After a busy transfer window for Australian players overseas, several started to find their feet at new homes abroad in February, whilst those who stayed put continued to chalk up more minutes. March saw more managerial success, along with several young Aussies abroad being selected for the Olyroos training camp in the Netherlands. FTBL's Christian Marchetti reviews Socceroos and Aussie's Abroad in February and March.
It was a busy two months for the 100+ Australians based abroad, with the vast majority seeing game time. An Aussie manager made history in Wales, more youngsters broke out in Italy, and the Aussies playing their club football in Asia kick-started their 2022 campaigns.
More Aussies Abroad news can be found on FTBL.
UK
In the English Championship, Kenny Dougall picked up four assists across seven full games for Blackpool, whilst Callum Elder made four appearances for Hull City. Jacob Chapman was an unused sub once for Huddersfield and was selected for the Olyroos training camp, whilst Riley McGree made three appearances for Middlesborough.
Kenny Dougall v Reading:
— The Near Post (@TheNearPostEFL) February 28, 2022
Passing Accuracy - 79.6%
Tackles Won - 5
Crosses Attempted - 4
Key Passes - 3
Aerials Won - 2
Assists - 2
Dribbles Completed - 1#UTMP #Championship #EFL pic.twitter.com/x83JkKlIbO
In the English League One third tier, Cameron Burgess made four appearances for Ipswich Town. Ryan Williams picked up three assists across eleven appearances for Oxford United, whilst Massimo Luongo scored once and assisted twice in eleven full games for Sheffield Wednesday.
Jack Iredale got injured on his only start for Cambridge United, whilst Bailey Wright scored once in eight full games for Sunderland. Jay Rich-Baghuelou played three full games for Accrington Stanley, and Gethin Jones picked up one assist in six full games for Bolton Wanderers.
In the English League Two fourth tier, Reagan Ogle played one full game for Hartlepool United, whilst his teammate Nicholas Bilokapic also played one full game for the club.
Dean Bouzanis played eleven full games for Sutton United, Jordan Lyden started twice for Swindon Town, and Thomas Beadling made three appearances for Barrow AFC, picking up one red card. Manager Jon Brady had a great couple of months with Northampton Town, losing only once out of six league games in February, and wining three out of six games in March. His side are currently fourth in the table.
In the English sixth tier, Joel Rollinson scored once in nine appearances for Eastbourne Borough, and Stavros Tserpes was an unused sub once for Farsley Celtic FC. In the seventh tier, Akiel Raffie made two appearances for Nantwich Town, whilst Callum Kealy made two appearances for Worthing FC.
In the English youth leagues, Cameron Peupion scored once in three full games for Brighton U23, Alex Robertson picked up one assist in three sub appearances for Manchester City U23, and Matthew Dench was an unused sub once for Charlton Athletic U18. Julian Schwarzer was an unused sub twice for Fulham U23 in February, before he made one appearance for his new loan club, seventh tier Kingstonian FC, in March. Meanwhile, Tyrese Francois played three full games for Fulham U23. Tete Yengi made one appearance for Ipswich Town U23, whilst Shae Cahill started once for Everton U18.
In Northern Ireland, Nicholas Aretzis commenced a loan spell at third tier side Bangor, and made one sub appearance for the club.
In Scotland's Scottish Premiership, Celtic's Tom Rogic scored twice and assisted once across eleven appearances, and Cameron Devlin scored once across seven starts for Hearts, but unfortunately picked up an injury. Devlin's teammate Nathaniel Atkinson scored once and assisted once across nine appearances for the club. Matthew Millar made one sub appearance for St Mirren, whilst Ashley Maynard-Brewer was an unused sub three times for Ross County.
