Welcome back to Matildas Abroad, where I analyse the performances of all our Aussies playing overseas!
Once again I apologise for the late upload, I've been busy and the site has been down for a bit.
America (NWSL) — Arnold keeps a clean sheet in important and decisive Thorns win
Mackenzie Arnold (pictured) holding roses after her sixth clean sheet of the 2026 season. It's a tradition for Thorns players to receive roses for goals, clean sheets and good performances, with the roses being given out by their active supporters' group, the Rose City Riveters. Image source: Instagram (@thornsfc).
Portland Thorns' hopes for the NWSL shield have been boosted after the Thorns crushed Racing Louisville with a 4–0 victory at home, with Mackenzie Arnold keeping a clean sheet across the entirety of the match. The Thorns sit second on the NWSL ladder, still one point behind San Diego Wave. Speaking of the Wave, they kept their top spot by winning 2–0 over Gotham FC, who have signed club legend and NWSL regular season all-time leading goalscorer Sam Kerr. She's still six days away from making her début, but has began training with the club, who sit in seventh place.
Canada (NSL) — defeats for the Rise and the Wild as the NSL approaches its halfway point
Tori Tumeth suffered a setback in her hopes at making the Matildas squad, being part of a Vancouver Rise defence that conceded five goals away to Montréal Roses. Image source: Instagram (@sixseconds.ca).
It wasn't a good week for either of our Aussies in the NSL, with both suffering defeats to the two top sides away from home and remaining at the foot end of the table. Tori Tumeth played the entirety of Vancouver Rise's heavy 5–1 loss to current runners-up Montréal Roses, while Kahli Johnson remains out injured and thus did not feature in Calgary Wild's 3–1 loss to current league leaders Ottawa Rapid. The Rise (who won the inaugural championship through the playoffs last season) remain second last in fifth place, while the Wild remain dead last in sixth with just under half of their games this season played. Both sides have majorly struggled defensively, with goal differences of –14 and –18 respectively, while the Wild remain with just two points all season across nine matches.
Transfer Talk — three United players swap Adelaide for Europe, four players and two coaches confirm moves
Matilda McNamara (right) has left Adelaide United, opting to make a move over to Europe. It's reported that she's been linked to clubs in Portugal's Campeonato Nacional. Image source: Instagram (@impetusfootball).
To kick off a loaded episode of Transfer Talk during the big transfer window, Adelaide United has confirmed that three of its players have departed the club for European opportunities. One of these is American-born Irish international Erin Healy, who has European experience and was one of the Reds' best players last season. The other two are both Adelaideans who spent several seasons at the club: Matilda McNamara and Ella Tonkin, both of whom were also key players for United last season, when they finished fifth and made the elimination finals before a comfortable loss to Brisbane Roar. It's yet to be confirmed exactly where each of the trio will be heading, though Tilly has been reportedly linked to a move to the Campeonato Nacional (Liga BPI) in Portugal, where three other Aussies play.
Alex Smith (pictured) leaves Brisbane Roar after a solid tenure at the club. He'll be heading to the USL Super League to coach Brooklyn FC. Image source: Instagram (@brisbaneroarfc).
In other A-League Women news, Brisbane Roar head coach Alex Smith has accepted a managerial job overseas after a strong season with the Roar, where he managed several of Queensland's finest young talents including several Matildas. He'll be headed to USL Super League club Brooklyn FC, who already feature A-League Women experience with American ex-Sydney FC defender Jordan Thompson. He'll join Morgan Aquino and several Americans (including Jordan) as one of the various Aussies or former A-League players in the American second tier. The search for a new head coach is now underway at the club, who finished third in the last regular season and made the semi-finals of the finals series before narrowly bowing out to league and grand final runners-up Wellington Phoenix after a comeback in the second leg.
Alexia Apostolakis (pictured) has signed for Women's Super League 2 (WSL 2) club Bristol City. She'll be one of four Australians competing for a single promotion spot in the 2025–26 season. Image source: Instagram (@bristolcitywomensfc).
Meanwhile, former Melbourne City star and both Young and U23 Matilda Alexia Apostolakis has signed for Bristol City in the WSL 2, joining three other Aussies (Forest's Alana Murphy, Newcastle's Kaitlyn Torpey and Leicester's Emily van Egmond) in the English second tier, which like the WSL continues to grow in quality and close the gap between the top and bottom. The talented double-winning left-back, who played for the U23 Matildas at the Asian Cup and has been capped once for the senior Tillies side, joins the Robins after three seasons at Wanderers and two seasons at Melbourne City, where she won two premierships and one championship, as well as a runners-up medal in the Asian Champions League. The WSL 2 is reverting back to promoting only one team, as last season's system of two teams going up and one to a playoff was only temporary as a solution to expand the WSL. Therefore, the Robins will be directly competing with the Foxes, the Magpies and the Tricky Trees for a single promotion spot.
