Western Sydney Wanderers have appointed Kat Smith as head coach for the next two Liberty A-League seasons.
Smith arrives as a replacement for Catherine Cannuli, who stepped down after being promoted to head coach in 2021, after leading Alamein FC in the Victorian Women’s NPL.
An AFC/FFA Pro License holder, Smith was named the 2018 Female Coach of the Year during her time as an assistant with Melbourne Victory, while she worked with the Matildas at the 2019 Women’s World Cup.
Smith, who has been assisting the Junior Matildas, said: “It’s really exciting. The timing of the opportunity couldn’t be any better given it’s on the eve of the boom of women’s football in this country.
“I’m really excited to take on this opportunity at such a big club and ride that wave to bring success on and off the field,” said Smith.
“In sport, we know that continuity does drive performance. Success breeds off the back of that so to have the opportunity to build that over the next two seasons is something that I hope will lead towards results and success.
“Obviously, there’s the aspiration in this league to make Finals as that is the structure in place for the Liberty A-League competition.
“My driver is to be the best version of myself for these players as they have so many opportunities in front of them. For me personally, it’s bringing something to their journey and to their lives that’s positive and that’s going to create change and success for them.”
Smith will work alongside Wanderers Head of Women’s Football Tom Sermanni after Western Sydney finished second from bottom last season.
“The key thing here is that it’s a significant appointment on several levels. When you look at Kat’s background, you see that she has accumulated an impressive resume in football to get to this stage,” said Sermanni.
“Kat is a fantastic example for aspiring coaches having been part of the elite youth level, senior Matildas staff, an assistant coach and a head coach in the National Premier League.
“This shows that she’s ready to be running our women’s program as she has built the foundations of her coaching career.”
