Vera Pauw

Vera Pauw is a Dutch former player and coach, having managed several national women’s teams since 1998 including Scotland, the Netherlands, Russia, and South Africa. Her most recent coaching stint was with the Houston Dash in the NWSL, where they finished sixth. While Pauw has no knowledge of the W-League or Australian football, her international experience is undeniable: she led the Netherlands to the semi-final of the UEFA Women’s European Championships in 2009, and undoubtedly contributed to South Africa qualifying for their first ever World Cup this year through her involvement from 2014-2016. Her experience in the NWSL is also valuable, as many take the American women’s league to be one of the best in the world. During her time at Houston, she had to manage several international-level players who will be appearing at this year’s World Cup, including some current Matildas. Whether FFA are willing to take a chance on a coach with such vast international experience but little local knowledge to lead the Matildas into the future is the big question.

Laura Harvey

Harvey is a former English footballer and current head coach of NWSL side Utah Royals FC. While, like Pauw, she has no experience of Australian football, Harvey boasts one of the best CVs in women’s coaching, with head coaching roles in both England and the United States. She began her career in England, coaching the England u17, u19, and u23 women’s teams from 2005-2011. During this time, she was also the head coach of Birmingham City Ladies and Arsenal’s women’s side. She was named the FAWSL Coach of the Year in 2011 after leading Arsenal to win the league title, FA Cup, and Continental Cup in the same year. Finishing her stint in 2012, having won three league titles, Harvey was hired as the head coach of NWSL side Seattle Reign from 2013-2017. During her 2014 reign, Harvey led Seattle to a record unbeaten streak of 16 games, with the team finishing first in the regular season. During this time, Harvey was named NWSL Coach of the Year, the FA Coach of the Year, and was a finalist for the FIFA World Coach of the Year. In 2017, Harvey was named as head coach of the United States U23 women’s side, and took on an expanded role with the US Soccer Federation after her exit from Seattle. In 2018, she was appointed head coach of new NWSL franchise, Utah Royals FC, helping them to fifth in their inaugural season. It’s understood Harvey was hoping for a national team head coaching role after leaving Seattle, and is likely a strong international candidate for the Matildas head coach role given her experiences in national team set-ups, as well as with several Australian players in the NWSL.

While this list is in no way exhaustive, it also shows there is no shortage of talented, experienced head coaches capable of taking on the Matildas head coaching role.

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