The CommBank Junior Matildas kicked off their 2024 AFC U-17 Women's Asian Cup Round 1 Qualifiers with an 11-0 win over Mongolia.
Australia was on the front foot early, with Georgia Groidis capitalising on a mistake in the Mongolian defence and slotting her attempt past the goalkeeper to give the Junior Matildas the opener just 36 seconds after the whistle blew.
The side doubled their advantage in the 19th minute, with Kiera Meyers' free-kick finding Grace Kuilamu, who nodded in her first of the game.
Talia Younis added her name to the scoresheet soon after, with Groidis sending in a low cross to find an unmarked Younis on the penalty spot.
Groidis turned provider once again, doing enough to keep the ball in and sending a cross in to find Meyers for her first of the game to make it 4-0 in first-half stoppage time.
Australia went into the break with a 5-0 advantage after Shelby McMahon found the top corner from outside the box.
Head Coach Rae Dower made three changes to start the half, with Lillian Skelly, Tiana Fuller and Ischia Brooking coming off the bench to start the second half.
Fuller made an immediate impact off the bench, adding her name to the scoresheet with her shot from outside the box going through the gloves of the Mongolian keeper.
Dower made another change to the side in the 62nd minute, with Carina Rossi replacing Sienna Dale.
Australia had the chance to make it 7-0 after a handball in the box and referee Supiree Testhomya pointing to the spot, with Fuller dispatching from 12 yards to score her second of the day.
Isabela Hoyos made her first appearance of the qualifying campaign, coming on to replace skipper Ruby Cuthbert in defence, with Meyers taking the captain's duties for the rest of the game.
Back Row (L to R): Amelia Tartaglia, Ruby Cuthbert (c), Shelby McMahon, Jessica Skinner, Christina Kiceec and Grace Kuilamu.
Front Row (L to R): Talia Younis, Georgia Groidis, Sienna Dale, Jade O'Brien and Kiera Meyers
Fuller completed her hat trick for the afternoon and found Australia's eighth of the game, Ischia Brooking threading the perfect ball through to find Fuller who dribbled past the keeper and finished into the back of the net.
Meyers added to her tally for the day to score Australia's ninth of the game, before Christina Kiceec made it 10 with her first of the game. Fuller found the back of the net once again, taking her tally to the game to four and giving Australia an 11-0 lead.
Australia will finish their Round 1 of Qualifying on Friday when they take on Chinese Taipei, with the top two teams in Group B advancing to Round 2 of Qualifiers in September.
Head Coach Rae Dower talked after the emphatic win over the host nation, expressing her delight in her team's result.
"I'm delighted to start off the campaign with an 11-0 victory against the host nation. It was a bit of a nervous performance from the players if we're honest, and they know that they can play much better." she started.
"They're really energised now to work hard again during the next couple of days and put in a more complete performance on Friday against Chinese Taipei," she said as the side looks ahead to their final Round 1 qualifier on Friday night.
"It's hard to feel disappointed with such an emphatic win, but we are very ambitious and have set some high standards for how we want to play our football. Some of the goals, including the first one in the first 40 seconds of the match were of a very high quality, so that's a great benchmark for the group in how we want to stamp our football DNA on the pitch." Dower explained.
Dower made the maximum number of substitutes in the game, seeing five players come off the bench in the second half for the Junior Matildas.
"Additionally, we had 8 players that debuted for their country against Mongolia, so it is a match with fond memories that will stay with them for the rest of their lives."
"We'll be looking to rotate the squad again for Friday's game, to expose as much of the group as we can to international competition."
Watch the full match replay now.
Match Details
Mongolia U-17: 0
Australia U-17: 11 (Groidis 1' Kuilamu 19' Younis 24' Meyers 45+1' 87' McMahon 45 +3' Fuller 49' 69' 82' 90+4' Kiceec 89'
Tournament: 2024 AFC U-17 Women's Asian Cup Round 1 Qualifiers - Group B
Date: Monday 24 April
Venue: MFF Football Centre, Ulaanbaatar
Kick-off: 3.00 pm (local) / 5.00 pm (AEST)
Referee: Supiree Testhomya (Thailand)
Assistant Referees: Nuannid Donjangreed (Thailand) & Islam Awwad Al-Abadi (Jordan)
Fourth Official: Esra'a Mahmoud Mohammad Almbaidin (Jordan)
Australia U-17 XI: 12. Jessica Skinner (GK), 3. Amelia Tartaglia, 5. Georgia Groidis (14. Skelly 45'), 6. Kiera Meyers, 7. Ruby Cuthbert (c)(13. Hoyos 73'), 9. Christina Kiceec, 10. Grace Kuilamu (20. Fuller 45'), 17. Talia Younis, 19. Sienna Dale (4. Rossi 62'), 21. Shelby McMahon (11. Brooking 45'), 23. Jade O'Brien
Substitutes not used: 1. Georgia Ritchie (GK), 2. Alvina Khoshaba, 8. Mia Golding, 15. Lilly Simpson, 16. Shayla Williams, 18. Sofia Fante (GK), 22. Chloe Parker
Yellow Card: Nil
Red Card: Nil
AFC U17 WOMEN’S ASIAN CUP | ROUND 1 QUALIFIERS - GROUP B
Australia v Chinese Taipei
Date: Friday, 28 April 2023
Time: 3.00 pm (local) / 5.00 pm (AEST)
Venue: MFF Football Centre, Ulaanbaatar