Who’s keen on a couple Footy Ferns games against the Matildas next week? Might as well, s’pose. Got nothing else on. One game in Townsville on Friday 8 April and one game in Canberra on the following Monday sounds like a bit of fun.

Australia are probably a little beyond the level of the ideal Ferns opponent at this stage of their evolution but the annoying thing about being a small fish nation in the football world is that you kinda have to take what you can get. And these games are great for promoting the Anzac relationship between these two governing bodies which is soon to blossom into World Cup co-hosting duties. Cheers to diplomacy.

Curious note: the Football Ferns and Matildas have 13 times since the start of 2010, not including these two upcoming matches. Zero wins, three draws, and ten defeats in those 13 games if you were wondering... although while that stretch begins with three straight 3-0 defeats, the Ferns haven’t lost to Aussie by more than two goals since.

Meanwhile across the same time frame the All Whites and Socceroos have met twice. Only twice... and the most recent was in 2011. There was an extremely feisty 2-1 defeat prior to the 2010 in which Winston Reid made his international debut. NZ were 1-0 up at the half and Australia should have had two red cards but they didn’t and went on to win it in the last minute thanks to Brett Holman. The other game was a much more routine 3-0 Socceroos win a year later. Nothing since.

These two Fernies games will be the fourth opportunity for Jitka Klimková to draw a squad together after tours to Canada, South Korea, and the SheBelieves Cup in the USA. So far we’re looking at one win, one draw, and four defeats... however the Ferns have been right in the mix with a couple of those losses and if they were further along in what Klimková is trying to get them to do then it coulda been a diffo story. So far the final game of each tour has been by far the best performance and that fits with the idea of the Footy Ferns as a team in development. Which is also why they need to keep cramming in fixtures so that they’re no longer in development come World Cup time in about 15 months.

Travel restrictions meant that there was only a limited A-League presence in some of those earlier squads. It was only the last tour where that collection of players were fully able to be a part of things and even then it was quite pesky because it meant the likes of Claudia Bunge, Lily Alfeld, and Hannah Wilkinson had to miss games for their clubs. You can make a very solid argument that international duty cost Wilkinson the ALW Golden Boot title. But these matches are being played in Australia straight after the end of the A-League season and with a bigger than ever A-League presence. Welcome back, in other words.

Along with usuals like Wilkinson, Stott, Bunge, and Satchell, the likes of Lily Alfeld and Liz Anton are beginning to become regular selections while Grace Jale has been called up for the first time since the 2018 OFC Nations Cup and, as widely reported (including in this TNC Substack email), former Australian youth international and Sydney FC left-back Ally Green intends to switch allegiances to her mother’s Aotearoa and is with the team as a training player – effectively on trial (from both perspectives: hers and the teams) with the paperwork yet to be completed.

So expect a healthy celebration of that Anzac spirit across these two matches. Australia’s squad is very strong. Tony Gustavsson has effectively picked the same group as went to the Asian Cup earlier in the year, just with the addition of Katrina Gorry who makes her return after giving birth last August. They’ve only got five current ALW players and a couple of them play elsewhere during the rest of the year. We’re talking about the usual intimidating names like Sam Kerr (Chelsea), Steph Catley (Arsenal), Emily van Egmond (San Diego Wave), Tameka Yallop (West Ham), Hayley Raso (Man City), Alanna Kennedy (Man City), and Ellie Carpenter (Olympique Lyon).

Having said that, this team got bounced in the quarters of that Asian Cup, going down 1-0 to South Korea despite dominating the game. An 87th minute Ji So-yun goal pushed them over the cliff. They did finish fourth at the Olympics (including beating NZ 2-1 in the group stages) but their form leading into Tokyo wasn’t good and their form since hasn’t been good either (outside of a bullying Asian Cup group stage that included an 18-0 win over Indonesia).

The ‘Tildas have only won one of their last ten non-tournament matches. Not saying the Ferns’ record is any better (in fact it’s identical whilst being way worse at their tournaments) but am saying that Aussie are potentially vulnerable. If the Ferns can significantly raise their game, speeding up their trajectory under Klimková, you never know what might happen on a footy field. But probably best not to expect too much.

GOALKEEPERS

Lily Alfeld - Wellington Phoenix, NZ (0 caps/0 goals)

Victoria Esson - SC Sand, GER (5/0)

Erin Nayler - Umeå IK, SWE (76/0)

It’s getting harder to imagine how Anna Leat isn’t the Ferns’ top option in goal. Erin Nayler’s had so many great games for this team and Vic Esson’s looked great in her last two caps. Plus Lily Alfeld ain’t half bad either as another save-filled ALW season proves. But Anna Leat is playing at the highest level of the kiwi goalies (albeit as a backup) and not only does her shot-stopping hold its own but her distribution is way ahead of all challengers.

