JMF football scholarships go to players from Cairns and Pagewood

Two 15-year-old Indigenous players from Cairns and Pagewood have been awarded 12-month football scholarships through John Moriarty Football after the programme’s recent national talent showcase.

Yasmin Wyld-Hill from Cairns, Queensland, and Matthew Wunsch from Pagewood, New South Wales, were selected following the JMF National Talent Showcase, which identified 26 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander footballers aged 12 to 16.

The football scholarships include personalised support, technical and football development, mentoring and financial aid covering club fees, travel and education.

John Moriarty, co-founder of John Moriarty Football and Australia’s first Aboriginal footballer selected for Australia, said barriers to elite football still remained for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander players.

“The pipeline for Indigenous talent within the football ecosystem just doesn’t exist, it’s never been created. Other football codes show us that Indigenous athletes are extraordinary,” Moriarty said.

Pathway through JMF

Jen Wicks, JMF programme Manager – Performance and Coaching and former Chelsea FC Academy Director, said both scholarship recipients had the potential to pursue a professional football career with extra support.

“Yasmine is a dynamic player, quick thinking with an eye for the goal. She is also showing the mental and emotional strength a player needs to succeed in building a professional football career. Matthew is hard-working with impressive raw pace and agility,” Wicks said.

Former A-League player, JMF ambassador and scholarships coordinator Allira Toby said affordability and distance continued to lock some young players out of competitive football.

The programme’s inaugural scholarship holder, Shadeene Evans, was awarded a scholarship at 13 after being scouted by former Matildas coach Alen Stajcic. Evans debuted with Sydney FC in 2019, was selected as a Young Matilda and named vice-captain, later played for Adelaide United and Central Coast Mariners, and was part of the Mariners’ 2025 premiership-winning team.

John Moriarty Football says it engages more than 3,000 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people aged two to 18 each year, and delivers programmes to 16 communities and 18 public schools in the Northern Territory, New South Wales and Queensland.