Leah Blayney (right) helped one of our arch-rivals, Japan's Nadeshiko, lift the 2026 AFC Women's Asian Cup in Australia, breaking the hearts of millions of Australians. Now, the ex-assistant coach for Japan will spearhead Calgary Wild in Canada's Northern Super League (NSL). Image source: Instagram (@football360au, @thewomensgame and @leahblayney).
Moving to Canada, we'll now have another Aussie manager overseas as Leah Blayney has joined NSL side Calgary Wild, where she'll be coaching Matildas striker Kahli Johnson and fighting to save the Wild's season from ending in disaster. At only 40 years old, the Katoomba-born former Tilly has already spearheaded the Young Tillies from 2019 to 2024 as well as being assistant to Greenlandic coach Nils Nielsen for the Nadeshiko, bittersweetly helping a talented Japan side lift the 2026 Asian Cup in Australia after a heartbreaking 1–0 win over us in the final in Sydney. With pressure growing on Joe Montemurro, a good season at the Wild could see her be in the mix for the Matildas job.
Emma Ilijoski (pictured) has signed for Odense BK Q in Denmark's A-Liga, formerly the Elitedivision and later the Kvindeliga. The wing-back previously played for Aberdeen in the Scottish Women's Premier League (SWPL), where she spent one and a half seasons after a short spell at Heart of Midlothian. Image source: Instagram (@emma.ilijoski and @odenseboldklub_q).
Now for a signing in Denmark, Emma Ilijoski has joined Odense and will play in the A-Liga (the Danish one, not ours) next season. The 23-year-old left-back began her career at her home city's club Canberra United (who are unfortunately now struggling to survive) before heading to Scotland, where she played for SWPL sides Hearts and Aberdeen. She is yet to be capped by the Matildas at any level other than four under-16s caps, nor has she been approached by North Macedonia just yet. She'll now be the first Australian player to play in Denmark since 2024–25, which was Wini Heatley's last season at Nordsjælland, who she captained, before moving to her current club Roma. The Danish football season begins earlier than most other Continental European leagues, doing so in late July, with Odense kicking off their season on 25 July with an away game, ironically against Nordsjælland.
Anna Margraf (pictured) has signed for Borussia Mönchengladbach in the 2. Frauen-Bundesliga. She joins VfL Bochum's Lara Kirkby as one of two Aussies playing in the German second tier. Image source: Instagram (@annamargraf_ and @borussia_frauen).
In some long-awaited news, Anna Margraf has moved to Borussia Mönchengladbach in the 2. Frauen-Bundesliga after departing Frauen-Bundesliga side Carl Zeiss Jena. The 25-year-old forward, who was born in Germany and raised in Australia, left Jena midseason (having made just 19 league appearances over her two seasons at the club) to return to Australia, before returning to Germany to sign for Mönchengladbach, where she'll be one of two Aussies playing in the 2. Bundesliga, the other being Bochum's Lara Kirkby. She's never been capped internationally, but is eligible to represent three countries: Australia, Germany and Namibia, with her nationality currently listed as Australian.
Jamilla Rankin (pictured) has jumped ship from TSG Hoffenheim to Eintracht Frankfurt. She signed a three-year deal at the club, keeping her on contract with the Adler until 2029. Image source: Instagram (@eintrachtfrankfurtfrauen, @eintrachtinternational, @matildas and @jamillarankin).
And last but not least, still in Germany, Jamilla Rankin has made a move from Hoffenheim to Frankfurt, joining fellow Matilda Hayley Raso at the club. The 23-year-old left-back, who now speaks and understands conversational German from her time in the Bundesliga, joined Hoffenheim in 2024 and burst onto the scene as she became a regular feature in the Matildas setup, though mostly as a squad player rather than as a starter. She was called up for the Asian Cup, though didn't play a single minute in the competition despite Steph Catley's injury. Both Frankfurt and Hoffenheim fought for the third European place last season, with Eintracht ultimately coming third and thus taking the spot to join Bayern and Wolfsburg in Europe.
Player of the Week — Mackenzie Arnold
As you probably guessed, this week's Player of the Week award goes to Mackenzie Arnold for her clean sheet against Racing Louisville. Well done Macca!
Conclusion
That's all for this week, but stay tuned for next week! As always, feel free to jump into the comments with any questions or to discuss the weekend's matches. Thanks for reading, hopefully you found this helpful!