.@cammy_devlin off the mark! ❤️
— Classic Heart Of Midlothian FC Goals (@HeartsGoals) February 26, 2022
💥🇦🇺
Cameron Devlin against St Mirren 26/2/2022.#HeartsFC #HeartOfMidlothianFC #HeartsGoals #ClassicHeartsFCGoals pic.twitter.com/s81uhIufxd
Ange Postecoglou led Celtic to an undefeated February in the league, and then a perfect month of March, and they are currently six points clear at the top of the table. Celtic also qualified for the semi-finals of the Scottish Cup. Unfortunately, though, Postecoglou and his side were knocked out of the UEFA Europa Conference League.
In the Scottish second tier, Dylan McGowan played one full game for Kilmarnock. In the third tier, Aaron Lennox played four full games for Montrose. In the youth leagues, Murray Miller played one full game for Rangers B in the UEFA Youth League, and was selected for the Olyroos training camp.
In Wales, Kai Calderbank-Park played one full game for Connah's Quay, whilst Joe Faux scored once in five appearances for Caerrnarfon. Anthony Limbrick led The New Saints to an undefeated month in February. In March, his side secured the league title with eight games still to play, and Limbrick became the first Aussie manager to win a top-flight European league title. The New Saints have also progressed to the Welsh Cup Final.
Just quietly, how wild is that Welsh trophy 👀🐉🐲
— Optus Sport (@OptusSport) March 17, 2022
A Tasmanian has claimed a slice of history by a matter of months, with Ange Postecoglou only eight matches away from tasting potential glory with Celtic.
Anthony Limbrick speaks to #OptusSport 📝 https://t.co/OAgBFVi4TG pic.twitter.com/QgFZEDt0Ik
EUROPE
In Austria, James Holland made eight appearances for LASK Linz. In the second tier, Tristan Hammond was an unused sub once for FK Austria Wien II.
In Belgium, Trent Sainsbury scored two goals across seven full games for KV Kortrijk, and captained the side once. James Jeggo made eight appearances for KAS Eupen. Jeggo is now coached by Aussie Michael Valkanis, who was appointed Eupen interim manager in February. Valkanis won one of his first five league matches, and helped the club secure survival. They were unfortunately knocked out of the cup semi-finals, though. In the youth leagues, Emile Peios started once for Sint-Truiden and went to the Olyroos training camp, whilst KV Mechelen's Mario Arambasic also went to the Netherlands.
Trent Sainsbury is officially in-form 💪
— Socceroos (@Socceroos) February 23, 2022
After his derby double on the weekend, the @Socceroos defender has earned a spot in this week's @EASPORTSFIFA #TOTW that also features the likes of Robert Lewandowski, Harry Kane and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang! #AllForTheSocceroos pic.twitter.com/T1zIiAhOh2
In the Bulgarian second tier, Milislav Popovic made two appearances for Strumska Slavia, whilst Iliya Shalamanov-Trenkov played two full games for FC Litex Lovech.
In Croatia, Deni Juric made five appearances for Dinamo Zagreb. Anthony Kalik scored three times in seven starts for HNK Gorica, whilst Doni Grdic made three appearances for HNK Sibenik. In the second tier, Nikola Jadric started twice for HNK Orijent 1919, whilst Kristian Popovic made four appearances for NK Rudes. In the third tier, manager Zeljko Kalac and his NK Urania Baska Voda side remain bottom of the league after losing six of their last seven games. One of his players, Kristian Slunjski, was an unused sub twice. Josip Zelic made one sub appearance for NK Tresnjevka, whilst his teammate Oliver Kalac was an unused sub once for the side. In the youth leagues, Gabriel Popovic scored twice in six appearances for NK Rudes, whilst Tomislav Glavan scored twice in three starts for NK Istrea 1961.
In Cyprus, Antonis Martis was an unused sub six times for AEK Larnaca. In the fourth tier, manager Perry Moustakas and his APEA Akrotiri side are currently top of the league. In the youth leagues, AEK Larnaca U19 player Jordan Perez was selected for the Olyroos training camp.
