Eight Victorians named in CommBank Joeys Squad for U17 Asian Cup Qualifiers
CommBank Joeys head coach Carl Veart’s has selected eight Victorians in a 23-player squad to represent Australia in the upcoming AFC U17 Asian Cup™ Saudi Arabia 2026 Qualifiers in Jordan this month.
Sydney FC duo Akol Akon and Miles Milliner are included, having also played in the 2025 AFC U17 Asian Cup™, as is Melbourne City’s Akeem Gerald, who became the youngest player to play in an AFC Champions League game in October.
There are also new faces in the squad, including Jariyah Shah, who is currently playing for Manchester United’s U18 side, and Lenny Van Heer, who plays for Djurgårdens in Sweden.
As part of Group E, the CommBank Joeys will face off against hosts Jordan, before games against Bhutan, Philippines and Iraq from November 24 (local) to November 30 (local), all of which will be hosted at the Aqaba Stadium in Aqaba, Jordan.
With qualification for the AFC U17 Asian Cup™ Saudi Arabia 2026 up for grabs, the CommBank Joeys must finish top of their group to secure their Finals spot next year.
All group winners will progress to the 21st edition of the Finals, where they will join the nine AFC representatives from the FIFA U-17 World Cup Qatar 2025 who have automatically qualified, namely Qatar, Uzbekistan, Saudi Arabia, Korea Republic, DPR Korea, Japan, Tajikistan, United Arab Emirates and Indonesia.
Quotes attributable to CommBank Joeys Head Coach Carl Veart:
“This will be my third camp with the players since taking charge of the CommBank Joeys and the most important so far in this group’s development. I’m excited to see the things we’ve been working on in those camps be put into action across these four games.
“We’ve been aiming to challenge the boys in different ways and provide invaluable experience as part of our preparations for these AFC U17 Asian Cup™ Saudi Arabia 2026 Qualifiers and now is the time for this squad to show us what they’ve learned.
“I believe that we have put a strong squad together which is capable of competing during these qualifiers, with the ultimate goal of reaching the AFC U17 Asian Cup™ in Saudi Arabia next year.”
Akol
Akon
Attacker
Sydney FC
St Marys Convent SC / Football NSW
Lachlan
Allen
Goalkeeper
Western Sydney Wanderers FC
Ramsgate RSL FC/Football NSW
Winston
Ashburner
Defender
Melbourne Victory FC
Yarraville Glory FC / Football VIC
Luke
Becvinovski
Attacker
Melbourne City FC
Pascoe Vale FC / Football VIC
Aaron
Black
Goalkeeper
Perth Glory FC
Morley Windmills SC / Football West
Deklan
Cooper-Ndambuki
Defender
Adelaide United FC
Valley View SC / Football SA
Max
Court
Midfielder
APIA Leichhardt FC
APIA Leichhardt FC / Football NSW
Luka
Demuth
Midfielder
Melbourne City FC
Aspendale Stingrays SC / Football VIC
Oliver
Dimovski
Defender
Melbourne Victory FC
Whittlesea Ranges FC / Football VIC
Akeem
Gerald
Attacker
Melbourne City FC
FC Bulleen Lions / Football VIC
Georgio
Hassarati
Attacker
Western Sydney Wanderers FC
Putney Rangers FC / Football NSW
Emile
Katrib
Defender
Western Sydney Wanderers FC
Panania Diggers SC / Football NSW
William
Kengni
Defender
Melbourne Victory FC
Whittlesea Ranges FC / Football VIC
Miles
Milliner
Defender
Sydney FC
Collaroy Cromer Strikers FC / Football NSW
Sajjad
Nasiri
Midfielder
Adelaide United FC
Ingle Farm SC / Football SA
Hugo
Ng
Goalkeeper
Adelaide United FC
Metrostars / Football SA
Henrique
Oliveira
Midfielder
Macarthur Bulls FC
Adelaide Port Pirates / Football SA
Malik
Olukhale
Attacker
Melbourne Victory FC
Brunswick Zebras SC / Football VIC
Aston
Reid
Midfielder
Sydney FC
Lilli Pilli FC / Football NSW
Marcus
Savic
Defender
Western Sydney Wanderers FC
Moorebank Sports SC / Football NSW
Jariyah
Shah
Defender
Manchester United FC
Doncaster Rovers FC / ENG
Emmett
Shaw
Midfielder
Brisbane Roar FC
Centenary Stormers FC / Football QLD
Lenny
Van Heer
Midfielder
Djurgårdens IF Fotboll
Williams Landing FC / Football VIC
CommBank Joeys Squad | AFC U17 Asian Cup™ Saudi Arabia 2026 Qualifiers
Jordan v AustraliaDate: Monday, November 24, 2025 Venue: Aqaba StadiumKick-off: 16:00 local/00:00 AEDT (Tuesday, November 25) Australia v BhutanDate: Tuesday, November 26, 2025 Venue: Aqaba StadiumKick-off: 19:00 local/03:00 AEDT (Wednesday, November 27) Philippines v AustraliaDate: Friday, November 28, 2025 Venue: Aqaba StadiumKick-off: 16:00 local/00:00 AEDT (Saturday, November 29) Australia v IraqDate: Sunday, November 30, 2025Venue: Aqaba StadiumKick-off: 19:00 local/03:00 AEDT (Monday, December 1)