Once again I apologise for the late upload, I've been busy and the site has been down for a bit.
America (NWSL) — Arnold keeps a clean sheet in important and decisive Thorns win
Mackenzie Arnold (pictured) holding roses after her sixth clean sheet of the 2026 season. It's a tradition for Thorns players to receive roses for goals, clean sheets and good performances, with the roses being given out by their active supporters' group, the Rose City Riveters. Image source: Instagram (@thornsfc).
Portland Thorns' hopes for the NWSL shield have been boosted after the Thorns crushed Racing Louisville with a 4–0 victory at home, with Mackenzie Arnold keeping a clean sheet across the entirety of the match. The Thorns sit second on the NWSL ladder, still one point behind San Diego Wave. Speaking of the Wave, they kept their top spot by winning 2–0 over Gotham FC, who have signed club legend and NWSL regular season all-time leading goalscorer Sam Kerr. She's still six days away from making her début, but has began training with the club, who sit in seventh place.
Canada (NSL) — defeats for the Rise and the Wild as the NSL approaches its halfway point
Tori Tumeth suffered a setback in her hopes at making the Matildas squad, being part of a Vancouver Rise defence that conceded five goals away to Montréal Roses. Image source: Instagram (@sixseconds.ca).
It wasn't a good week for either of our Aussies in the NSL, with both suffering defeats to the two top sides away from home and remaining at the foot end of the table. Tori Tumeth played the entirety of Vancouver Rise's heavy 5–1 loss to current runners-up Montréal Roses, while Kahli Johnson remains out injured and thus did not feature in Calgary Wild's 3–1 loss to current league leaders Ottawa Rapid. The Rise (who won the inaugural championship through the playoffs last season) remain second last in fifth place, while the Wild remain dead last in sixth with just under half of their games this season played. Both sides have majorly struggled defensively, with goal differences of –14 and –18 respectively, while the Wild remain with just two points all season across nine matches.
Transfer Talk — three United players swap Adelaide for Europe, four players and two coaches confirm moves
Matilda McNamara (right) has left Adelaide United, opting to make a move over to Europe. It's reported that she's been linked to clubs in Portugal's Campeonato Nacional. Image source: Instagram (@impetusfootball).
To kick off a loaded episode of Transfer Talk during the big transfer window, Adelaide United has confirmed that three of its players have departed the club for European opportunities. One of these is American-born Irish international Erin Healy, who has European experience and was one of the Reds' best players last season. The other two are both Adelaideans who spent several seasons at the club: Matilda McNamara and Ella Tonkin, both of whom were also key players for United last season, when they finished fifth and made the elimination finals before a comfortable loss to Brisbane Roar. It's yet to be confirmed exactly where each of the trio will be heading, though Tilly has been reportedly linked to a move to the Campeonato Nacional (Liga BPI) in Portugal, where three other Aussies play.
Alex Smith (pictured) leaves Brisbane Roar after a solid tenure at the club. He'll be heading to the USL Super League to coach Brooklyn FC. Image source: Instagram (@brisbaneroarfc).
In other A-League Women news, Brisbane Roar head coach Alex Smith has accepted a managerial job overseas after a strong season with the Roar, where he managed several of Queensland's finest young talents including several Matildas. He'll be headed to USL Super League club Brooklyn FC, who already feature A-League Women experience with American ex-Sydney FC defender Jordan Thompson. He'll join Morgan Aquino and several Americans (including Jordan) as one of the various Aussies or former A-League players in the American second tier. The search for a new head coach is now underway at the club, who finished third in the last regular season and made the semi-finals of the finals series before narrowly bowing out to league and grand final runners-up Wellington Phoenix after a comeback in the second leg.
Alexia Apostolakis (pictured) has signed for Women's Super League 2 (WSL 2) club Bristol City. She'll be one of four Australians competing for a single promotion spot in the 2025–26 season. Image source: Instagram (@bristolcitywomensfc).
Meanwhile, former Melbourne City star and both Young and U23 Matilda Alexia Apostolakis has signed for Bristol City in the WSL 2, joining three other Aussies (Forest's Alana Murphy, Newcastle's Kaitlyn Torpey and Leicester's Emily van Egmond) in the English second tier, which like the WSL continues to grow in quality and close the gap between the top and bottom. The talented double-winning left-back, who played for the U23 Matildas at the Asian Cup and has been capped once for the senior Tillies side, joins the Robins after three seasons at Wanderers and two seasons at Melbourne City, where she won two premierships and one championship, as well as a runners-up medal in the Asian Champions League. The WSL 2 is reverting back to promoting only one team, as last season's system of two teams going up and one to a playoff was only temporary as a solution to expand the WSL. Therefore, the Robins will be directly competing with the Foxes, the Magpies and the Tricky Trees for a single promotion spot.