In Denmark, AGF's Jing Reec was selected for the Olyroos training camp, Joel King picked up one assist in five starts for Odense BK, whilst Lawrence Thomas played five full games for SonderjyskE. FC Midtjylland's Hosine Bility was selected for the Olyroos training camp. In the second tier, Con Ouzounidis scored once in four full games for Esbjerg, Peter Makrillos scored once in four appearances for FK Fredericia, and Panos Armenakas made four appearances for Vendsyssel.
Australians Abroad
— Louise Taffa (@Louise_Taffa) February 20, 2022
🇦🇺Socceroo Joel King made his @Odense_Boldklub starting debut in the Danish Superliga, coming off in the 87’.
🇦🇺The match ended 2-0 to top-of-the-table Copenhagen. pic.twitter.com/KhS4wH9QHn
In Estonia, Aamir Abdallah picked up one assist in four appearances for Parnu JK Vaprus.
In the French Ligue 2 second tier, Alex Gersbach made four appearances for Grenoble, whilst Denis Genreau picked up one assist in eight appearances for Toulouse.
In Germany, Ajdin Hrustic scored twice in six appearances for Eintracht Frankfurt. In the second tier, Brandon Borrello made four appearances for Dynamo Dresden, whilst Jackson Irvine made eight appearances for St. Pauli. In the second tier, SV Sandhausen's Alou Kuol was selected for the Olyroos training camp. In the fourth tier, Martin Gorrie made five appearances for SV Tasmania Berlin. In the fifth tier, Michael Houdek made three appearances for FC Monchengladbach, whilst his teammate Cameron Kemp picked up two assists in five games for the club. Nicholas Simpson, Mark Rizoski, and Alec Vinci all featured for BCV Glesch-Paffendorf. Simpson made six appearances, Rizoski made two appearances, and Vinci scored twice in six full games for the club. In the youth leagues, Harrison Karabalios made three sub appearance for Hennef 05 U17.
VAI PEGAR NUNCA 🔥⚽️���
— Eintracht Frankfurt (@Eintracht_por) February 8, 2022
🚀 Ajdin Hrustic 🚀 #SGE
🎥 @Bundesliga_EN pic.twitter.com/nLk6XgLweL
In Gibraltar, Matthew Nezval scored once and picked up one assist across five appearances for Manchester 62.
In Greece, Bruce Kamau made two sub appearances for OFI Crete. In the second tier, Yerasimakis Petratos made two sub appearances for AE Karaiskakis, Haris Stamboulidis made three appearances for PASA Irodotos, whilst Paul Izzo made eleven appearances for Xanthi. Emmanuel Pavlis was an unused sub six times for AO Egaleo, Daniel Bouman made six appearances for Kavala, whilst Apostolos Stamatelopoulos made eight appearances for Rodos FC. In the third tier, Billy Konstantinidis made one appearance for AE Mykonou. In the youth leagues, Nikolaos Vlassopoulos was an unused sub once for Olympiacos Piraeus U19.
In Iceland, Oliver Kelaart made two sub appearances for Keflavik IF in February, before he signed for third tier side Throttur Reykjavik in March.
In Israel, Nikita Rukavytsya scored twice and assisted once in eight appearances for Hapoel Be'er Sheva.
In Italy, Cristian Volpato scored once in one sub appearance for AS Roma. In the second tier, Fran Karacic made eight appearances for Brescia, whilst Alessandro Circati made two appearances for Parma. Manager Roberto Venturato, in charge of SPAL, guided his side to just two wins in eleven across February and March, and they currently sit just above the relegation zone in 15th. In the third tier, Gabriel Cleur made five appearances for Virtus Entella, Thomas Galletti was an unused sub once for Piacenza, and Matteo Scali was an unused sub twice for Pro Vercelli. In the fifth tier, Alberto Del Grosso started once for US Cisanese ASD and was selected for the Olyroos training camp, whilst Davide Xamin started once for FC Bassano 1903. In the youth leagues, Jahce Novello scored four goals in eight appearances for Cosenza.
