The Subway Young Socceroos are on the verge of making history at the AFC U20 Asian Cup in China, having ended long wait periods on their way to the final, thanks to a wealth of talent from the A-Leagues. The Under-20 national team is reaping the rewards of gaining consistent playing time at a professional level, as evidenced by the statistics.
The Young Socceroos have captured the imagination of the Australian football community with their impressive journey to the AFC Under-20 Asian Cup final in China.
After triumphing over rivals Japan in the semi-finals, Australia’s Under-20 team has reached its first AFC U20 Asian Cup final since 2010, and they’ve also secured a spot in the FIFA U20 World Cup for the first time in 12 years.
Of the squad that has made this historical achievement, 17 out of 23 players are currently showcasing their skills in the A-Leagues, with all 23 having been affiliated at some point with an A-Leagues club.
There’s more to this memorable journey than meets the eye. Trevor Morgan’s side has progressed impressively in Shenzhen, winning all five of their matches so far, and their success has stemmed from a remarkable group that has received ample professional game time at an early age.
This Young Socceroos squad has accumulated over 12,200 professional match minutes across more than 250 senior-level games as they head into the 2025 tournament.
| Young Socceroos Asian Cup Squad | Match Minutes in the Isuzu UTE A-League at time of tournament | Starts in the Isuzu UTE A-League at time of tournament | Result at AFC U20 Asian Cup |
| 2025 | 12,136 | 127 | Finalists* |
| 2023 | 11,110 | 104 | Quarter-finals |
| 2018 | 2,755 | 27 | Quarter-finals |
| 2016 | 5,379 | 61 | Group Stage |
| 2014 | 7,858 | 77 | Group Stage |
| 2012 | 6,399 | 71 | Semi-finals |
| 2010 | 6,655 | 72 | Runners-Up |
Out of these statistics, 12,136 minutes were played in the Isuzu UTE A-League across 127 starts. It is clear that Australian national teams, from the victorious Joeys at the Hattrick U17 International Tournament in the United Arab Emirates to the Young Socceroos, are benefiting from an increased focus on youth development.
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For perspective, the 2023 Young Socceroos gathered 11,110 match minutes in the Isuzu UTE A-League from 104 starts.
When the Young Socceroos made it to the 2010 Asian Cup final, ultimately falling to North Korea, the players had amassed just over 8,000 senior match minutes in the Isuzu UTE A-League or overseas prior to the tournament.
This highlights the opportunities provided by A-League clubs, with the statistics reinforcing the point.
The Isuzu UTE A-League ranks second globally, just behind the Serbian SuperLiga, in the percentage of match minutes allocated to players born in or after 2004, according to the CIES Football Observatory, based on current or recently completed seasons in the top 50 divisions worldwide.
“If you look at this Young Socceroos team, it’s evident why everyone is so excited. They’ve qualified, and looking ahead, all these players have made their presence felt in the A-League,” said retired Socceroo and former A-Leagues standout Tommy Oar on Total A-Leagues this week.
“When I was coming through, I hadn’t even stepped onto the A-League pitch before my first World Cup appearance. So these young players are at a different phase of their careers.”
“The Young Socceroos now showcase what the A-League and its clubs have done – integrating younger players and providing them with opportunities.”
“So far, they’ve excelled. It’ll be intriguing to see how they perform as we near the World Cup.”
“There’s every chance for these players to shine in the tournament and potentially attract significant transfer fees for their A-League clubs. It’s an exciting time on all fronts.”