Leah Blayney (right) helped one of our arch-rivals, Japan's Nadeshiko, lift the 2026 AFC Women's Asian Cup in Australia, breaking the hearts of millions of Australians. Now, the ex-assistant coach for Japan will spearhead Calgary Wild in Canada's Northern Super League (NSL). Image source: Instagram (@football360au, @thewomensgame and @leahblayney).
Moving to Canada, we'll now have another Aussie manager overseas as Leah Blayney has joined NSL side Calgary Wild, where she'll be coaching Matildas striker Kahli Johnson and fighting to save the Wild's season from ending in disaster. At only 40 years old, the Katoomba-born former Tilly has already spearheaded the Young Tillies from 2019 to 2024 as well as being assistant to Greenlandic coach Nils Nielsen for the Nadeshiko, bittersweetly helping a talented Japan side lift the 2026 Asian Cup in Australia after a heartbreaking 1–0 win over us in the final in Sydney. With pressure growing on Joe Montemurro, a good season at the Wild could see her be in the mix for the Matildas job.
Emma Ilijoski (pictured) has signed for Odense BK Q in Denmark's A-Liga, formerly the Elitedivision and later the Kvindeliga. The wing-back previously played for Aberdeen in the Scottish Women's Premier League (SWPL), where she spent one and a half seasons after a short spell at Heart of Midlothian. Image source: Instagram (@emma.ilijoski and @odenseboldklub_q).
Now for a signing in Denmark, Emma Ilijoski has joined Odense and will play in the A-Liga (the Danish one, not ours) next season. The 23-year-old left-back began her career at her home city's club Canberra United (who are unfortunately now struggling to survive) before heading to Scotland, where she played for SWPL sides Hearts and Aberdeen. She is yet to be capped by the Matildas at any level other than four under-16s caps, nor has she been approached by North Macedonia just yet. She'll now be the first Australian player to play in Denmark since 2024–25, which was Wini Heatley's last season at Nordsjælland, who she captained, before moving to her current club Roma. The Danish football season begins earlier than most other Continental European leagues, doing so in late July, with Odense kicking off their season on 25 July with an away game, ironically against Nordsjælland.
Anna Margraf (pictured) has signed for Borussia Mönchengladbach in the 2. Frauen-Bundesliga. She joins VfL Bochum's Lara Kirkby as one of two Aussies playing in the German second tier. Image source: Instagram (@annamargraf_ and @borussia_frauen).
In some long-awaited news, Anna Margraf has moved to Borussia Mönchengladbach in the 2. Frauen-Bundesliga after departing Frauen-Bundesliga side Carl Zeiss Jena. The 25-year-old forward, who was born in Germany and raised in Australia, left Jena midseason (having made just 19 league appearances over her two seasons at the club) to return to Australia, before returning to Germany to sign for Mönchengladbach, where she'll be one of two Aussies playing in the 2. Bundesliga, the other being Bochum's Lara Kirkby. She's never been capped internationally, but is eligible to represent three countries: Australia, Germany and Namibia, with her nationality currently listed as Australian.
Jamilla Rankin (pictured) has jumped ship from TSG Hoffenheim to Eintracht Frankfurt. She signed a three-year deal at the club, keeping her on contract with the Adler until 2029. Image source: Instagram (@eintrachtfrankfurtfrauen, @eintrachtinternational, @matildas and @jamillarankin).
And last but not least, still in Germany, Jamilla Rankin has made a move from Hoffenheim to Frankfurt, joining fellow Matilda Hayley Raso at the club. The 23-year-old left-back, who now speaks and understands conversational German from her time in the Bundesliga, joined Hoffenheim in 2024 and burst onto the scene as she became a regular feature in the Matildas setup, though mostly as a squad player rather than as a starter. She was called up for the Asian Cup, though didn't play a single minute in the competition despite Steph Catley's injury. Both Frankfurt and Hoffenheim fought for the third European place last season, with Eintracht ultimately coming third and thus taking the spot to join Bayern and Wolfsburg in Europe.
Player of the Week — Mackenzie Arnold
As you probably guessed, this week's Player of the Week award goes to Mackenzie Arnold for her clean sheet against Racing Louisville. Well done Macca!
Conclusion
That's all for this week, but stay tuned for next week! As always, feel free to jump into the comments with any questions or to discuss the weekend's matches. Thanks for reading, hopefully you found this helpful!
