Five fresh faces join the CommBank ParaMatildas Sydney camp

CommBank ParaMatildas head coach Kelly Stirton has named an exciting 16-player squad to take part in the first training camp for 2023 running from 17 February to 21 February 2023 at Blacktown Football Park.

Just weeks away from celebrating their one-year anniversary as a national team, the camp kicks off a busy year ahead for the current world number one ranked women’s national team for players with cerebral palsy, acquired brain injury and symptoms of a stroke.

A host of familiar names return for the assembly including dynamic forward Nicole Christodoulou, and the 2022 IFCPF World Cup Golden Boot Winner, Georgia Beikoff, who has been recovering from surgery since late 2022.

Alongside these experienced players will be five debutantes from NSW and ACT who will enter their first national team camp. 17-year-old Indiana Cooper from Canberra is joined by 16-year-old Jasmine Ferguson, 17-year-old Karina Grigorian, 21-year-old Rebecca Jones and 26-year-old Amanda Reid from New South Wales.

Kelly Stirton expressed her excitement about coming together for the first time in 2023.

“I'm excited to be able to bring together 16 talented female footballers from across the country to the Blacktown Football Park as we build on our success in 2022,” Stirton said. 

“We had a fantastic start to our national team journey by playing in a World Cup Final in 2022, and we’re excited to be celebrating our one-year anniversary next month, but this is just the beginning for this team.”

Stirton expressed the importance of the CommBank ParaMatildas program to identify talented female footballers from across Australia and deliver a quality pathway for national team hopefuls.

“This camp kicks off our 2023 program and provides us with a fantastic opportunity to welcome back some of our experienced players but also develop a new generation of female CP footballers,” Stirton explained.

“We know how powerful this program can be for aspiring female footballers and we are determined to empower all of our hopefuls to embrace the experiences of being in a professional national team environment.”

“Since our inception almost one year ago, we have seen tremendous growth in our players, and in our ability to reach other young girls living with disabilities. This camp is another step towards making our mark on the football landscape and preparing this team for the successes of the future, on and off the pitch,” she concluded. 

Players and staff will start arriving at assembly this Friday with the team quickly stepping into action with a training match against Hills United that evening.  Kickoff is at 6:30 pm at Blacktown Football Park.   

MATCH DETAILS:  

CommBank ParaMatildas v Hills United FC 
Date: Friday, 17 February 2023
Venue: Blacktown Football Park Field 2
Address: Gate B, Eastern Road, Rooty Hill NSW 2766 
Kick-off: 6:30 pm 

COMMBANK PARAMATILDAS SQUAD | TRAINING CAMP | 17-19 FEBRUARY 2023

 
*Denotes first camp