Fresh faces: Montemurro unveils new-look Matildas squad

New Matildas coach Joe Montemurro has given Australia's next generation of football talent the nod as he plots a path to the 2026 Asian Cup.
Montemurro has cast a wide net for his first Matildas team and named 14 A-League Women players in a 33-strong squad for upcoming games against Slovenia and Panama.
Matildas captain Steph Catley, forward Caitlin Foord and midfielder Katrina Gorry will not feature in the four-game window, with the trio taking leave.
Montemurro, well familiar with the domestic league after stints with Melbourne Victory and Melbourne City, says the four-game window in Western Australia presents the perfect opportunity to experiment with personnel.
Reigning Julie Dolan Medallist Alex Chidiac and Victory striker Emily Gielnik return to the national team after being overlooked regularly by Tony Gustavsson and Tom Sermanni.
"It's a good opportunity to roll out some new ideas and obviously the focus is the Asian Cup," former Lyon coach Montemurro said.
"This camp is really an identification process. It's a process for the players to understand where we're heading.
"It's really, really important that we give every player an opportunity."
Cortnee Vine remains on leave after Montemurro flagged reaching out to the North Carolina Courage winger.
Vine, who shot to stardom when she scored the winning spot-kick in the Matildas' epic quarter-final penalty shootout at the Women's World Cup, hasn't played for the national team since the Paris Olympics.
Brisbane Roar midfielder Tameka Yallop remains sidelined with a leg injury, while recent debutant Kahli Johnson has been ruled out with a thigh injury.
In their place, Montemurro has handed Roar forward Grace Kuilamu and Western United's Adriana Taranto their first call-up.
Meanwhile, vice-captain Ellie Carpenter returns from personal leave, while Mackenzie Arnold, Hayley Raso and Sharn Freier will make their comebacks from injury.
Midfielder Jacynta Galabadaarachchi, who has yet to find a new home after her time at Portuguese club Sporting CP came to an end, returns to the Matildas for the first time since June 2022.
The Matildas face Slovenia on June 26 and 29, then Panama on July 5 and 8, in WA.
AUSTRALIA'S 33-PLAYER SQUAD:
Goalkeepers: Mackenzie Arnold*, Chloe Lincoln**, Sally James**, Teagan Micah, Jada Whyman*
Defenders: Ellie Carpenter, Charlotte Grant, Clare Hunt, Alanna Kennedy*, Winonah Heatley*, Alexia Apostolakis*, Jessika Nash**, Courtney Nevin, Natasha Prior, Jamilla Rankin
Midfielders: Kyra Cooney-Cross*, Alex Chidiac, Emily Van Egmond, Clare Wheeler*, Chloe Berryhill**, Amy Sayer, Jacynta Galabadaarachchi**, Alana Murphy, Adriana Taranto**
Forwards: Emily Gielnik, Michelle Heyman, Holly McNamara, Hayley Raso, Kaitlyn Torpey*, Sharn Freier*, Bryleeh Henry**, Grace Kuilamu**, Remy Siemsen*
* Participating in Slovenia series only.
** Participating in Panama series only.
New Matildas coach Joe Montemurro has given Australia's next generation of football talent the nod as he plots a path to the 2026 Asian Cup.
Montemurro has cast a wide net for his first Matildas team and named 14 A-League Women players in a 33-strong squad for upcoming games against Slovenia and Panama.
Matildas captain Steph Catley, forward Caitlin Foord and midfielder Katrina Gorry will not feature in the four-game window, with the trio taking leave.
Montemurro, well familiar with the domestic league after stints with Melbourne Victory and Melbourne City, says the four-game window in Western Australia presents the perfect opportunity to experiment with personnel.
Reigning Julie Dolan Medallist Alex Chidiac and Victory striker Emily Gielnik return to the national team after being overlooked regularly by Tony Gustavsson and Tom Sermanni.
"It's a good opportunity to roll out some new ideas and obviously the focus is the Asian Cup," former Lyon coach Montemurro said.
"This camp is really an identification process. It's a process for the players to understand where we're heading.
"It's really, really important that we give every player an opportunity."
Cortnee Vine remains on leave after Montemurro flagged reaching out to the North Carolina Courage winger.
Vine, who shot to stardom when she scored the winning spot-kick in the Matildas' epic quarter-final penalty shootout at the Women's World Cup, hasn't played for the national team since the Paris Olympics.
