The Stingrays have confirmed former Socceroos star Scott Chipperfield has been appointed to the top job as Carmelina Moscato’s replacement. 

The move signifies a permanent return home for Chipperfield after a 17-year stint in Europe that included 11 years with FC Basel and saw him feature for the Socceroos at the 2006 and 2010 World Cups. 

“It’s a new challenge for me,” Chipperfield said. “I’m happy to be back in Wollongong after 17 years in Europe and I’m looking forward to bringing a bit of experience and stability to the club. 

“It’s an exciting time for women’s football at the moment, with a World Cup next year, the Matildas doing well and women’s football in Australia continuing to grow. Being a local, it’s good to be involved in a local club.”

Chipperfield retired from a storied playing career in 2012 and moved into junior coaching in Switzerland. The junior development field was where he intended to remain, however when an opportunity opened up in 2017 to join Zurich United as an assistant coach, he jumped at it. 

The decision ultimately led him to the women’s head-coaching gig at FC Luzern Frauen earlier this year. 

With playing and coaching styles differing in Europe, Chipperfield is hopeful he will be able to bring a fresh perspective to women’s football in Australia. 

“I thought about moving into coaching towards the end of my career, mostly with kids though.

“The last year and a half I’ve been working with a men’s team and then the last six months with a women’s team. The option was there to go into senior coaching and I enjoyed it.

“Hopefully I’ll bring new ideas and new training methods to the Stingrays. I’ve seen training in Australia, it’s a little different to what I do. Hopefully what I do is positive, every coach has their own philosophy and ideas and hopefully I can bring something new to the club.”

Chipperfield's signing means former Socceroos stars will be in charge of the men's and women's National Premier League campaigns, after World Cup defender Luke Wilkshire took over as Wolves coach from Jacob Timpano in the off-season.

The Stingrays have already signed W-League talent for 2019, including Wanderers midfielder Liana Danaskos, Matildas defender Caitlin Cooper, as well as Erica Halloway and Tilly Kramer.

Kathy McDonogh has also become the Stingrays first female president. 

"Having Scott on board is a great step for us," she said. 

"He brings a lot of international experience, it's exciting for the Stingrays, especially when we already have the base of our squad signing on.

"I think it's great for the region to have two Socceroos leading the NPL clubs, it shows how successful our pathways are and what our players can achieve."