Sam Kerr makes surprise move just a week after the birth of her baby boy - as Chelsea take on Man United in the Women's FA Cup Final
Sam Kerr has jetted back to Australia 10 days after she and her partner, Kristie Mewis, announced the birth of their newborn son.
The footy star was pictured at the AAMI park for Sunday's A-League Women's Grand Final, as Central Coast Mariners claimed a thrilling win against Melbourne Victory on penalties.
The 31-year-old has been out of action since January 2024 due to a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament injury.
The Matildas captain has been back training on grass in recent months as however it is not known yet when she will return to training with Chelsea boss Sonia Bompastor reluctant to give a time-frame on her comeback.
Kerr's impromptu trip back Down Under also comes as Chelsea are due to take on Manchester United in the Women's FA Cup Final on Sunday afternoon at Wembley.
Kerr, meanwhile, had appeared in Chelsea's 2025-26 kit launch this week.
It comes a week after Kerr and her partner Kristie Mewis welcomed their first baby into the world
It comes after interim boss Tom Sermanni, last week, gave an insight into Kerr's injury comeback, stating the Matildas' captain will be assessed on a 'camp-by-camp' basis.
'Sam's tracking pretty well, but she's not just quite ready yet to come in and play,' Sermanni said.
'From our situation, it's a camp by camp sort of scenario.
'Obviously, for Chelsea, now they are at the end of their season, so now they'll be looking at her coming back and ready for the pre-season.'
Kerr had last travelled back to Australia at the beginning of April to spend time around the Matildas' camp as Sermanni's side took on South Korea in two international friendlies.
The team will reconvene later this month for their upcoming international friendlies against Argentina, which will take place on May 30 and June 2.
It is looking more likely that Kerr could return to action via her national side.
But after spending the entire Women's Super League season on the sidelines, Kerr is likely to work through pre-season with Chelsea before returning to action with the Matildas.
The pair have been enjoying the sunshine in London in recent weeks, with the football stars taking their newborn son for walks around the city
'That's one of the scenarios, and probably not a bad one. I think that will depend on Sam and Chelsea,' Sermanni said.
'So it could be that Chelsea say, well, if - and I'm saying if - that Sam feels that she's ready, and they feel that she's ready to come back for our next window, whether they think, 'well, it would be good for you to come and get some game time. That might happen.
'If, on the other hand, they say, look, we just want her now to take this time get her preparation really well done, so that come the start of pre-season, she's ready to go.
'That, I would say, is probably a more likely scenario. 'But again that's something that I can't answer specifically.'
Australia will take on Slovenia at the end of June before going on to play Panama at the beginning of July.
During that time, Lyon manager Joe Montemurro, is expected to take over from interim boss Sermanni.
Mewis, meanwhile, has been seen back at home in London taking the couple's newborn son, Jagger, out for a walk in the sunshine.
The West Ham star stepped out earlier this week with a friend.
Kerr, meanwhile, is understood to have headed to Chelsea's training ground in Cobham.
Kerr and Mewis have shared several insights into their lives as new parents over the past week, and have been beaming from ear-to-ear.
They announced the news of their new baby boy's arrival on Instagram last week, with the pair writing, 'Our little man is here, Jagger Mewis-Kerr.'
Mewis, 34, and Kerr 31, got engaged back in 2023.
The pair are planning on getting married later this December.
Kerr and Mewis are understood to have met after the Aussie star moved to London in 2019 to play for Chelsea.
During her high-profile court case, Kerr said Mewis had 'slid into her DMs' and the pair subsequently began dating.
Central Coast Mariners won Australia's A-League Women's Grand Final with a 5-4 penalty shoot-out win over Melbourne Victory on Sunday, following a 1-1 draw after extra time, to claim the title for the first time.
The game went to a shoot-out after the teams shared a 1-1 draw in regulation time, with neither side able to score in 30 minutes of extra-time
Captain Bianca Galic smashed home the final penalty to give Central Coast the win, having earlier seen Victory's Alana Jancevski hit the crossbar with the opening spot kick.
The game went to a shoot-out after the teams shared a 1-1 draw in regulation time, with neither side able to score in 30 minutes of extra-time.
Isabel Gomez had given Central Coast the lead less than a minute into the second half when she prodded the ball past Courtney Newbon as the Victory defence failed to clear Annalise Rasmussen's deflected shot as it looped into the air.
Victory saw two efforts disallowed before Claudia Bunge levelled with 10 minutes remaining, the central defender meeting Alana Murphy's corner with a powerful header that Annabel Martin could not prevent from crossing the line.
The game moved into penalties and Jancevski hit the woodwork with the opening kick of the shoot-out to leave Galic to score the winner in the fifth and final round.
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