2010 AFC U19 Championship squad
Coach: Jan Versleijen
Result: Runners-up
Pro match minutes leading into tournament: 8,159 (estimated)
Mark Birighitti (Adelaide United)
Dylan McGowan (Hearts, Scotland)
Brendan Hamill (Melbourne City)
Sam Gallagher (Central Coast Mariners)
Jason Davidson (Pacos de Ferreira)
Ben Kantarovski (Newcastle Jets)
Kofi Danning (Sydney FC)
Rhyan Grant (Sydney FC)
Eli Babalj (Melbourne City)
Kerem Bulut (Mlada Boleslav, Czechia)
Tommy Oar (FC Utrecht, Netherlands)
Mathew Leckie (Adelaide)
Terry Antonis (Sydney FC)
Daniel Bowles (Brisbane Roar)
Ryan Edwards (AIS)
Matthew Fletcher (Sunderland, England)
Matt Acton (Brisbane Roar)
Mustafa Amini (Central Coast Mariners)
Nikola Stanojevic (Central Coast Mariners)
Steven Lustica (Gold Coast United)
Marc Warren (Central Coast Mariners)
Dimitri Petratos (Sydney FC)
Alex Pearson (Perth Glory)
2012 U19 Championship squad
Coach: Paul Okon
Result: Semi-finals (4th)
Pro match minutes leading into tournament: 7,032 (estimated)
Paul Izzo (Adelaide United)
Josh Brillante (Newcastle Jets)
Connor Chapman (Newcastle Jets)
Curtis Good (Newcastle United, England)
Corey Brown (Brisbane Roar)
Reece Caira (Western Sydney Wanderers)
Corey Gameiro (FC Eindhoven, Netherlands)
Terry Antonis (Sydney FC)
Adam Taggart (Newcastle Jets)
Jamie Maclaren (Blackburn Rovers, England)
Ryan Edwards (Reading, England)
Liam Jacob (Oldham, England)
Tom King (Bristol City, England)
Ryan Williams (Fulham, England)
Jason Geria (Brisbane Roar)
Jackson Irvine (Celtic, Scotland)
Hayden Morton (Central Coast Mariners)
Jack Duncan (Newcastle Jets)
Ben Garuccio (Melbourne City)
Mustafa Amini (Borussia Dortmund, Germany)
Mitchell Oxborrow (Newcastle Jets)
David Vrankovic (Melbourne City)
Travis Cooper (VVV-Venlo, Netherlands)
2014 AFC U19 Championship squad
Coach: Paul Okon
Result: Group stage (9th)
Pro match minutes leading into tournament: 8,218 (estimated)
Anthony Bouzanis (Sydney FC)
Paul Izzo (Adelaide United)
Jordan Thurtell (Perth Glory)
Daniel Alessi (Western Sydney Wanderers)
Shayne D’Cunha (Blacktown City, NSW)
Scott Galloway (Melbourne Victory)
Dylan Murnane (Melbourne Victory)
Ben Warland (Adelaide United)
Riley Woodcock (Perth Glory)
Mark Ochieng (Adelaide United)
Cameron Burgess (Fulham, England) 360
Shannon Brady (Brisbane Roar)
Jordan Brown (Melbourne Victory)
Daniel De Silva (Perth Glory)
Hagi Gligor (Sydney FC)
Chris Ikonomidis (Lazio, Italy)
Stefan Mauk (Melbourne City)
Chris Naumoff (Sydney FC)
Brandon Borrello (Brisbane Roar)
Awer Mabil (Adelaide United)
Liam Rose (Central Coast Mariners)
Peter Skapetis (Stoke City, England)
Jaushua Sotirio (Western Sydney Wanderers)
2016 AFC U19 Championship squad
Coach: Ufuk Talay
Result: Group stage (11th)
Pro match minutes leading into tournament: 6,079 (estimated)
Daniel Margush (Adelaide United)
Tom Glover (Tottenham, England)
Jasko Keranovic (WBA, England)
Jordan Holmes (Bournemouth, England)
William Mutch (Sydney FC)
Thomas Deng (Jong PSV, Netherlands)
Jackson Bandiera (Western Sydney Wanderers)
Connor O’Toole (Brisbane Roar)
Patrick Flottmann (Sydney FC)
George Timotheou (Sydney FC)
Liam Rose (Central Coast Mariners)
Anthony Kalik (Hajduk Split, Croatia) 700
Tariq Maia (Western Sydney Wanderers)
Josh Hope (Melbourne Victory)
Jake Brimmer (Liverpool, England)