🇦🇺🇮🇹 Sydney-born teen #CristianVolpato netted his first goal for @OfficialASRoma today, just 3️⃣ mins after coming on to drag #JoseMourinho's side off the canvas against @HellasVeronaFC in #SerieA. Watch all the the highlights here 📺 https://t.co/vYXXNxvcW0 | #RomaVerona pic.twitter.com/ugLQkDJrFm
— beIN SPORTS (@beINSPORTS_AUS) February 19, 2022
In Montenegro, Andrew Marveggio made three sub appearances for FK Jezero.
In the Netherlands, Danny Vukovic played one full game for NEC Nijmegen, whilst Thomas Prinsen signed for fourth tier side Harkemase Boys.
In North Macedonia, Davor Trifunov made three appearances for FK Borec, whilst his teammate Aleks Taleski was selected for the Olyroos training camp.
In Norway, Viking FK's Gianni Stensness was on Socceroos duty, whilst Aiden Harvey signed for third tier side Strommen IF.
In Poland, Jordan Courtney-Perkins made four sub appearances for Warta Poznan. In the third tier, Sportis Lochowo's Dylan Ruiz-Diaz was selected for the Olyroos training camp, whilst Gian Mendez made three sub appearances for Znicz Pruszkow.
In Portugal, Ryan Teague picked up one assist in seven appearances for second tier side S.C. Covilha. In the third tier, Danny Choi started three times for Canelas 2010. In the fourth tier, Dylan Collard scored once across four appearances for C.S. Maritimo II. In the youth leagues, Jaden Gasking scored twice across five starts for Boavista FC U17, whilst Presley Ortiz scored twice across three appearances for OS Belenenses U21.
In Romania, Harrison Devenish-Meares was an unused sub once for second tier side SSU Poli Timisoara.
In Spain, Mat Ryan played two full games for Real Sociedad. In the youth leagues, UE Cornella's Thymos Caroutas was selected in the Olyroos training camp.
In Sweden, Peter Gwargis was loaned out to second tier side Jonkoping.
In Switzerland, Liam Chipperfield scored once in four sub appearances for FC Basel. In the youth leagues, Steven Havales made two sub appearances for FC Basel U21.
In Turkey, Aziz Behich made seven appearances for Giresunspor. Awer Mabil scored twice, and picked up an assist and a red card in five appearances for Kasimpasa SK.
🆕 Awer Mabil 🔥 pic.twitter.com/y7PBSMFmGq
— KASIMPAŞA (@kasimpasa) February 10, 2022
ASIA
In Bangladesh, Aaron Reardon played eight full games for Mohammedan Dhaka.
In China, Shanghai Port's Aaron Mooy was on Socceroos duty.
In India, Travis Major picked up three assists in five starts for Punjab FC, David Williams scored twice and assisted once across six appearances for ATK Mohun Bagan, and Dylan Fox made three appearances for FC Goa. Joel Chianese scored twice in seven appearances for Hyderabad, Jordan Murray scored twice in six sub appearances for Jamshedpur, and Brad Inman picked up two assists in eight appearances for Mumbai City. Patrick Flottman started twice for NorthEast United.
"Very happy (to score), but that's my job."@jordanmurray28 reacts after netting the winner in @JamshedpurFC's win over NorthEast United FC! 💪 #NEUJFC #HeroISL #LetsFootball #JamshedpurFC #JordanMurray pic.twitter.com/zO5FIsKyBo
— Indian Super League (@IndSuperLeague) February 25, 2022
In Indonesia, Golgol Mebrahtu made seven appearances for PSM Makassar, whilst Aaron Evans picked up one red card in nine appearances for PSS Slemen.
In Japan, Mitchell Langerak played six full games for Nagoya Grampus. Kevin Muscat guided Yokohama F-Marinos to a win, a draw, and a loss to start the season in February, but in March they were undefeated, and currently sit in second on the table. A couple of wins to start March now have them on top. In the second tier, Mitch Duke made five appearances for Fagiano Okayama, whilst his new teammate Stefan Mauk scored once and picked up a red card in three appearances for the club. In the third tier, Mohamed Adam made one sub appearance for FC Imabari. Peter Cklamovski led Montedio Yamagata to a win and a loss to start the season in February, but in March they were winless, and are currently nineteenth on the table.
