Australia’s best young male footballers are being brought together in Sydney over the next week with new Joeys Head Coach Trevor Morgan to prepare for the 2018 AFC U16 Championship in Malaysia.

From today [Friday], 28 of Australia’s brightest young footballers will gather at the Sydney Academy of Sport at Narrabeen to impress Morgan and his staff throughout what will be the first of two camps held in Australia prior to the tournament proper in September and October this year.



The 28 players selected by Morgan arrive in camp after an extensive period of scouting. During April and May this year, Morgan, alongside Joeys Team Manager, Marty Judge, ventured around Australia and conducted ‘Joeys Talent ID Camps’ in conjunction with Member Federations. Each ‘Joeys Talent ID Camp’ featured between 25 and 30 talented players identified by the host Member Federation.

Twenty players are aligned with Hyundai A-League club academies. A further six players feature at National Premier Leagues (NPL) level across Australia, while two players – Aydan Hammond and Emmanuel Pavlis – are contracted to clubs in Europe.

Australia qualified for the 2018 AFC U16 Championship in Malaysia after topping Group I of the qualification process in Mongolia last September. The Joeys finished ahead of Vietnam, Cambodia and Mongolia in Ulaanbaatar.



In April the Joeys were drawn in a challenging Group D for the 2018 AFC U16 Championship. Australia will need to finish first or second in a group containing defending champions Iraq, Korea Republic, and Afghanistan, to advance to the knockout phase of the competition.

Trevor Morgan

To qualify as one of Asia’s representatives for the 2019 FIFA U17 World Cup in Peru (October 2019) Australia must reach at the Semi-Final stage of the tournament.



“I am excited by the opportunity and honoured by the responsibility that goes with this role,” Morgan said regarding his appointment to the Joeys post.

“The work will be about unearthing and nurturing talent to build quality and depth in our junior National Teams.”



“We will go to Malaysia with a purpose, to progress to the 2019 FIFA U17 World Cup. As a team we want to face the challenge head on, playing our football against the best teams from around the globe, and we can only do this by making it to Peru.”



Football Federation Australia’s (FFA) Head of National Performance, Luke Casserly, said Morgan’s appointment was well deserved.



“Trevor has been coaching in Australia for over 20 years and with this group specifically for the past 12 months,” said Casserly. “He is the logical appointment for the role and benefited greatly from a recent professional development opportunity with the Caltex Socceroos ahead of the 2018 FIFA World Cup. We know Trevor will do an excellent job with this group of players.”



Joeys 28-player squad for July 2018 training camp in Sydney (13 July – 19 July)

Name Club, Country Leonardo BELZ Western Sydney Wanderers FC, Australia Timothy BOKE Belconnen United (ACT), Australia Jordan BOS Melbourne City FC, Australia Noah BOTIC Rockdale City Suns FC (NSW), Australia Jordan COURTNEY Brisbane Roar FC, Australia Luke DUZEL Melbourne City FC, Australia Jayden GORMAN Perth Glory FC, Australia Peter GROZOS Western Sydney Wanderers FC, Australia Aydan HAMMOND OS Belenenses, Portugal Oliver KALAC Western Sydney Wanderers FC, Australia Birkan KIRDAR Melbourne Victory, Australia Jaiden KUCHARSKI Sydney FC, Australia Adam LEOMBRUNO FFSA NTC (SA), Australia Marco MACUSO Pascoe Vale FC (VIC), Australia Christopher MORSERAY Brisbane Roar FC, Australia Adam PAVLESIC Sydney FC, Australia Emmanuel PAVLIS Olympiacos, Greece Alex POPOVIC Adelaide United, Australia Joshua RACHELE Melbourne City FC, Australia Tyson SAVAS Sydney FC, Australia Lachlan SEPPING Marconi FC (NSW), Australia Jamie SIGNORELLO FFSA NTC (SA), Australia Ahmad TALEB Melbourne City FC, Australia Ryan TEAGUE Sydney FC, Australia Nicholas THEODOSIOU Melbourne City FC, Australia Joshua VARGA Melbourne City FC, Australia Daniel WALSH Perth Glory FC, Australia Adam ZERVAS Newcastle Jets FC, Australia



Joeys 2018 AFC U16 Championship Match Schedule – Group D



Korea Republic v Australia

Saturday, 22 September 2018

Venue: Petaling Jaya Stadium, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Kick-off: 8.45pm (local); 10.45pm (AEST)



Australia v Iraq

Tuesday, 25 September 2018

Venue: UM Arena, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Kick-off: 4.30pm (local); 6.30pm (AEST)



Australia v Afghanistan

Friday, 28 September 2018

Venue: Petaling Jaya Stadium, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Kick-off: 4.30pm (local); 6.30pm (AEST)