Future Matildas talent identified at Football NSW TSP Regional ‘Girls Game Day’

Football NSW recently hosted a TSP Girls Game Day last Thursday at Valentine Sports Park where players from the Football NSW TSP Regional Hubs were joined by the Football NSW Institute Under 13 Girls along with Northern NSW Teams across the Under 14 and Under 16 age groups.

Games were played with shortened match times but provided opportunity for each Team to play a number of Games and Opponents across the day.

Football NSW’s Development Manager for Regional Football Andrew Fearnley was happy with how the day played out.

“The Girls Game Day was a great opportunity to get the Girls in together for games in addition to their TSP Training and for us to look at the players in high level game situations, while also to challenge the players in match situations under good pressure.

“It was a good day for us to be able to identify players who perform well in these match situations and it was a real positive to see some good football on display, both from individuals and in team play with good combinations shown by players who have come together to play games from their respective TSP Hubs.”

There were a couple of keen onlookers who were searching for the next batch of Matildas stars as Football Australia’s Girls Development Manager Debbie Fischer along with Future/Young Matildas coach Leah Blayney were in attendance.

“We appreciated having the Football Australia Staff attending,” said Fearnley.

“Both Debbie and Leah had the opportunity to see firsthand the potential talent from within Regional NSW, and pleasingly they recognised that there are players from within the Regions that displayed promise with some good play over the day”.

Northern NSW’s Head of Football Development Pete Haynes indicated that the day played a crucial role in identifying talent from their respective area.

“The tournament is a vital part of the identification and selection process for Northern NSWF teams moving towards National Youth Championships.

“Being able to bring the best players in from all over Northern NSW to participate in high level tournaments is crucial to benchmarking their development and identifying areas where we need to improve both individually and as a group in order to give our players the best opportunity to be identified for National Teams.”