FFA Community Football Ambassador and Matildas star Heather Garriock will give local fans something to cheer about after signing for NSW Champions Illawarra Stingrays.
While many Matildas stars are heading overseas, FFA Community Football Ambassador and experienced national team midfielder Heather Garriock will give local fans something to cheer about after signing for NSW Champions Illawarra Stingrays.
Australia-s most-capped current player has spent recent years plying her trade with top clubs in Denmark, Sweden and, during 2008, with Chicago Red Stars in USA-s elite WPS league.
After showing the way for the current crop of Matildas - around a dozen are bound for the likes of England, Denmark, Sweden, Germany, USA and Canada - Garriock is bucking the trend to concentrate on domestic matters.
The Sydney FC skipper missed the conclusion to the recent Westfield W-League season following eye surgery and the decision to spend the winter playing locally will also provide an opportunity to focus on her role as FFA Community Football Ambassador.
Garriock, along with Brett Emerton, is the face of FFA's Strategic Plan which connects the grassroots to the game's elite and professional tiers, with a focus on the MyFootballClub national online community football registration.
FFA this week confirmed the success of the scheme which has registered 100,000 players in its first month of operation for 2012.
Garriock - a veteran of 134 appearances in a glittering 13-year international career - says turning out for the Stingrays is a chance to, at least in a small way, give back to the community.
The veteran of three FIFA Women-s World Cups and two-time Olympian will be aiming to help the club to a fourth successive NSW Premier League title and, at the same time, provide Sydney and Wollongong-based fans an opportunity to see a national team star at a local ground.
Garriock helps fill the void at the Wollongong club by local heroine Michelle Heyman, with the Westfield W-League top goalscorer linking with leading Danish club Brondby.