breathtaking penalty shoot out captivated the country on the weekend.

A win would see the side advance to their first-ever World Cup final after they already made history by making it to the semi-finals for the first time after a gripping match in Brisbane on Saturday night.

There's even a promise of a public holiday if the side win the World Cup by prime minister Anthony Albanese and NSW premier Chris Minns.

This is all the information you need to know about the crucial fixture, including when it starts, where it's being played, and how you can watch it.

READ MORE: Day off, 'ticker tape parade' in Sydney if Matildas win the Cup: Minns

When is the Matildas vs England Women's World Cup semi-final?

The Matildas' semi-final against England will kick-off at 8pm on Wednesday, August 16 (AEST) at Stadium Australia in Sydney.

This means a start time of 7.30pm in South Australia and Darwin and 6pm in Western Australia.

The match duration could finish around 9pm but it will be extended depending on extra time and penalties.

READ MORE: Matilda's create $7.6 billion economic boost across country

Where can you watch it?

There are a range of live sites where fans can gather to watch the match with hundreds of other supporters on the big screen, including the official FIFA Fan Festivals in each of the tournament's Australian host cities.

In Sydney, the Fan Festival is at Tumbalong Park, while Melbourne's is at Federation Square and Brisbane's is at South Bank, Adelaide's at Festival Plaza and Perth's is held at Forrest Place.

Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews has confirmed AAMI Park will screen the match after opening up Rod Laver Arena on Saturday night.

"Big game needs a bigger stadium," Andrews tweeted.

"AAMI Park. Wednesday night. Be there."

NSW Premier Chris Minns confirmed Western Sydney Stadium in Parramatta and Sydney Football Stadium in Moore Park would open up for fans to watch on the big screen.

The Sydney Opera House sails will also be lit up green and gold on Wednesday night from 5.50pm.

You can see a full list of places to view the Matildas vs England quarter-final below.

The World Cup has sold 1.75 million tickets across the tournament's 64 games in Australia and New Zealand.

And you can watch the match on Optus Sport, which has the rights to every game of the 2023 tournament.

Jetstar confirmed today it has cancelled flights from Darwin to Bali for three weeks in October ahead of runway upgrades at Darwin International Airport.

The budget airline said it will temporarily pause flights between Darwin and the tourist hotspot Denpasar from Monday, October 9 to Saturday, October 28, 2023.

Jetstar took the decision after the Defence Department – the airport owner – announced its main runway will close from 2am to 11.30am, between October 9 and November 30.

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Jetstar was contacting affected customers, a company spokesperson said.

"We are contacting customers who are booked to travel during the three-week works period to discuss their options including indirect flights via another port, a travel credit, or a refund to their original form of payment," they said.

"We know this will be disappointing and frustrating for affected customers and we thank them for their understanding."

Jetstar halted bookings for the flights in April as it waited for confirmation of the runway works.

Defence Department officials said the runway resurfacing works will start this week and continue until late 2024.

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The spokesperson said flights on the route would restart from Sunday, October 29.

The runway upgrades at Darwin International Airport are part of a $200 million works program by the Defence Department to help support military and civilian air traffic into the Northern Territory.

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Mark Latham has been pushed out as One Nation's NSW leader, which he has claimed is a "Queensland takeover without consultation or due process".

One Nation leader Pauline Hanson confirmed a new executive was appointed on August 9 and that the position of NSW leader remained vacant, according to the Sydney Morning Herald.

"I can confirm that the party's national executive has resolved to form a new NSW state executive for the party," the spokesperson told The Sydney Morning Herald.

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"That state executive has been in place since the 9 of August this year and that includes, on the executive, senator Pauline Hanson," they said.

"Latham is not on the new executive.

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"The national party's national executive has decided to declare vacant the position of NSW state parliamentary leader."

Latham accused Hanson of spearheading the "bizarre" takeover without consultation.

"She has installed her own new State Executive with people from Queensland and Tasmania who did not lift a finger to help us during the March election campaign," Latham said on Facebook.

"Good party members who worked exceptionally hard for One Nation have been kicked off the Executive."

He said he remained leader of the parliamentary team and claimed the decision was justified by a one per cent drop in the party upper house vote in March.

"Over the past five years we have built up into the largest One Nation parliamentary party in the country – so where's the problem?

"The Queensland takeover is not about performance. It is about money."

He claimed he previously stopped the misuse of party funds.

The One Nation spokesperson said a comprehensive review of the NSW division would take place.

"In particular with respect to future campaigns and the relationship between the party organisation in NSW and the NSW parliamentary wing of the party."

