New Zealand have announced their squad for international friendlies against powerhouse the United States and Mexico, with seven Ninja A-League stars called up.
Wellington Phoenix quartet CJ Bott, Victoria Esson, Mackenzie Barry and Manaia Elliott headline the A-Leagues inclusions in a 24-player squad set to face Mexico in a pair of friendlies (October 24 and October 27) before going head-to-head with Olympic champions the USA in Kansas City on October 30.
Melbourne Victory’s Claudia Bunge, Melbourne City recruit Deven Jackson and Kelli Brown of Newcastle Jets have also been selected.
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There are seven Ninja A-League-based players in the Football Ferns squad from four clubs:
Melbourne City: Deven Jackson
Melbourne Victory: Claudia Bunge
Newcastle Jets: Kelli Brown
Wellington Phoenix: CJ Bott, Victoria Esson, Mackenzie Barry and Manaia Elliott
“These are three challenging and exciting games, and we’ve selected a strong squad to continue building on what we’ve started this year,” said head coach Michael Mayne.
“As we prepare for FIFA Women’s World Cup qualifying in 2026, we always wanted to use the first half of the year to give opportunities to a wide range of players and to implement our new ways of working on and off the pitch.
“These games give us the chance to further develop that work, while also providing opportunities for other players to ensure we’re in the best possible position to perform when qualifying comes around.
“This window will be challenging and will put our work this year to the test to see what we’ve built so far, where the next opportunities lie, and where some of the gaps remain.
“It’s been a valuable period since the last international games, connecting with the wider squad about what we have coming up. There was real excitement from all of the players to be involved, and for those selected, I know they’re really looking forward to the opportunity to test ourselves in Mexico and the USA.”
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New Zealand’s squad for friendlies against Mexico and USA:
Liz Anton (22 caps/0 goals) Kolbotn IL, Norway
Mackenzie Barry (20/1) Wellington Phoenix FC, New Zealand
Hannah Blake (7/0) Durham FC, England
CJ Bott (50/3) Wellington Phoenix FC, New Zealand
Katie Bowen (113/4) Inter Milan, Italy
Kelli Brown (4/0) Newcastle Jets, Australia
Claudia Bunge (35/0) Melbourne Victory, Australia
Milly Clegg (15/2) Halifax Tides FC, Canada
Manaia Elliott (3/0) Wellington Phoenix FC, New Zealand
Victoria Esson (28/0) Wellington Phoenix FC, New Zealand
Michaela Foster (25/1) Durham FC, England
Maya Hahn (4/1) FC Viktoria Berlin, Germany
Jacqui Hand (35/9) Kolbotn IL, Norway
Deven Jackson (2/0) Melbourne City, Australia
Katie Kitching (18/6) Sunderland AFC, England
Annalie Longo (140/15) Auckland United, New Zealand
Meikayla Moore (71/4) Calgary Wild FC, Canada
Grace Neville (13/0) Ipswich Town, England
Emma Pijnenburg (3/0) Feyenoord Rotterdam, Netherlands
Gabi Rennie (40/2) Eskilstuna United DFF, Sweden
Indiah-Paige Riley (29/3) Crystal Palace, England
Alina Santos (0/0) University of Denver, USA
Kate Taylor (25/2) Dijon FCO, France
Grace Wisnewski (3/0) FC Nordsjælland, Denmark