Fast forward 2 weeks and I scored the equaliser off the bench!
— Stefan Mauk (@StefanMauk) March 27, 2022
The journey is always going to have its ups and downs but it’s all about how you want to view them. Always unlucky, why me? Or I love a challenge, bring it on 3/3 pic.twitter.com/ksugk26cfg
In Korea, Harrison Delbridge made four appearances for Incheon United, Alex Grant played six full games for Pohang Steelers, and Lachlan Jackson scored and assisted once in six full games for Suwon FC. Ben Halloran made one sub appearance for FC Seoul. In the second tier, Ryan Edwards picked up one assist in six appearances for Busan IPark, whilst Aaron Claver signed for Gwangju FC.
In Kuwait, Kuwait SC's Ryan McGowan was on Socceroos duty in February, whilst he scored in his only appearance for the club in March.
In Malaysia, Declan Lambert, Ryan Lambert, and Giancarlo Gallifuoco all featured for Kuala Lumpur City. Declan Lambert signed for the club in February, and then picked up one assist across three appearances in March. Ryan Lambert scored once across three appearances, whilst Gallifuoco scored once across two starts. Shane Lowry played two full games for Johor Darul Ta'zim.
In the Philippines, Jesse Curran signed for Kaya, and played one full game for the club. They are coached by Aussie Graham Harvey, who guided his side to a win and a draw in the Copa Paulino Alcantara, despite being knocked out of the Asian Champions League preliminary round by Sydney FC.
In Saudi Arabia, Martin Boyle scored three goals and picked up one assist across eight appearances for Al-Faisaly.
An absolute 𝙃𝙊𝙒𝙄𝙏𝙕𝙀𝙍 by Hicham Faik sees @MartinBoyle9 pounce on the rebound to take @AlFaisaly ahead 🚀#SPL | #OurLeague pic.twitter.com/6IIpcdczKC
— Saudi Pro League (@SPL_EN) March 17, 2022
In Singapore, Blake Ricciuto scored once across four full games for Tanjong Pagar.
In Thailand, Anthony Carter picked up one assist in five appearances for Bangkok United. Carter is now coached by Aurelio Vidmar, who guided the club to one league win in March, and lost in the Thai League Cup quarter-finals. Meanwhile, Joshua Grommen played five full games for Khonkaen United. In the second tier, Maxx Creevey made three appearances for Khonkaen FC.
In Vietnam, Martin Lo made four starts for Hai Phong.
AFRICA
In South Africa, Abraham Majok made nine appearances for AmaZulu FC, whilst Kearyn Baccus made three appearances for Kaizer Chiefs.
NORTH AMERICA
In the MLS, Brad Smith made four appearances for DC United, whilst Milos Degenek played four full games for Columbus Crew. In the second tier, manager John Hutchinson struggled in March, as his El Paso Locomotive FC side lost their first three league games of the season. In the fourth tier, Finn Ballard-McBride signed for Asheville City.
What an opening day for our two Australians in the @MLS: 🇦🇺🇺🇸
— Ian Pulzinski 🇵🇱🇦🇺 (@IanPolska_99) February 27, 2022
- Milos Degenek, 90 minutes and a clean sheet in a 4-0 win over Vancouver
- Brad Smith, 90 minutes and a clean sheet in a 3-0 win over Charlotte
Get in lads 💪 #Socceroos #AussiesAbroad #MLS pic.twitter.com/OIMbM3QPTY
Most of the information throughout this article would not have been possible without the work of Damian Davies.
You can follow Christian Marchetti on Twitter @ChristianM29, or on Instagram @christianmarchetti29.
The full A-League Men's schedule can be found using this link.