Victoria’s Aeryn Tarrant had the honour of captaining the Junior Matildas in the opening match of their two-game series against Thailand during the inaugural ASEAN Women’s Football Week.
The Heidelberg United product is one of five Victorians in the squad, joining Sienna Calvanese, Dali Gorr Burchmore, Layla Habib and Adriana Tustonjic in Sydney.
With significant turnover since the Junior Matildas lifted the 2025 ASEAN U16 Girls’ Championship in Thailand, Tarrant said the week offered a valuable chance to see how the new group could come together on the pitch.
“This is a whole new bunch of girls, we haven’t really played together before,” she told Football Australia media post-match.
“It’s exciting, and obviously there were a lot of nerves with so many new caps, but everyone settled later in the game. It was great to see everyone trusting each other, and the second half definitely felt more gelled.
“It was a really good experience, and Friday will be a lot better.”
With the opening game played at Wanderers Football Park, Tarrant said the support in the stands was a highlight.
“It was amazing having everyone here, as well as the Western Sydney Wanderers girls,” she said.
“It was really good to see Australia backing the youth. For the girls getting their first caps, having family and friends there really boosted them.”
Tarrant’s rise has been meteoric. In 2025 she claimed Player of the Tournament at the Emerging Matildas Championships, played 21 NPLW matches, earned a Goal of the Week nod in Round 19, made her national team debut, and now captains the Junior Matildas.
“I feel very honoured,” she said.
“We’re not together often, but everyone gels really quickly and it’s just a great experience. Not many people can say they’ve travelled, represented their country and gone overseas.
“We’ve faced really strong opponents, fast, physical, technical teams and Thailand are definitely one of our best oppositions.”
Match two
Date: Friday, 28 November 2025
Time: 4pm AEDT
Venue: polytec Stadium, Gosford
Broadcast: Live on Paramount+