One-on-one with Elissia Carnavas: “The Matildas have got the hopes of the nation on their shoulders”

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Image credit: IOIO IMAGES / Shutterstock.com

There are less than 30 days left until the highly anticipated Women’s World Cup takes centre stage in Australia and New Zealand, which has sold over one million tickets – surpassing the previous tournament in France in 2019.

In a wide-ranging chat with Soccerscene, ex-Matilda and commentator for the upcoming Women’s World Cup, Elissia Carnavas, touches on the meaning behind co-hosting a World Cup, the women’s game in the country, preparations before commentating, pronouncing a difficult name, how the Matildas will fare and which players we will keep an eye out for.

What does hosting the World Cup mean for the nation?

Elissia Carnavas: It’s such a huge opportunity for Australia and Australian football, but l also think it’s such a huge honour for women’s sport.

From my angle as a football fan and former player, for the code it’s a fantastic honour with the trajectory of where things are going in the country for women’s sport and around the globe.

For us to host, this is enormous – l really hope it is everything that we imagined it to be and more.

Do you think people will become more involved in the women’s game, especially in Australia, after such a major tournament?

Elissia Carnavas: I think for any major sporting event that comes to Australia, both domestic and international, we are a sporting nation and we really do get on board and get behind these massive events.

What it is going to do to our sport is shine a massive spotlight here and internationally, but l do hope that as far as a take-up of football in our country and the sustainability of the code that we are able to build on it.

We need to get everyone behind it who is involved in the game to start to capitalise on that exposure to really take this game to the next level.

What are the few things that excite you in the commentary role for the tournament?

Elissia Carnavas: I love commentary and everything about it, personally it is just talking about the game day in, day out.

To be able to impart my knowledge of the game with the football public, given l have been around the game a long time over the years from an era that wasn’t as popular as what we are seeing now, l am excited to share the history with the viewers and the listeners.

What is involved in the preparation before a tournament or a game?

Elissia Carnavas: There is a lot of preparation involved in comms and the production of that, by actively keeping on top of players and squads, who is travelling, injuries to certain players.

There is a big research and development section in commentary that we need to be across and making sure that we are giving viewers and listeners accurate real time information to when we go live, a lot of it is in the build-up and keeping track of 32 teams and all their preparation.

How would you go about pronouncing a difficult name?

Elissia Carnavas: l come from an ethnic background, so l am used to difficult names. It is a bit of fun for me it’s not so much a challenge for me when you’re used to different pronunciations and different areas of the globe.

I personally believe in being completely respectful of correct pronunciations. l don’t have the easiest name myself, so l do make an effort just to get across pronunciations – sometimes l have reached out to players directly and said let me get this right for you because l think it is a respect for players and the different areas in which they come from.

How do you think the Matildas will perform?

Elissia Carnavas: The Matildas have got the hopes of the nation on their shoulders. While it’s a huge honour to have a home World Cup, it’s also an enormous amount of pressure when they do start to play.

The most difficult thing that Tony Gustavsson and the team have is the injury clouds at the moment, and l think that it will be the catalyst to how they will perform.

They will go well but l believe that it is the balance of expectation and making sure that they deliver on the day, however we should see a Round of 16 and quarter-final result.

Which players in the Matildas team do you think will be the one to watch?

Elissia Carnavas: I’m a huge fan of Sam Kerr and what she has done not only for the game, but also for herself in women’s football – it is a huge achievement where she has managed to get herself in terms of recognition and performance over the last few years.

For me, the player to watch is Caitlin Foord, as good as she is I sometimes feel she can be a little underrated just because of Sam’s presence in the squad and they play in very similar areas in the park.

Caitlin Foord is the linchpin between midfield and attack, she is a strong forward and a naturally gifted athlete.

The other player for me who is young but is the future, is Kyra Cooney-Cross. If she can step up and perform as she always does, with the injection of Katrina Gorry around her as well, they have been outstanding when they have played together. Kyra is another one to watch for this World Cup.

