Subway Joeys' Head Coach, Brad Maloney has been required to make a change to his 24-player squad for the PacificAus Sports Football Tour against the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu Under-19 Men's Teams.
Mathew Baker (Melbourne City FC) has withdrawn from the squad and will be replaced by Logan Sambrook (North Coast Football) following his performance at the recent National Youth Championships Boys' Tournament in Wollongong.
Maloney has opted to bring a selection of players from the squad that won 2024 ASEAN U-16 Boys' Championship in July, in addition to several players who have impressed at club and academy level, to build depth across the age group in preparation for their AFC U17 Asian Cup 2025™ Qualifiers to be contested in Kuwait between 19-27 October, 2024.
The Subway Joeys have been drawn in Group G alongside Indonesia, Kuwait, and Northern Mariana Islands, where they will be looking to secure their place at the FIFA U-17 World Cup 2025™ Qualifiers to be hosted by Saudi Arabia in April of next year.
The three match tour will see games played at the National Stadium in Honiara, Solomon Islands on Thursday, 15 August (6.00pm local / 5.00pm AEST) and Sunday, 18 August (6.00pm local / 5.00pm AEST) plus Wednesday, 21 August (3.00pm local / 2.00pm AEST) at Freshwater Stadium, Port Vila, Vanuatu.
Football Australia appreciates the support of the Australian Government, through PacificAus Sports, which has made the tour possible.
This tour sees the squad depart Australia on Sunday, 11 August and will not only support the Subway Joeys' performance objectives but provide an opportunity for the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu National Youth Teams to play strong opposition as part of their own development programs.
These international friendlies are supported by the Australian Government's PacificAus Sports program.
PacificAus Sports is an Australian Government sports diplomacy initiative developing pathways for Pacific teams and athletes to compete in elite competitions and access high performance coaching in Australia and internationally. The program partners with Australian national sports organisations to support a range of Pacific sports, with funding split evenly between women and men. PacificAus Sports also partners with the Australian Broadcasting Commission (ABC) to promote Pacific sport through ABC Television's 'That Pacific Sports Show' and ABC Radio's 'Fresh Off the Field'. The high-performance outcomes of PacificAus Sports are complemented by the Australian Government's Team Up