Previously Latham quit the upper house to recontest the top One Nation spot in March to increase the party's MP numbers in the lower house.

In late March, Hanson condemned an offensive tweet Latham aimed at NSW independent MP Alex Greenwich, who is gay. 9News has chosen not to publish the words contained in the tweet.

Greenwich launched a defamation suit which remains before the court. 

An endangered lioness was shot dead in South Korea on Monday, an hour after escaping a private farm, according to local officials.

The lioness escaped its cage Monday morning in Goryeong county, in North Gyeongsang Province, about 300 kilometres south of the capital Seoul, according to a county official.

It's a mountainous area with just over 30,000 residents.

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The escape prompted a search operation involving 127 police officers and 26 fire department personnel, according to the regional fire service. Authorities issued an alert urging residents to stay away from nearby Bukdu mountain.

About an hour after the escape was reported, the lioness was shot dead in the woods, about four to five kilometres from the farm, according to the county official.

Photos released by the fire service show the lioness before she was killed, peering out from a tangle of bushes and leaves.

The private farm also owns cows, but has no other lion or lionesses, said the county official.

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The lioness had been registered with the Daegu Regional Environmental Office as an international endangered species, an official from the agency confirmed to CNN.

Any transfer and death of a registered animal needs to be reported to the office, which also conducts inspections of their living facilities, the official added.

It is unclear when the last inspection of this lioness was conducted.

Lions are currently listed as "vulnerable" under the International Union for Conservation of Nature's (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, with the population continuing to decrease due to habitat loss, the decline of prey species, trophy hunting and conflict with humans.

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A Russian warship fired warning shots and boarded a cargo ship it claims was headed to Ukraine in the Black Sea, according to Russia's Defence Ministry.

Russia pulled out of a UN and Turkish-brokered deal in July that allowed Ukraine to move its grain via the Black Sea and warned that any ships headed to Ukraine would be treated as potentially carrying weapons.

Ukraine made a similar threat to ships travelling to Russian ports.

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Russia said the warship fired warning shots on Sunday when the captain of the Palau-flagged dry cargo ship failed to respond to a request to stop for an inspection.

"The Russian warship opened warning fire from automatic small arms fire to forcefully stop the vessel," the statement said.

The ministry claimed the ship – named Sukra Okan – was headed to the Ukrainian port of Izmail.

Marine traffic websites currently show the cargo vessel's destination as the Romanian port of Sulina which is close to Izmail.

Ukraine did not immediately comment on whether or not the ship was headed to one of its ports.

"In order to inspect the bulk cargo ship, a Ka-29 helicopter with a group of Russian servicemen was hoisted from the patrol ship Vasily Bykov," the ministry said.

"Following radio conversations, the ship stopped its course and the boarding team landed on the bulk cargo ship," the statement said.

This week Ukraine announced that it would open up a temporary humanitarian corridor for ships to sail to and from its ports and has opened up registration for merchant vessels to use the sea route.

READ MORE: Baby girl killed in Russian shelling of Ukrainian village

Both Russia and Ukraine are major grain producers and their deal – a rare point of agreement in the middle of a war – did much to stabilise prices.

Kyiv argues that Russia's withdrawal amounts to a blockade of Ukrainian products. Russia long complained that it had been unable to export its own foodstuffs.

A Ukrainian Navy spokesperson, Dmytro Pletenchuk, said the temporary routes aim to overcome the global food security crisis and added that they would allow shipowners and companies to "finally take back their merchant vessels that are in humanitarian captivity due to the constant threats of Russians at sea".

Pletenchuk said ship owners and captains have been warned of the existing danger and said Ukrainian Armed Forces will help to ensure the security of the merchant ships sailing through the corridors, with the Navy "doing everything we can to ensure security."

It remains unclear when ships might use the route given the potential dangers there.

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Being a goalkeeper is the loneliest job in football, so they say.

And, in light of the strange scenario that has left passionate Matildas fans unable to buy Aussie goalie Mackenzie Arnold's number 18 jersey, you might as well get "neglected" in there too.

Arnold's penalty shootout heroics enshrined her in Aussie sporting folklore but friends, family and young fans can't show their love by snapping up a replica Arnold jersey.

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Turns out, it's a goalkeeper thing.

Fans can buy replica jerseys with the names and numbers for every single Matildas player in the World Cup squad except for the three keepers – Arnold, Teagan Micah and Lydia Williams.

And, equally bizarrely, it's not just a Matildas thing.

Nike and Adidas, the two biggest kit manufacturers in women's football, have chosen to not make any goalkeeper jerseys available for sale for the women's World Cup.