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Gold Coast International drives futsal growth as international interest surges

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Image Credits: Experience Gold Coast

The 2027 Gold Coast International is set to be the biggest year of growth in the tournament’s history. The tournament has become one of Australia’s premier futsal events. Attracting the best teams from not just Australia but around the world. Andrew Parkes is the founder and managing director of the Gold Coast City Futsal Association and an advisory board member at Football Queensland. He says the tournament, and its international reputation, is only strengthening.

“Registrations are actually a step up from what they were last year,” Parkes said.

“We’ve got several teams from New Zealand. At the moment, we’ve got some Pacific Island teams that have expressed interest in coming. We got interest from Japan, and from England as well.

“We’ve got over 140 teams so far, and that’s not including anything from the local areas.”

Over 200 teams attended the 2026 edition, and the Gold Coast International is well set to break that record next year. The figures show the tournament is becoming more than a local competition. It is building a strong national and international presence.

Football Queensland and Football Australia unite behind growth

Parkes believes collaboration has played a major role in the development of futsal in Queensland. The tournament is sanctioned by both Football Queensland and Football Australia. He praised Football Queensland for its work across the sport. He said the organisation has helped create a stronger and more professional futsal system. This relationship between state and national bodies and the event has allowed the Gold Coast to play host to the national competition as well. This ensures shared resources including referees and courts.

“Football Queensland have been a major driving force and a godsend in relation to the development of futsal,” Parkes said.

“We’ve got the nationals the week before the Gold Coast International now. We’re working in harmony and synergy and supporting each other.

“I think the proofs in the pudding, not just with the Gold Coast International, but with the exposure and obviously the diversity of teams that attend. But then the further development in our local leagues, and that’s resulted in.”

E-sports adds another pathway for players and clubs

E-sports has become another major part of the Gold Coast International. Parkes said he had explored the idea for several years and that the tournament allows the community to grow beyond just the physical players on the court. The use of e-sports also allows friends and families to have an interactive experience with simulators and games whilst at the Gold Coast International.

“We launched e-sports about 2 years ago, just with a bit of a light feel. We’ve incorporated the competition into the tournament fees, which is excellent. So it doesn’t cost anybody anymore to be part of it,” Parkes said.

“It actually allows the clubs and academies to extend on their current offerings as it is at the moment and allows gaming players to be part of the club, to be part of the atmosphere and to join and that unity and be part of that sporting community.”

“We had three times the amount of teams that we had from the first year of e-sports. We’re looking to probably even double that again this year, which is really exciting as well.”

New pathways shape the tournament’s future

Parkes wants the Gold Coast International to keep expanding. He is now looking at ways to create pathways beyond the tournament itself. He said the use of its international experiences that can be earned through the tournament is not only about investing in players. But ensuring coaches have a more time-efficient avenue to be involved with futsal. It also gives more coaches the chance to work with players at an international tournament.

“We’ve now created the Gold Coast International All Stars, which is now embraced by many of the coaches and the players,” Parkes said.

“That also provides coaches who don’t have the time or the ability or whatever for the state teams, and the commitment that they need to put in the state teams throughout the year.”

“It allows us to have a lot more outreach to far more coaches that have a lot of passion and enthusiasm, and be part of the Futsal community. They want to build on the players’ abilities but may not have that year-long or eight-month-long exposure that is required by the state Futsal team coaching staff.”

For Parkes, the future is about widening access while continuing to raise standards. The tournament is growing its international reach, strengthening partnerships and creating new opportunities for both physical and e-sports players. The Gold Coast International is no longer just a tournament. It is becoming a broader platform for the development of futsal and its wider community.

For more information on the Gold Coast International and to inquire about competing in the 2027 edition, visit their website.

The Spreadsheet Is Dead: Majestri’s Fix for How Clubs Actually Assess Players

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If you’ve ever sat through a club’s end-of-season review, you’ll know the drill. A coach pulls out a folder of notes, someone half-remembers what a player was like back in Round 3 and a parent quietly wonders what they actually got for their rego fees beyond a team photo. Football club platform Majestri says it has a fix for that, and it’s built directly into its Player Assessment module.