Keanu Baccus (Western Sydney Wanderers)
Liam Youlley (Western Sydney Wanderers)
George Mells (Adelaide United)
Lachlan Scott (Western Sydney Wanderers)
Reno Piscopo (Inter, Italy)
Mario Shabow (Western Sydney Wanderers)
Jayden Prasad (Brisbane Roar)
George Blackwood (Sydney FC)
Joseph Champness (Brisbane Roar)
Steve Kuzmanovski (Melbourne City)
2018 AFC U19 Championship squad
Coach: Ante Milicic
Result: Quarter-finals (6th)
Pro match minutes leading into tournament: 3,059 (estimated)
James Delianov (Melbourne City)
Macklin Freke (Brisbane Roar)
Djuro Dragicevic (Sydney FC)
Nathaniel Atkinson (Melbourne City)
Tass Mourdoukoutas (Western Sydney Wanderers)
Con Ouzounidis (Everton, England)
Dylan Pierias (Melbourne City)
Walter Scott (Perth Glory)
Dylan Ryan (Willem II, Netherlands)
Mathieu Cordier (Western Sydney Wanderers)
Tate Russell (Western Sydney Wanderers)
Sebastian Pasquali (Ajax, Netherlands)
Ramy Najjarine (Melbourne City)
Connor Metcalfe (Melbourne City)
Christian Theoharous (Borussia Monchengladbach, Germany) 127
Angus Thurgate (Newcastle Jets)
Joshua Cavallo (Melbourne City)
Moudi Najjar (Melbourne City)
John Iredale (Heerenveen, Netherlands)
Ben Folami (Ipswich Town, England) 177
Oliver Puflett (Western Sydney Wanderers)
Apostolos Stamatelopoulos (Adelaide United)
John Roberts (Western Sydney Wanderers)
2023 AFC U20 Asian Cup squad (2020 tournament cancelled due to COVID-19)
Coach: Trevor Morgan
Result: Quarter-finals (5th)
Pro match minutes leading into tournament: 12,669 (estimated)
Jack Warshawsky (Western Sydney Wanderers)
Joshua Rawlins (Utrecht, Netherlands) 1229
Nectarios Triantis (Central Coast Mariners)
Chris Donnell (Perth Glory)
Matt Dench (Charlton, England)
Rhys Boznivovski (Western United)
Bernardo Oliveira (Adelaide United)
Alessandro Lopane (Western Sydney Wanderers)
Gabriel Popovic (Rudes, Croatia) 330
Adrian Segecic (Sydney FC)
Raphael Rodrigues (Melbourne City)
James Nieuwenhuizen (Melbourne City)
Panashe Madanha (Adelaide United)
Kaelan Majekodunmi (Perth Glory)
Joseph Forde (Perth Glory)
Jake Girdwood-Reich (Sydney)
Aidan Simmons (Western Sydney Wanderers)
Alex Robinson (Macarthur Bulls)
Archie Godwin (Newcastle Jets)
Badolato (Western Sydney Wanderers)
Jed Drew (Macarthur Bulls)
Jing Reec (AGF, Denmark)
Jonny Yull (Adelaide United)
*2025 AFC U20 Asian Cup squad
Coach: Trevor Morgan
Result: TBC
Pro match minutes leading into tournament: 12,804 (estimated)
Steven Hall (Brighton and Hove Albion, England)
Luka Jovanovic (Adelaide United)
Panagiotis Kikianis (Adelaide United)
Fabian Talladira (Adelaide United)
Jonny Yull (Adelaide United)
Sebastian Esposito (Lecce, Italy)
Lucas Herrington (Brisbane Roar)
Paul Okon-Engstler (Benfica, Portugal)
Daniel Bennie (QPR, England)
Dean Bosnjak (Macarthur Bulls)
Frans Deli (Macarthur Bulls)
Oliver Randazzo (Macarthur Bulls)
Alexander Robinson (Macarthur Bulls)
Medin Memeti (Melbourne City)
Joshua Inserra (Melbourne Victory)
Musa Toure (Randers, Denmark)
Jaylan Pearman (Perth Glory)
Adam Bugarija (Perth Glory)
Zach Lisolajski (Perth Glory)
Louis Agosti (Perugia, Italy)
Tiago Quintal (Sydney FC)
Gus Hoefsloot (Sydney FC)
Alexander Badolato (Melbourne Victory, on loan from Western Sydney Wanderers)
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