Brisbane Roar midfielder Tameka Yallop remains sidelined with a leg injury, while recent debutant Kahli Johnson has been ruled out with a thigh injury.
In their place, Montemurro has handed Roar forward Grace Kuilamu and Western United's Adriana Taranto their first call-up.
Meanwhile, vice-captain Ellie Carpenter returns from personal leave, while Mackenzie Arnold, Hayley Raso and Sharn Freier will make their comebacks from injury.
Midfielder Jacynta Galabadaarachchi, who has yet to find a new home after her time at Portuguese club Sporting CP came to an end, returns to the Matildas for the first time since June 2022.
The Matildas face Slovenia on June 26 and 29, then Panama on July 5 and 8, in WA.
AUSTRALIA'S 33-PLAYER SQUAD:
Goalkeepers: Mackenzie Arnold*, Chloe Lincoln**, Sally James**, Teagan Micah, Jada Whyman*
Defenders: Ellie Carpenter, Charlotte Grant, Clare Hunt, Alanna Kennedy*, Winonah Heatley*, Alexia Apostolakis*, Jessika Nash**, Courtney Nevin, Natasha Prior, Jamilla Rankin
Midfielders: Kyra Cooney-Cross*, Alex Chidiac, Emily Van Egmond, Clare Wheeler*, Chloe Berryhill**, Amy Sayer, Jacynta Galabadaarachchi**, Alana Murphy, Adriana Taranto**
Forwards: Emily Gielnik, Michelle Heyman, Holly McNamara, Hayley Raso, Kaitlyn Torpey*, Sharn Freier*, Bryleeh Henry**, Grace Kuilamu**, Remy Siemsen*
* Participating in Slovenia series only.
** Participating in Panama series only.
New Matildas coach Joe Montemurro has given Australia's next generation of football talent the nod as he plots a path to the 2026 Asian Cup.
Montemurro has cast a wide net for his first Matildas team and named 14 A-League Women players in a 33-strong squad for upcoming games against Slovenia and Panama.
Matildas captain Steph Catley, forward Caitlin Foord and midfielder Katrina Gorry will not feature in the four-game window, with the trio taking leave.
Montemurro, well familiar with the domestic league after stints with Melbourne Victory and Melbourne City, says the four-game window in Western Australia presents the perfect opportunity to experiment with personnel.
Reigning Julie Dolan Medallist Alex Chidiac and Victory striker Emily Gielnik return to the national team after being overlooked regularly by Tony Gustavsson and Tom Sermanni.
"It's a good opportunity to roll out some new ideas and obviously the focus is the Asian Cup," former Lyon coach Montemurro said.
"This camp is really an identification process. It's a process for the players to understand where we're heading.
"It's really, really important that we give every player an opportunity."
Cortnee Vine remains on leave after Montemurro flagged reaching out to the North Carolina Courage winger.
Vine, who shot to stardom when she scored the winning spot-kick in the Matildas' epic quarter-final penalty shootout at the Women's World Cup, hasn't played for the national team since the Paris Olympics.
Brisbane Roar midfielder Tameka Yallop remains sidelined with a leg injury, while recent debutant Kahli Johnson has been ruled out with a thigh injury.
In their place, Montemurro has handed Roar forward Grace Kuilamu and Western United's Adriana Taranto their first call-up.
Meanwhile, vice-captain Ellie Carpenter returns from personal leave, while Mackenzie Arnold, Hayley Raso and Sharn Freier will make their comebacks from injury.
Midfielder Jacynta Galabadaarachchi, who has yet to find a new home after her time at Portuguese club Sporting CP came to an end, returns to the Matildas for the first time since June 2022.
The Matildas face Slovenia on June 26 and 29, then Panama on July 5 and 8, in WA.
AUSTRALIA'S 33-PLAYER SQUAD:
Goalkeepers: Mackenzie Arnold*, Chloe Lincoln**, Sally James**, Teagan Micah, Jada Whyman*
Defenders: Ellie Carpenter, Charlotte Grant, Clare Hunt, Alanna Kennedy*, Winonah Heatley*, Alexia Apostolakis*, Jessika Nash**, Courtney Nevin, Natasha Prior, Jamilla Rankin
Midfielders: Kyra Cooney-Cross*, Alex Chidiac, Emily Van Egmond, Clare Wheeler*, Chloe Berryhill**, Amy Sayer, Jacynta Galabadaarachchi**, Alana Murphy, Adriana Taranto**
Forwards: Emily Gielnik, Michelle Heyman, Holly McNamara, Hayley Raso, Kaitlyn Torpey*, Sharn Freier*, Bryleeh Henry**, Grace Kuilamu**, Remy Siemsen*
* Participating in Slovenia series only.
** Participating in Panama series only.