Why clubs bother assessing players in the first place

According to Majestri, clubs run player assessments for one of three reasons – usually more than one at once. Some are chasing genuine development, using the data to lift the level across their high-performance squads. Others are after a fairer way to pick teams, putting every player on the same measurable scale so selection is based on evidence rather than a coach’s gut feel about who “looks the part.” And for clubs operating under a Football Australia or state federation licence, assessments at set intervals often aren’t optional – they’re a compliance requirement, with the paperwork to prove it when asked.

Whatever the motivation, Majestri’s pitch is the same: don’t let that assessment data die in a spreadsheet on someone’s laptop.

Build your own assessment, your way

There’s no one-size-fits-all template here. The Assessment Designer lets technical directors set their own criteria, sort them into whatever categories their coaching staff already use – think core skills, possession, defending, attacking – and decide what each point on the rating scale actually means. Crucially, every criterion also gets a comment field, because a bare number rarely tells the full story of a player’s development.

The Assessment Module Builder for an NPL Juniors assessment
The Assessment Module Builder, showing an NPL Juniors assessment with a 1-10 rating scale banded from under performing through to excelling and role-specific criteria grouped into core skills, possession, defending and attacking. Source: Majestri.

Build it once and it’s reusable every time that assessment cycle comes around, so every player and every coach – is working off the same yardstick.

Something for the parents to actually take home

One of the more relatable pain points Majestri is targeting: most families never see much tangible return from a season of fees beyond a team photo. Player Assessment addresses that with report cards – colour-coded against the same scale coaches used, grouped by category with averages calculated automatically, and delivered as a PDF or an interactive web page a parent can read without needing a coaching badge themselves.

A player report card for an under-15 player
A report card for an under-15 player, colour-coded from under performing to excelling, with a score for every criterion and a group average across core skills, possession, defending and attacking. Source: Majestri.

 

Turning the numbers into something useful

The real value, though, sits in what Majestri calls the Player Analysis Lab. This is where clubs can plot a player against their team-mates or an entire age group across two categories at once, spotting clusters and outliers at a glance. Every score gets read against the group average – so a “7” actually means something in context – and clubs can report at the broad category level or drill into individual fields underneath. The results can be filtered down and exported for selection meetings or grading purposes.

The Player Analysis Lab comparing players in an under-15 and under-16 squad
The Player Analysis Lab comparing seven players across under-15 and under-16 squads, with a scatter plot, a sortable table of scores against the player average, and controls for choosing which categories and fields to report on. Source: Majestri.

The admin side nobody enjoys, made easier

Beyond the flashy analytics, there’s a practical layer built for the volunteers actually running the process:

  • Sweep monitoring – a quick view of which assessments are done and which are still outstanding, organised into defined assessment periods so progress can be tracked against peers.
  • Individual development plans – every player gets a personalised plan, and clubs can group common improvement areas to run cross-team training sessions that lift the whole club rather than just one squad.
  • Access control – coaches and technical staff can only see assessments for the teams they’re responsible for, and completed assessments are only visible to people linked to that player’s registration.
“Hard numbers to draw on when you review coaching staff and curriculum – and something tangible for the players and parents who pay the fees.” – Majestri

 

The bigger picture

Majestri frames all of this as sitting on top of the club’s own data – assessment results live on each player’s profile inside the platform rather than in a spreadsheet that walks out the door when a technical director moves on. For committees, it also means hard numbers to lean on when reviewing coaching staff or curriculum, rather than relying on anecdote.

It’s a fairly clear read on where club administration software is heading: less about digitising paperwork for its own sake, and more about making the data clubs already collect actually work for player development, team selection and compliance  without adding to the workload of the volunteers who run the show.

For more information on Majestri’s Player Assessment module, visit majestri.com.au/player-assessment.

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