On the eve of DonateLife Week, twelve Australians, all with an amazing story of survival against the odds, have been officially announced as the Australian National Team to participate in the first-ever Transplant Football world Cup.
Against a backdrop of the Sydney Harbour Bridge, it was a defining moment for the players who represent an extra 95 years of life and counting – all because of the generosity of someone else.
The players – with heart, liver, lung, kidney and bone marrow transplants – will participate in the World Cup to be held in Cervia, Italy, from September 8-14. Eleven countries will be represented in this inaugural event.
The squad is part of the Transplant Australia Football Club which plays with the simple but profoundly important motto – ‘thanks for life’.
Five kidney transplant recipients, four liver recipients and a recipient each of double lungs, heart and bone marrow make up the team.
Transplant Australia CEO, Chris Thomas, said the key messages of DonateLife Week were to encourage all Australians to discuss donation with their families and register as organ and tissue donors.
“These 12 footballers help to illustrate the value of donation and what someone can achieve when they receive the gift of life. They are the ‘living proof’ that organ and tissue donation transforms lives,” Mr Thomas said.
The team to represent Australia is:
| Nick Brady | Kidney | Thornton, NSW |
| Nickolas De Bonis | Liver | Samford Valley, QLD |
| Ante Kelic | Liver | Bellbrae, VIC |
| Nick King | Liver | Bayswater, VIC |
| Alex Liebmann | Kidney | Mona Vale, NSW |
| Alec Maddocks | Liver | Surfers Paradise, QLD |
| Jake Maudsley | Kidney | Windermere Park, NSW |
| Nizam Mazlan | Kidney | Point Cook, VIC |
| Brendan Ryland | Heart | Marrickville, NSW |
| Matt Wills | Double Lung | Parkhurst, NSW |
| Liam Woods | Bone Marrow | Cessnock, NSW |
| Matt Zoppos | Kidney | Lyndhurst, VIC |
The team will be coached by Camryn Milne, Central Mariners FC Academy Coach.
Kidney recipient Favio Perez from Kellyville in NSW was also selected, however he withdrew from the team due to illness. Ante said: “We hope to make our donors, country and families proud. Favio will very much be in our thoughts as he battles illness. We dearly hope to see him on the pitch again one day soon”.
Joining the players for the announcement were Chair of the Football Players Association and former Socceroo, Francis Awaritefe, Co-Medical Directors of the NSW Organ and Tisue Service, Drs Elena Cavazonni and Michael O’Leary, head of the Heart Transplant Program at St Vincent’s Hospital Dr Peter Macdonald, transplant surgeon Professor Henry Pleass, family members and supporters.
The Transplant Australian National Team is proudly sponsored by the Football Players Association and Sanitarium.
The Macquarie Group Foundation has also supported the Transplant Australia Football Club through a matched dollar program. Donations can still be made by visiting: https://macquarie.benevity.org/community/fundraiser/4201
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