However Anna Leat, for the second straight tour, has chosen to focus on club stuff first and foremost. That’s a peculiar one as not only does Leat play for a kiwi manager in Olli Harder but also the keeper who starts ahead of her is Australia’s Mackenzie Arnold who has been selected for the Matildas squad. West Ham break for the international window, they have a game on April 2 and then a game on April 16 (both against Man City, funnily enough – a WSL tie and then an FA Cup semi-final). It’s not like staying behind means that she’ll get to take Arnold’s gloves like what happened during the Asian Cup.

But there’s more that goes into a professional footballer’s life than just the on-field stuff and who knows what the situation is. This is a relatively inconsequential two-game friendly series that’d require a long plane trip. Don’t worry about it. Leat will probably play 100+ times for Aotearoa but her club career is more precarious at this early stage. All goods.

Plus it gives a chance for the others to continue to stake their claim. Esson is currently playing backup for SC Sand on a short-term deal until they get relegated, would prefer her to be starting but so it goes. Get this: the Ferns have only kept two clean sheets in their last 19 matches... both were in the only two games that Esson played. Those two games were also two of the only three games they didn’t lose in that stretch. Dunno about you but I’m willing to accept that as viable evidence.

However Erin Nayler is the long term incumbent and finally last week played her first league game since November 2019 when she was still at Bordeaux. Fell out of favour there once it became clear she was leaving, only playing cup games after that point, then she only made one Conti Cup appearance in total for Reading and was without a club for ages before finally signing with Umeå in Sweden. But she’s now made her Damallsvenskan debut in a 1-1 draw against Champions League club BK Häcken so the drought is over. A debut that occurred in, shall we say, less than comfortable conditions...

Townsville is gonna be quite a welcome change from Northern Sweden. Even autumn Canberra will feel like a tropical paradise in comparison.

Then we’ve got Lily Alfeld too. Still awaiting a senior debut after several call ups over the years, she’s surely never been closer. Will she get a go or will Nayler and Esson continue to split the starts? Maybe a late sub as a reward, similar to the time Alfeld was replaced for the Nix so that Brianna Edwards (also eligible for NZ) could get some ALW experience ahead of Alfeld’s departure for Ferns duty? We’ll see how it goes.

DEFENDERS

Elizabeth Anton - Perth Glory, AUS (7/0)

Claudia Bunge - Melbourne Victory, AUS (7/0)

Anna Green - Unattached (78/7)

Meikayla Moore - Liverpool, ENG (51/3)

Ali Riley - Angel City, USA (143/1)

Ashleigh Ward - Actonians, ENG (1/0)

A couple of notable names absent in the defensive ranks. Abby Erceg played two out of three games at the SheBelieves Cup – missing the 5-0 loss to USA with a wee injury precaution, wonder how different things might have turned out had she been there partnering Meikayla Moore instead – but she’s not making the trip this time. Erceg is someone who likes to have her ducks in a row at club level, same reasoning as Leat, and doesn’t always have time for friendlies. Again, she wouldn’t have to miss any club games for their tour and her teammate Katie Bowen is part of the crew. But Erceg has only been a part of two of the last seven squads so gotta understand the lay of the land here. To be fair, Erceg has played 146 times for the Ferns though, second only to Ria Percival, so she’s earned the right to step away now and then.

Erceg’s absence is familiar but CJ Bott’s is not. She has started every single game since the last World Cup (when she broke her wrist otherwise that 15-game streak would be even longer) and hadn’t missed a squad since the 2016 Olympics. Bott signed for Leicester City at the start of the month and immediately got a debut off the bench against Manchester United... but hasn’t made a matchday squad since as a hip injury has kept her sidelined. And it’s kept her out of this Ferns squad too (remember the last time this team played games in Australia, Bott scored a wonder goal against Argentina).

So who plays right-back? Gonna assume that Katie Bowen is high on the list given that’s where she’s played the bulk of her club footy for the last 2-3 years. It won’t be Percival who is too important to that midfield however Rebekah Stott could come into consideration. Liz Anton played some RB off the bench in the last tour. Meikayla Moore has played there before. There are options. Maybe Ali Riley plays on the right.

