The Matildas have been doing it tough while getting to know Ante Milicic at a Queensland training camp, but midfielder Chloe Logarzo will have to wait to link up with the new coach after being ruled out of the upcoming Cup of Nations tournament.

While Milicic’s first squad were put through their paces in Brisbane, Logarzo remained in Sydney before being a decision was made on Tuesday morning to rule her out of contention after she failed to recover sufficiently from an ankle injury picked up in Sydney FC’s W-League grand final win.

Milicic called up Amy Harrison to replace Logarzo in the squad for Thursday’s opener against New Zealand at Leichhardt Oval, which will be followed by two further games, against South Korea and Argentina, in Brisbane and Melbourne respectively, over the course of the next week.

Harrison, who has seven Matildas caps to her name, replaced Logarzo in the Sky Blues’ lineup for the title decider 10 days ago and her latest international call-up caps a remarkable recovery from a serious knee injury of her own.

She was hopeful of competing at the 2016 Olympics, only to tear the anterior cruciate and medial collateral ligaments on her right knee. After returning to the sport and the national team set-up, she suffered the same injuries on her left knee in January last year. She returned to the W-League in December, proving her fitness during Sydney’s run to the title, and is now likely to don a Matildas shirt.

Harrison will link up with the rest of the squad in Sydney later on Tuesday after Milicic took charge of his first training sessions, during which he proved to the players he is a hard task master.

Milicic oversaw his most intense Matildas session so far on Monday, with 23 players in camp after the late arrivals of Spain-based Matildas Alex Chidiac and Aivi Luik. The pair landed on Monday morning and by the afternoon, they were kicking out their jetlag in training, along with train-on youngster Allira Toby.

Key defender Alanna Kennedy said the fresh eyes of a new coach meant going the extra mile to prove your worth. “[Training has] been really tough but a really positive environment,” she said.

“Every session needs to be tough. We’re elite athletes. Of course we’re looking to get the most out of us and push ourselves to our limits. There’s no point staying in your comfort zone because that’s not going to get us to where we want to be. We’re all here to fight for a spot at the World Cup.”

Thursday’s opener was due to be held at Sydney’s Jubilee Stadium but has been moved to Leichhardt Oval due to concerns over the pitch. FFA has responded to the inconvenience by slashing ticket prices to just $10 for adults and $5 for children.

Kennedy said they were eager to get Milicic’s reign off to a winning start but they also wanted to expose the entire squad to matches. “We want to win the games but that’s the end product ... [the focus] for us is definitely performance,” she said. “We’ll give different players an opportunity to step up.”

Kennedy said fans would see a similar style to what they were used to under former coach Alen Stajcic. “It’s still the Australian way,” she said. “We want to play a high pressing game, possession based and work on becoming better and better at that each game. For us it’s a different environment, a refreshing change and a clean slate for everyone. Everyone’s been on their toes.”