Hashtags

Sports

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Fox fired up for canoe world titles after rough results

The Advertiser

an hour ago

The Advertiser

Fox fired up for canoe world titles after rough results

There's been some rough water for Jessica Fox since her Paris Olympics medal blitz, but the canoe great feels her title defence is on track 100 days out from the world championships in Penrith. Fox will defend her kayak crown on her home course, with the competition getting under way on September 29, but despite winning gold in the event in Paris, her results this year haven't been at her usual standard. The 31-year-old, who owns six Olympic medals, including three gold, has missed the K1 final at both of the opening World Cup events in Europe. In the opening race in La Seu in Spain, Fox finished 48th in a field of 50 after incurring a 50-second penalty for missing a gate. She also missed the K1 final at the second World Cup event in Pau in France, but at both she bounced back to win gold in the C1 races. "It's funny, people are always almost shocked when you don't qualify for the final, or when you don't win, as when you've done it so many times it's just expected, but actually it's hard every time," Fox said from Prague, ahead of another World Cup later this month. "Even the best athletes make mistakes, so it was disappointing, I was upset, I had a good cry about it, and then I just got back on the horse the next day, got back in my boat and had another crack. "I'm fine-tuning things and I'm still in a training and building phase at the moment before the worlds, and I'm taking in as much info as I can." She said the gates hung quite low in Spain, and she was too cautious in her approach. But after taking time out to savour her Olympic success, also winning gold in the C1 while her sister Noemie won the kayak cross, she felt she was building nicely for the world championships. Fox admitted the pressure of defending her title on her home course could be on par with the Olympics. "Paris was magical in every way and it went perfectly, and was a very successful campaign, and fantastic to perform in that way,'' she said. "Now looking forward, obviously you're always going to have that expectation and target on your back, you're the reigning Olympic champion, reigning world champion in the kayak, and that hovers there, like a cloud, if you let it. "Everyone's hungry for that race, and just because you're world number one or just because you're the reigning champion doesn't mean it's different. "Coming into a world championship at home is going to feel very much like an Olympics in terms of the pressure and the expectation, but I think we'll be ready. "I love our home course and that's going to serve me, and I'm going to try and make it an advantage." While she's set to compete in the next Olympics in Los Angeles, Fox is also looking beyond her paddling career and has partnered with charity organisation High Impact Athletes, with sponsors pledging an amount for each "clean" gate on the course. "It's about looking beyond sport and going, how else can I have an impact, and how do I keep this interesting and exciting, and what's my legacy going to be?,'' she said. "Each race, each run, each gate that I take, I'm pledging my support for this charity, which provides safe, clean drinking water for people around the world, and bringing people on board with me." There's been some rough water for Jessica Fox since her Paris Olympics medal blitz, but the canoe great feels her title defence is on track 100 days out from the world championships in Penrith. Fox will defend her kayak crown on her home course, with the competition getting under way on September 29, but despite winning gold in the event in Paris, her results this year haven't been at her usual standard. The 31-year-old, who owns six Olympic medals, including three gold, has missed the K1 final at both of the opening World Cup events in Europe. In the opening race in La Seu in Spain, Fox finished 48th in a field of 50 after incurring a 50-second penalty for missing a gate. She also missed the K1 final at the second World Cup event in Pau in France, but at both she bounced back to win gold in the C1 races. "It's funny, people are always almost shocked when you don't qualify for the final, or when you don't win, as when you've done it so many times it's just expected, but actually it's hard every time," Fox said from Prague, ahead of another World Cup later this month. "Even the best athletes make mistakes, so it was disappointing, I was upset, I had a good cry about it, and then I just got back on the horse the next day, got back in my boat and had another crack. "I'm fine-tuning things and I'm still in a training and building phase at the moment before the worlds, and I'm taking in as much info as I can." She said the gates hung quite low in Spain, and she was too cautious in her approach. But after taking time out to savour her Olympic success, also winning gold in the C1 while her sister Noemie won the kayak cross, she felt she was building nicely for the world championships. Fox admitted the pressure of defending her title on her home course could be on par with the Olympics. "Paris was magical in every way and it went perfectly, and was a very successful campaign, and fantastic to perform in that way,'' she said. "Now looking forward, obviously you're always going to have that expectation and target on your back, you're the reigning Olympic champion, reigning world champion in the kayak, and that hovers there, like a cloud, if you let it. "Everyone's hungry for that race, and just because you're world number one or just because you're the reigning champion doesn't mean it's different. "Coming into a world championship at home is going to feel very much like an Olympics in terms of the pressure and the expectation, but I think we'll be ready. "I love our home course and that's going to serve me, and I'm going to try and make it an advantage." While she's set to compete in the next Olympics in Los Angeles, Fox is also looking beyond her paddling career and has partnered with charity organisation High Impact Athletes, with sponsors pledging an amount for each "clean" gate on the course. "It's about looking beyond sport and going, how else can I have an impact, and how do I keep this interesting and exciting, and what's my legacy going to be?,'' she said. "Each race, each run, each gate that I take, I'm pledging my support for this