Right-back Riley would be interesting as there’s suddenly a bit of competition for the left-back spot. Or, more accurately, for the backup left-back spot beneath Ali Riley. Ashleigh Ward made a fine case for herself on debut vs Korea and the chat seems to suggest that she may get an off-season move to a bigger club in England which would certainly help her cause. Especially with Ally Green soon to switch allegiances. Wasn’t that long ago Grace Neville was joining the team with a similar intention either, she’s also a fullback, though haven’t heard anything on that front since she was with the team in South Korea. Green and Ward are both quite left-footed so don’t have the versatility of Riley to play on either side (though Green in particular has the skills to operate further forward if the team’s in a pickle).

Also Anna Green is back. Hasn’t featured since the Olympics and had a long-term injury before that. You wondered if maybe that might be it for her given she’s already called time on her professional career but experience counts for a lot in a defensive unit missing two sure-fire starters. Green is also a more than capable left-back... but looking at the squad it seems she’s there as CB cover more than anything. Bowen and Stott are also good enough to fill in around the trio of Claudia Bunge, Liz Anton, and Meikayla Moore. We’re expecting a 4-3-3 shape so gonna guess at a starting back four of: Bowen, Moore, Bunge, Riley.

MIDFIELDERS

Katie Bowen - North Carolina Courage, USA (80/3)

Daisy Cleverley - Unattached (19/2)

Betsy Hassett - Stjarnan, ISL (128/14)

Ria Percival - Tottenham Hotspur, ENG (160/15)

Malia Steinmetz - Western Sydney Wanderers, AUS (5/0)

Rebekah Stott - Melbourne City, AUS (84/4)

JK hasn’t done too much juggling with her midfield trios. Despite player availability woes and her general assessing of the wider squad we’ve still only seen five different starters across seven games. Ria Percival has started all of them because Ria Percival is unstoppable. Incredible stat: Percy has started every single Football Ferns game since November 2018 when she was rested for a game against the Cook Islands (but was still the first sub used). That’s 28 matches in a row. The last game she missed entirely was the infamous 3-1 loss to Japan in Wellington in June 2018 – still the most recent time either the women’s or men’s national team played in New Zealand.

We’ve also had five starts for Betsy Hassett, five for Daisy Cleverley, three for Katie Bowen (who played CB in the other four), and one (very impressive) start for Malia Steinmetz. Percy’s running the show for Spurs every week doing amazing things, so unless she’s one of the ones who got covid recently then she should be at full capacity. Betsy Hassett scored in an Icelandic League Cup final last week. She’s good to go. Katie Bowen has been an unused sub for NC Courage’s first two Challenge Cup games. Daisy Cleverly is without a club after going undrafted in the NWSL. But both have played well for the Ferns under JK. Malia Steinmetz didn’t get as many minutes as she’d have liked with Western Sydney Wanderers but also has momentum from that Czechia game.

Would guess at the top trio being Percival, Bowen, Hassett but if Bowen is needed at RB then that brings Cleverley into the fold. Sweet as. Rebekah Stott is obviously another option but has so far only been used off the bench by Klimková while Liv Chance is an excellent midfielder but has exclusively been used as a left-winger/number ten by Coach JK. All of which leaves the midfield with very little selection worry. Very interested to see how Stotty is used though, she did add a bit of tempo to the team’s passing when she came on in the SheBelieves Cup games.

Only thing else to add is that it is a concern to have three unattached players and two more uni students in the group. The fastest way to develop is within professional environments and even then it can still be a big leap to international footy. Daisy Cleverley and Jacqui Hand haven’t played a high level game since the last Ferns tour. Not their fault, mind you. Both had compelling enough cases to be drafted after finishing college but were rudely overlooked. Both will surely find their way onto pro teams sooner rather than later (though the timing of various seasons might mean having to wait a couple more months). And Anna Green is there mostly as a veteran backup, a first chance for Klimková to work with her directly. None of those situations are egregious and in fact since last time both CJ Bott and Emma Rolston have transferred away from Unattached FC. But it does stand out looking at the squad list.

Also, with the ALW just finished it might be fair to consider the assorted A-League players as unofficial free agents too. Guessing Rebekah Stott will be back next season after joining a local Aussie state team for the winter. Liz Anton and Lily Alfeld feel like low odds returnees too. But wouldn’t bet on any of the rest of those in this squad (and even a few that aren’t) necessarily going round again... and that’s a great thing because if they leave it means they’re leaving for bigger and better scenery.

FORWARDS

Olivia Chance - Celtic, SCO (28/1)

Ava Collins - St John’s University, USA (4/0)

Grace Jale - Wellington Phoenix, NZ (4/2)

Jacqui Hand - Unattached (6/1)

Gabi Rennie - Arizona State University, USA (10/2)

Emma Rolston - Avaldsnes, NOR (10/6)

Paige Satchell - Sydney FC, AUS (26/2)

Hannah Wilkinson - Melbourne City, AUS (103/26)

Bringing us to the forwards where the most pressure lies given that this is a team that has scored a mere 9 goals in its last 19 games including being blanked in all three matches of the previous get-together. Where are the goals going to come from? Well, Hannah Wilkinson just scored 14 goals in 14 ALW games so there’s her for starters.