When asked about the discrepancy, a Nike spokesperson told 9news.com.au the sportswear giant works with FIFA and the individual federations "to determine what assortment and particular player jerseys go on sale based on several factors, including demand in some markets".

A petition highlighting the glaring issue, and demanding a "rethink" on the divisive decision, has garnered almost 40,000 signatures.

"As a dad to a young female goalkeeper, what message is this sending to kids about playing in that position?" one user posted on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.

"The goalies are just as valuable as anyone else on the team," another person wrote using the hashtag #selltheirshirts, adding: "I want a goalkeeper jersey!"

Millions of Aussies were in Arnold's corner on Saturday night, as she made three clutch saves in the shootout and even took a spot-kick which could have sealed the win over France but missed.

It didn't matter though, as Australia advanced and will now meet England in one semi-final, a game which pits Arnold against English stopper Mary Earps, who has been asking Nike about the lack of her own replica goalkeeper kit for months.

Earps has called Nike's failure to offer her jersey for sale as "hugely disappointing and very hurtful".

She told The Guardian she has been "fighting behind closed doors" and "desperately trying to find a solution" with England's governing body, the Football Association, and Nike.

When England triumphed in the European Championships last year, Earps' replica kit was not available.

Nothing has changed.

"On a personal level, it is hugely hurtful," she said.

READ MORE: Coveted Matildas kit selling like hotcakes, leaving Socceroos in dust

Last week, 9news.com.au reported Matildas kit was flying off the shelves and had been easily outselling Socceroos jerseys.

In response to that story, Nike Pacific boss Ashley Reade told 9news.com.au that demand for Matildas jerseys has been "unprecedented".

"In fact, there were more jerseys sold before a ball was even kicked in this year's tournament than were sold pre, during, and post the 2022 men's tournament," he said.

He called it a "true testament to the power and excitement" surrounding the women's game and underlined the impact the Matildas were having on fans of all ages.

Australia faces England at what will be a sold-out Stadium Australia on Wednesday night at 8pm.

9news.com.au has contacted Adidas for comment.

READ MORE: Public holiday, 'ticker tape parade' in Sydney if Matildas win the Cup, Premier Chris Minns says

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An explosion in a residential suburb on Saturday morning left five people dead and three injured, US officials said.

The explosion and large fire in Plum, Pennsylvania, a suburb north-east of Pittsburgh, destroyed three houses and damaged at least a dozen more, authorities said.

First responders who rushed to Plum found people trapped under debris and took three people to a hospital. Of the three, two have been released and the third is in the hospital in critical condition, according to police.

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The remains of five victims – four adults and one adolescent – were also found at the scene.

The incident appeared to begin when one house exploded, engulfing two neighbouring homes in flames as well, according to the county.

Multiple other homes were damaged with windows blown out.

Crews from 18 different fire departments converged on the scene to put out the flames and sift through the rubble as "several" people remained unaccounted for Saturday afternoon.

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It's unclear what triggered the explosion.

Authorities say the cause is still under investigation.

Gas systems were "operating as designed" at the time of the explosion, said Michael Huwar, the president of the gas service Peoples Natural Gas.

Still, gas service was shut off to a number of homes in the neighbourhood as a precaution.

A company spokesperson told CNN on Sunday its crews continue to work and coordinate with the Allegheny County Fire Marshal, which is leading the investigation.

Ring doorbell video obtained by CNN affiliate WTAE appears to show one of the homes exploding in a ball of fire, shooting up a thick plume of smoke and scattering debris in the area.

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The aftermath of the blast and blaze can be seen in aerial footage of the neighbourhood, which shows three structures completely burned to the ground, surrounded by heavy debris covering surrounding lawns and homes.

Several cars near the scorched area could also be seen charred black and smoking.

"I heard this 'boom.' It was so loud that it woke me up. I thought it was thunder from the storms last night," neighbour Alexis Typanski told WTAE.

"My water bottle fell on me instantaneously. I was shaking. It scared me so bad."

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By 4.30pm local time, the area was still considered an "active scene" and first responders were expected to remain there for hours, according to the county.

Plum is about 24 kilometres northeast of Pittsburgh.

Gas was turned off in the area while emergency crews worked at the scene, authorities said at a news conference, adding multiple representatives from different gas companies were at the scene.

The Red Cross and Salvation Army are assisting residents impacted by the explosion, the county said.

The tragedy comes as deadly wildfires, that have killed at least 93 people, continue to rage on Maui, Hawaii.

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Bright trails of light streaked across the night sky in the Northern Hemisphere as the annual Perseid meteor shower peaked early on Sunday, August 13. With only a sliver of moon in the sky, the conditions were ideal for seeing lots of meteors.