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FBL-AUS-WOMEN-WC-2019-KERR
Kerr named World Cup captain as Australian women seek fresh start
WELLINGTON, Feb 27, 2019 (BSS/AFP) – Striker Sam Kerr was named captain of
the troubled Australian women’s football team Wednesday, with coach Ante
Milicic confident she can lead the Matildas into a new era.
Kerr, 25, will head the team at this year’s World Cup and has her first
taste of leadership as Australia hosts the Cup of Nations this week in
Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne.
Her appointment comes after Milicic’s predecessor Alen Stajcic was dumped
in controversial circumstances last month over unspecified concerns about
“player welfare”.
While Stajcic has threatened legal action and many in Australia’s soccer
community still want answers about his sacking, Milicic said Kerr’s
appointment was a chance for the team to move on.
“What I said to the group is the message is clear — what’s happened in
the past, we can’t change that,” he told reporters.
“But from today, the first meeting we had, the first training session we
had, this is our chance to move forward and we can definitely together make
an impact on how this journey’s going to end.”
Kerr has earned 72 caps for Australia and scored 27 times since her debut
in 2009, frequently celebrating her goals with a trademark back flip.
She said it was a “tremendous honour” to captain the Matildas, ranked
sixth in the world, with Steph Catley as her vice-captain.
“Together with Steph and the team we are committed to excelling at the
2019 Women’s World Cup and there will be no bigger honour than to wear the
armband in France,” she said.
The duo replaced co-captains Clare Polkinghorne and Lisa De Vanna, both of
whom remain with the squad.
BSS/AFP/MR/1040 hrs