Despite not getting up on the weekend, I thought there was a plenty to like about our performance against an England squad in decent form.

Our next generation of players looks like they are starting to feel a lot more comfortable on the big stage and it showed against an English team who are preparing for a massive Euro 2016 tournament.

Obviously neither side had all of their players on deck, but it was still a strong display from our boys given the circumstances. 

The performances of guys like Tom Rogic and Aaron Mooy definitely stood out.

It’s no secret both of those two have already caught the eye of a fair few big clubs in top competitions around Europe in recent months and they did their own value no harm by playing the way they did over the weekend.

If they transferred to a notable club in the next few weeks it would really come as no surprise.

Overall, Australian coach Ange Postecoglou has picked a fairly youthful squad for the friendlies coming up against Greece.

Most of these players will more than likely form the basis of the Australian national team for the years to come so the importance of these matches shouldn’t be underestimated.

When a similar starting line-up fronts up against Greece in a couple of matches on home soil in the next seven days, we should expect another high quality display. 

Nowra boy Adam Federici will more than likely still be in the squad so hopefully we can get some valuable minutes in the green and gold.

At the same time as the Socceroos continue to get valuable minutes, the Matildas are continuing to ramp up their preparations for the Olympics.

The Illawarra still has the opportunity to support three of our local girls for Rio 2016. 

Caitlin Foord, Michelle Heyman and Caitlin Cooper have continued to participate in the national team’s camps in recent months and were all named in the Matildas’ squad for two matches against New Zealand.

Should they all make the Matildas team for the Olympics, it would be a outstanding achievement for football in the Illawarra. 

The trio all played their part in the qualifying campaign just a few months ago and deserve their chance to play for a medal should the opportunity be presented to them.

Double Up

Sharing WIN Stadium on double header weekend’s is something we at the Wolves we won’t get tired of. This Sunday we welcome Wollongong Olympic and South Coast to the venue for what should be a sensational day.