Stars collide in battle for Jillaroos No.1 jersey at the World Cup

Stars collide in battle for Jillaroos No.1 jersey at the World Cup

Tamika Upton’s grand final heroics have the Newcastle fullback racing newly minted Jillaroos captain Sam Bremner to Australia’s No.1 jersey, with a Dally M-winning custodian left out of the World Cup squad.

Bremner joins Ali Brigginshaw and Kezie Apps as co-captains of Australia’s 24-player squad for next month’s World Cup, where the Jillaroos could play five games in 18 days.

The Sydney Roosters fullback’s selection caps off a stirring return after leaving the game to give birth to her second child. Bremner and Upton will both get a chance to wear the No.1 jersey during as coach Brad Donald looks to manage his side through a tournament filled with four-day turnarounds.

St George Illawarra star Emma Tonegato has been overlooked in an indication of how strong this Australian side will be when they board a plane to the UK as heavy favourites, hunting their third consecutive World Cup win.

Mal Meninga might have been talking about the Kangaroos when he said the strength of a side is shown in who misses out, but the statement rings just as true for the Jillaroos.

“That was probably the hardest decision for us to make. It shows the quality of the women’s game when someone like Emma Tonegato misses out, but you’ve also got a Dally M fullback of the year [Bremner] and a Karyn Murphy medallist [Upton] in the mix,” Donald said.

Newcastle fullback Tamika Upton has been named in Australia’s World Cup squad.Credit:Getty

“Because of the four-day turnarounds, we will rotate the team as best as we can to give everybody an opportunity to be there come the semi-finals and finals. That’s pretty much what we’ll do to try to get the balance right.

“It’s going to get tougher [to pick teams]. It’s hard, because a number of players who have helped dig the well are the ones that are missing out. I want to acknowledge the NRLW clubs in how they’ve adapted and made sure those players are prepared and the product is great. It’s not like preparing a men’s team.

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“We’ve seen nearly all of the NRLW clubs since its inception make the grand final. They’ve taken it extremely seriously. The success of the 2017 team is probably why we’ve got an NRLW. We’ve come a long way since 2018.”

Australia’s campaign begins against the Cook Islands on November 3 [AEDT], before backing up twice in eight days for games against France and New Zealand. The top two sides from each pool advance to the semi-finals before the decider at Old Trafford on November 20.

Reigning Dally M medallist Raecene McGregor headlines a New Zealand squad expected to be Australia’s toughest challenger for the crown.

A Jillaroos squad containing 13 potential debutants will go into camp in a fortnight before heading to the UK later this month, with Bremner and Apps in line to lead their country for the first time.

“In our discussions around the tight turnaround, they’ve all been state captains before. Ali is the only one that has captained the Jillaroos, but Sam Bremner was named as captain of the Jillaroos in 2018 before she had her first baby,” Donald said.

“Great leaders, great people around the team. Anybody that knows them, knows they’re the right people to lead the team on and off the field.”

Australian Jillaroos squad for the 2021 World Cup

Tarryn Aiken* (Brisbane Broncos)

Kezie Apps (St George Illawarra Dragons)

Millie Boyle (Newcastle Knights)

Samantha Bremner (Sydney Roosters)

Ali Brigginshaw (Brisbane Broncos)

Lauren Brown* (Gold Coast Titans)

Jaime Chapman* (Brisbane Broncos)

Kennedy Cherrington* (Parramatta Eels)

Shenae Ciesiolka* (Brisbane Broncos)

Yasmin Clydsdale* (Newcastle Knights)

Keeley Davis (St George Illawarra Dragons)

Taliah Fuimaono* (St George Illawarra Dragons)

Tallisha Harden (Brisbane Broncos)

Caitlan Johnston* (Newcastle Knights)

Keilee Joseph* (Sydney Roosters)

Isabelle Kelly (Sydney Roosters)

Olivia Kernick* (Sydney Roosters)

Shannon Mato* (Gold Coast Titans)

Evania Pelite* (Gold Coast Titans)

Julia Robinson (Brisbane Broncos)

Jessica Sergis (Sydney Roosters)

Simaima Taufa (Parramatta Eels)

Tamika Upton* (Newcastle Knights)

Holli Wheeler (St George Illawarra Dragons)

*Denotes Jillaroos debutant

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