Two Queensland players have been named in the 23-player squad for this month’s AFC U-16 Championship qualification matches to be held in Hanoi, Vietnam.
Brisbane Roar FC’s Nathan Nguyen and Jack Warshawsky will represent Australia in the qualification matches in Vietnam, coming up against Timor-Leste, Mongolia and Macau in Group H.
Football Queensland (FQ) High Performance Officer Pat Hedges will also assist at the pre-departure camp at the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) between September 9 and 11, providing the Joeys with an insight into his youth development expertise.
Australia will need to top its qualification group or finish as one of the four best second-placed teams across the 11 groups to advance to the 2020 AFC U-16 Championship.
The 2020 AFC U-16 Championship serves as the qualification tournament for the 2021 FIFA U-17 World Cup, with four nations set to advance from that tournament as Asia’s representatives at the prestigious world youth competition.
Australian U-17 Men’s National Team Head Coach Trevor Morgan said he was excited to seeing the selected players represent the nation.
“Many of the players involved in our squad for the upcoming fixtures in Hanoi recently played their first international matches at the 2019 AFF U-15 Championship in Thailand,” Morgan said.
“We could see the growth of many of the players as they secured three wins and a draw from their five games in Chonburi, and during this qualification tournament we are expecting to see further development individually and collectively with the sizeable prize in the form of qualification for the 2020 AFC U-16 Championship on the line.
“We will also welcome some new players into the group for the trip to Vietnam, and I am excited to see how they adapt to the challenge and opportunity of representing our nation at youth level.”
Michael Cooper will guide the younger Joeys age group through their pre-departure camp, with the assistance of Hedges and Football Federation South Australia’s Airton Andrioli, as Morgan remains in the United Kingdom with the older Joeys squad preparing for a number of international friendlies.
The Joeys will play all of their four fixtures in Hanoi at the National Youth Football Training Centre in Hanoi, with their first fixture against Mongolia taking place on Monday, 16 September 2019.
Joeys 23-Player Squad | 2020 AFC U-16 Championship Qualifiers (Group H)
| NAME | CLUB, STATE |
| Joseph CALUSIC | Sydney FC, New South Wales |
| Ethan COX (Gk) | FFSA NTC, South Australia |
| Massimo D’ARGENIO | Moreland Zebras, Victoria |
| Alex DENMEAD | Western Sydney Wanderers FC, New South Wales |
| Jake GIRDWOOD-REICH | Sydney FC, New South Wales |
| Daniel HELWEH | Marconi Stallions, New South Wales |
| Alessandro LOPANE | Western Sydney Wanderers FC, New South Wales |
| Thomas LOPEZ | Marconi Stallions, New South Wales |
| Lachlan MACDONALD | Sutherland Sharks FC, New South Wales |
| Alexander MENELAOU | Melbourne City FC, Victoria |
| Aiden MOSTOFI | Sydney FC, New South Wales |
| Nathan NGUYEN | Brisbane Roar FC, Queensland |
| James NIEUWENHUIZEN (Gk) | Goulburn Valley Suns FC, Victoria |
| Bernardo OLIVEIRA | FFSA NTC, South Australia |
| Nicholas PANUCCIO | Western Sydney Wanderers FC, New South Wales |
| Joshua RAWLINS | Perth Glory FC, Western Australia |
| Matthew SCARCELLA | Western Sydney Wanderers FC, New South Wales |
| Adrian SEGECIC | Sydney FC, New South Wales |
| Luka SMYTH | Sydney FC, New South Wales |
| Thomas STOBIERSKI | Western Sydney Wanderers FC, New South Wales |
| Mohamed TOURE | FFSA NTC, South Australia |
| Aiki TSUKAMOTO | Perth Glory FC, Western Australia |
| Jack WARSHAWSKY (Gk) | Brisbane Roar FC, Queensland |
Joeys Match Schedule | 2020 AFC U-16 Championship Qualifiers (Group H)
Mongolia v Australia
Date: Monday, 16 September 2019
Venue: National Youth Football Training Centre, Hanoi, Vietnam
Kick-off: 7.00pm (local); 10.00pm (AEST)
Australia v Macau
Date: Wednesday, 18 September 2019
Venue: National Youth Football Training Centre, Hanoi, Vietnam
Kick-off: 7.00pm (local); 10.00pm (AEST)
Timor-Leste v Australia
Date: Friday, 20 September 2019
Venue: National Youth Football Training Centre, Hanoi, Vietnam
Kick-off: 4.00pm (local); 7.00pm (AEST)
Australia v Vietnam
Sunday, 22 September 2019
Venue: National Youth Football Training Centre, Hanoi, Vietnam
Kick-off: 7.00pm (local); 10.00pm (AEST)
