Above: Courtney Nevin (left) and Kyra Cooney-Cross (right) who both signed for Hammarby this week. Photo: Football Australia.
Back for the new season and offering more content and features than before – it’s Impetus’ coverage of women’s football in Sweden. Ben Gilby rounds up some of the transfer news ahead of this weekend’s Svenska Cupen Semi-Finals (19/3/22).
MATILDAS DUO HEAD TO HAMMARBY
Hammarby‘s Women’s Sporting Director Johan Lager has spoken of his joy on the club website at securing the signings of Kyra Cooney-Cross and Courtney Nevin from Melbourne Victory this week. Lager also revealed that he has been trying to sign Cooney-Cross for some time.
He said: “In Kyra we get a player who is already established in senior football despite her relatively young age. Since her national team debut in the summer of 2021, Kyra has been selected regularly for Australia, one of the world’s best national teams, and is predicted to have a bright future.
“We’ve been scouting Kyra for a long time and trying to get her here before, so it’s nice that it pays to be stubborn. We get a versatile midfielder who can play in several positions and she is an athletic player. We are convinced that she is a player who will be worth seeing and help us continue to take steps towards the top of the Damallsvenskan. It feels great to finally get Kyra here.”
Cooney-Cross herself is looking forward to the challenge. The former Western Sydney Wanderers player said: “I am very happy to come to Hammarby and take on a new challenge and chapter in my career. I’ve heard very nice things about the club and the team and I can’t wait to be a part of it.”
Nevin’s arrival sees one of Australia’s best young defenders join the Stockholm-based side, and that is something that Lager is excited about. “With Courtney, we get a strong defender who can play both full-back and centre-back. She is also a player who is already in the Australian national team.
“Courtney is a fast player and has good character. She will be able to contribute both to our defence but also to our attacking game. With Courtney, we get better coverage in the squad in all positions and we are also convinced that we get cutting edge qualities in the team. We are extremely happy that Courtney choose us over others and we see her as a very important piece of the puzzle to achieve our goals.”
Nevin also spoke about her pride of joining the club: “I am extremely excited to come to Hammarby and am grateful for the opportunity to come to such a nice club and look forward to getting started and meeting my new teammates. The Damallsvenskan is a very good league that will develop me as a player,” she said.
The pair will travel to Sweden after the conclusion of Melbourne Victory’s A-League Women Finals campaign. They face Melbourne City in the Preliminary Final this Sunday.
TRANSFER NEWS IN BRIEF:
BK Häcken have announced several signings. First, Northern Ireland international goalkeeper Jacqueline Burns from Glentoran on a two-year contract. Norwegian international midfielder Andrine Hegerberg has additionally joined from AS Roma in Italy. The deal is for two years. A third arrival has seen Marika Bergman Lundin, a midfielder who played for IK Uppsala in the second-tier Ellitettan last season. Also on board is Icelandic attacking midfielder Agla Maria Albertsdottir from Breidablik.
Newly promoted IK Brommapojkarna have announced a couple of new arrivals. First, midfielder Vaila Barsley. The Scottish player had previously played at Eskilstuna United. They additionally brought in Filippa Wallén from Vittsjö.
Djurgården have brought in two strikers. Lova Lundin has joined from French side Soyaux after previously representing Umeå IK. The second arrival is Swedish U23 international Sara Lilja Vidlund who was at KIF Örebro.
AIK have brought in Jamaican international Chinyelu Asher on a one-year deal from Washington Spirit.
Linköping announce the arrival of Japanese international Saori Takarada from Washington Spirit.
Eskilstuna United added Norwegian defender Joanna Aalstad Bækkelund who comes from Norwegian side Lyn.
SVENSKA CUPEN SEMI-FINALS
This weekend sees the last four face off. Today, Hammarby host BK Häcken ahead of tomorrow’s clash between Rosengård and Eskilstuna United.
THIS SEASON’S COVERAGE ON IMPETUS:
Our coverage of the 2022 OBOS Damallsvenskan and second-tier Elitettan is set to be bigger and better than ever as the competitions kick-off next weekend and the weekend after respectively.
Every Tuesday during the season will be our round-up of every match in the Damallsvenskan in words and pictures which, for the first time this year will contain video footage of key goals and moments from matches. The most important games in the Elitettan will also be covered as before.
We’ll also have the weekly league tables, National Team news, transfer news, and gossip from around the Swedish women’s football scene plus coverage of the Swedish clubs in UEFA Women’s Champions League action.
During the season there will also be interviews with players and coaches as well as club profiles. Make Impetus your source of news from Swedish women’s football this season.
impetusfootball.org 