Wilkie was superb for Melbourne City and what’s more is that she was playing in a team that did a lot of the things that the Ferns are trying to implement now. Pressing from the front with a mobile number nine, most specifically. We didn’t see that translate smoothly from Wilkinson at the SheBelieves Cup but that was her first tour with Klimková so this time, in familiar conditions such as those she’s been playing in for the last couple months instead of minus temperatures which require special headgear in order to function, should give a better indication of Wilkinson’s fit moving forward. She’s still the clear number one striker. Just gotta up that strike-rate from a goal every four games to something more like one every two or three.

Olivia Chance and Paige Satchell seem to have set themselves up as the wide forwards. Contrasting players. Satchell is someone who drifts wide and tries to run in behind. Chance is someone who drops in and tries to link up. Satchell had a breakthrough SheBelieves Cup thanks to the strides she’s taken in her game over two A-League seasons. Chance has been the FF’s most creative player for a couple years now. Lovely jubbly.

Jacqui Hand, Ava Collins, and Gabi Rennie are the up and comers. Rennie was the bolter in the Olympic squad and scored on debut against Australia. Prior form. The other two debuted against Canada in JK’s first game in charge – when covid yarns meant they had to dip into a number of university players in order to fill out a squad – and they were the standouts who’ve hung about ever since.

Emma Rolston has found her way back into the pros. There was talk of her wanting to sign in England or America after leading Arna-Bjørnar in Norway but instead she’s found her way back to the Toppserien having signed with Avaldsnes instead. Same club that Vic Esson played three seasons for, the first of those alongside Rebekah Stott. The new Avaldsnes manager is John Arne Riise, former Liverpool defender and Norway’s most capped male player. They’ve lost both their games so far but Rolston has started each in an attacking midfield position.

Then there’s Grace Jale. The second Welly Nix player to be called up for the national team and completely deserving after a fantastic A-League season, especially the back half of it after she got over a few early injury niggles. Jale was superb. Strong enough to hold the ball up, tall enough to win headers, fast enough to get in behind the defensive line, and a very good finisher as her six goals can attest. She can play across the top three and offers another point of difference in a team searching for attacking answers. Love that.

Should there have been other Wahinix call-ups? Gotta remember that the Phoenix were established to expand the professional player’s pool. It was a very young team which battled above their weight class and won plenty of fans but the Footy Ferns have more depth than ever before and someone would have to drop out for every Nix player that comes in. Easy to throw up candidates (Kate Taylor, Alyssa Whinham, Mackenzie Barry, Grace Wisnewski, etc.) but harder to fit them into an actual squad.

Alyssa Whinham is the one player there who adds something different to what existing options do. She’s only 18 years old and still very fresh, just coming off her first pro season. But if you’re good enough you’re old enough, right? She’s bound to be in contention moving forward.

As to some of the other players who didn’t get picked... no room for Katie Rood again. She does tend to be in and out of that Southampton team but she plays well when she’s picked/available. Best thing for Roodie’s chances would be for Southampton to get promoted to the Championship which they’re still a decent shot of achieving. Jana Radosavljević is another one who is too far down the divisions (with Armenia Bielefeld in Germany) in a position where there are other options to be selected. Rosie White remains without a club after being released by OL Reign – her 45 mins for the Ferns against South Korea is the only football she’s played since her illness.

Kinda wanna shout out Newcastle United’s Rosie Missen too. She’s at the same level as Ashleigh Ward and has had a few superb games for the Toon lately but again same deal with Rood and Radosavljević. Ward is an exception to that rule but there are only so many exception cards available. Missen is a midfielder btw. Also fullback Laura Merrin scored for Fylde the other day. She’s at the same level as Katie Rood (but Northern Prem instead of Southern Prem) and never gets mentioned as a national team option.

All players to have been selected by Jitka Klimková previously who aren’t in this particular squad for whatever reason:

CJ Bott, Anna Leat, Rosie White, Katie Rood, Abby Erceg, Jana Radosavljević, Hannah Blake, Maggie Jenkins, Tahlia Herman-Watt, Amelia Abbott, Aniela Jensen, Sam Tawharu, Grace Neville (training player)

And that’ll just about do it for today. Here’s hoping for a first win over the Matildas since 1994.

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