Brisbane Roar rising star Grace Kuilamu has received her first CommBank Matildas call-up alongside new teammate, Chloe Lincoln, ahead of the upcoming June/July international window.
Kuilamu played her junior football at Souths United FC, where she remained until age 12 before joining the Football Queensland QAS (Queensland Academy of Sport).
The 17-year-old was regularly selected for the Junior Matildas before captaining the Young Matildas and scoring on debut in February’s Pacific Aus Sports Four Nations tournament opener that resulted in a 9-0 victory over Vanuatu.
The young Queenslander made her Brisbane Roar debut in Round 1 of the 23/24 season against Melbourne Victory, where she became the youngest ever Ninja A-League Women’s goal-scorer, aged just 16 years and 216 days old.
Kuilamu had a stellar 24/25 season in orange after returning to the pitch from an ACL injury that she acquired last year, scoring five goals in 18 games and bagging three assists.
Speaking on her first national team call-up, Kuilamu said: “I’m honestly just honoured to get the opportunity of representing Australia, I still can’t really believe it, it’s always been a dream to play for the Matildas, so now that I have the opportunity it’s pretty surreal.
“I’m looking forward to being able to put on the jersey and work beside various Matildas with the experience that they have, as well as meeting the head coach and staff.
“It’s definitely an exciting moment and step in my football journey that I didn’t see coming.”
Brisbane Roar are beyond proud of our A-League Women’s program that continues to develop young Queenslanders into Matildas with the likes of Tameka Yallop, Katrina Gorry, Clare Polkinghorne, Hayley Raso, Mackenzie Arnold and Cortnee Vine, and more recently Sharn Freier and Laini Freier.
This first call up for Kuilamu marks a total of five Matildas at Brisbane Roar in the past 12 months with the addition of Sharn Freier, Laini Freier, Tameka Yallop and Chloe Lincoln.
Shot stopper Chloe Lincoln signed on with Brisbane Roar from Western United for the upcoming 25/26 season after making her Matildas debut against Chinese Taipei in December last year.
Lincoln has been a regular in the Australian national team pathway, representing Australia at the 2022 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup, the 2024 AFC U-20 Women’s Asian Cup and the 2024 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup.
Despite being just 20 years old, Lincoln arrives in Brisbane with more than 50 Ninja A-League Women games under her belt, establishing herself as one of Australia’s brightest goalkeeping talents.
Prior to her time in Tarneit, the shot-stopper spent three seasons with Canberra United, where she made 39 appearances after debuting in the Ninja A-League Women as a 17-year-old.
Head Coach Alex Smith shared his excitement for both Kuilamu and Lincoln and his pride in the success of the women’s program.
“I am beyond thrilled for Grace to get her first call-up,” Smith said.
“She is extremely talented, has a top attitude and I am really looking forward to watching her at that level. The sky is the limit for her.
“Very pleased that Chloe has been called in as well. This selection will only add to her experience as a full international goalkeeper and give her confidence moving into preseason.
“I am also extremely delighted that the program, from the QAS to the A-League Women, is producing results. Grace has come through the system here in QLD and I couldn’t be prouder of all the work that has been done by everyone involved.”
The CommBank Matildas kick off their international friendlies with a two-match series against Slovenia at HBF Park on Thursday, 26 June 2025 (9:00pm AEST) and Sunday, 29 June 2025 (8:00pm AEST) before travelling to Bunbury to host Panama at Hands Oval on Saturday, 5 July 2025 (4:30pm AEST) and then returning to HBF Park on Tuesday, 8 July 2025 (8:00pm AEST). Both Kuilamu and Lincoln will be participating in the matches against Panama only.