charity, which provides safe, clean drinking water for people around the world, and bringing people on board with me." There's been some rough water for Jessica Fox since her Paris Olympics medal blitz, but the canoe great feels her title defence is on track 100 days out from the world championships in Penrith. Fox will defend her kayak crown on her home course, with the competition getting under way on September 29, but despite winning gold in the event in Paris, her results this year haven't been at her usual standard. The 31-year-old, who owns six Olympic medals, including three gold, has missed the K1 final at both of the opening World Cup events in Europe. In the opening race in La Seu in Spain, Fox finished 48th in a field of 50 after incurring a 50-second penalty for missing a gate. She also missed the K1 final at the second World Cup event in Pau in France, but at both she bounced back to win gold in the C1 races. "It's funny, people are always almost shocked when you don't qualify for the final, or when you don't win, as when you've done it so many times it's just expected, but actually it's hard every time," Fox said from Prague, ahead of another World Cup later this month. "Even the best athletes make mistakes, so it was disappointing, I was upset, I had a good cry about it, and then I just got back on the horse the next day, got back in my boat and had another crack. "I'm fine-tuning things and I'm still in a training and building phase at the moment before the worlds, and I'm taking in as much info as I can." She said the gates hung quite low in Spain, and she was too cautious in her approach. But after taking time out to savour her Olympic success, also winning gold in the C1 while her sister Noemie won the kayak cross, she felt she was building nicely for the world championships. Fox admitted the pressure of defending her title on her home course could be on par with the Olympics. "Paris was magical in every way and it went perfectly, and was a very successful campaign, and fantastic to perform in that way,'' she said. "Now looking forward, obviously you're always going to have that expectation and target on your back, you're the reigning Olympic champion, reigning world champion in the kayak, and that hovers there, like a cloud, if you let it. "Everyone's hungry for that race, and just because you're world number one or just because you're the reigning champion doesn't mean it's different. "Coming into a world championship at home is going to feel very much like an Olympics in terms of the pressure and the expectation, but I think we'll be ready. "I love our home course and that's going to serve me, and I'm going to try and make it an advantage." While she's set to compete in the next Olympics in Los Angeles, Fox is also looking beyond her paddling career and has partnered with charity organisation High Impact Athletes, with sponsors pledging an amount for each "clean" gate on the course. "It's about looking beyond sport and going, how else can I have an impact, and how do I keep this interesting and exciting, and what's my legacy going to be?,'' she said. "Each race, each run, each gate that I take, I'm pledging my support for this charity, which provides safe, clean drinking water for people around the world, and bringing people on board with me." There's been some rough water for Jessica Fox since her Paris Olympics medal blitz, but the canoe great feels her title defence is on track 100 days out from the world championships in Penrith. Fox will defend her kayak crown on her home course, with the competition getting under way on September 29, but despite winning gold in the event in Paris, her results this year haven't been at her usual standard. The 31-year-old, who owns six Olympic medals, including three gold, has missed the K1 final at both of the opening World Cup events in Europe. In the opening race in La Seu in Spain, Fox finished 48th in a field of 50 after incurring a 50-second penalty for missing a gate. She also missed the K1 final at the second World Cup event in Pau in France, but at both she bounced back to win gold in the C1 races. "It's funny, people are always almost shocked when you don't qualify for the final, or when you don't win, as when you've done it so many times it's just expected, but actually it's hard every time," Fox said from Prague, ahead of another World Cup later this month. "Even the best athletes make mistakes, so it was disappointing, I was upset, I had a good cry about it, and then I just got back on the horse the next day, got back in my boat and had another crack. "I'm fine-tuning things and I'm still in a training and building phase at the moment before the worlds, and I'm taking in as much info as I can." She said the gates hung quite low in Spain, and she was too cautious in her approach. But after taking time out to savour her Olympic success, also winning gold in the C1 while her sister Noemie won the kayak cross, she felt she was building nicely for the world championships. Fox admitted the pressure of defending her title on her home course could be on par with the Olympics. "Paris was magical in every way and it went perfectly, and was a very successful campaign, and fantastic to perform in that way,'' she said. "Now looking forward, obviously you're always going to have that expectation and target on your back, you're the reigning Olympic champion, reigning world champion in the kayak, and that hovers there, like a cloud, if you let it. "Everyone's hungry for that race, and just because you're world number one or just because you're the reigning champion doesn't mean it's different. "Coming into a world championship at home is going to feel very much like an Olympics in terms of the pressure and the expectation, but I think we'll be ready. "I love our home course and that's going to serve me, and I'm going to try and make it an advantage." While she's set to compete in the next Olympics in Los Angeles, Fox is also looking beyond her paddling career and has partnered with charity organisation High Impact Athletes, with sponsors pledging an amount for each "clean" gate on the course. "It's about looking beyond sport and going, how else can I have an impact, and how do I keep this interesting and exciting, and what's my legacy going to be?,'' she said. "Each race, each run, each gate that I take, I'm pledging my support for this charity, which provides safe, clean drinking water for people around the world, and bringing people on board with me."