Emily van Egmond will not be returning to Newcastle Jets next Westfield W-League season.

The Westfield Matildas star has played a total of 56 matches for her hometown club after debuting as a 15-year-old in 2008.

“This is my hometown club, and I couldn’t be more appreciative of everything that Newcastle has done for me,” van Egmond told the club's website.

“The decision made not to return to the Jets was one based purely on footballing reasons, and I can’t say thank you enough to [Craig] Deansy and everyone involved in the club over the years for everything they’ve done for me.

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“Being a Newcastle girl, it’s been a privilege to play in Jets colours for as much of my career as I have with such a good group of girls and I’d like to wish them the best of luck for the upcoming season.”

Van Egmond recently ended her season with National Women's Soccer League outfit Orlando Pride and returned to Australia for ankle surgery, to remedy an injury on her left ankle sustained during the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup.



Newcastle - who have seen American quartet Arin Gilliland-Wright, Britt Eckerstrom, Katie Stengel, and Taylor Smith all depart the club in the off-season - have also confirmed young attacker Cortnee Vine will not be returning for 2019/20.

“Our focus this season will be on Australian players, particularly local talent, and while not retaining the services of these girls is disappointing we’re looking forward to the coming season,” said coach Craig Deans.

“We saw at the back end of last year how much our youngsters stood up and delivered for us, and it’s that kind of enthusiasm and determination we’ll be looking for again this season.

“Combined with a number of senior heads in our side, we’re confident we’ll field a competitive side this year and cause a lot of headaches for teams.”